New Worlds
Year 9
Last term, Year 9 completed their English unit ‘New Worlds’ assessment task. This task allowed students the opportunity to interview a family member or famous person who had come to Australia from overseas.
The diverse backgrounds at Cecil Hills High School allowed for a reflection moment for many students. A large number of students took the opportunity to interview their family members and discover new stories.
Here are a few of them:
Calabria
Isabella Grasso
Who did you interview?
My Grandmother
Where and when did they come from?
My grandmother migrated from the region of Calabaria, in Italy in 1962 at the age of three. My grandmother’s parents (my great-grandparents) decided to migrate to Australia because there were more employment opportunities here, as well as a better future.
What are some interesting things you found out from your interview?
I found out many interesting facts from the interview, like how my grandmother suffered from extreme sea sickness on the long six week journey, and how she and her three siblings were required to speak Italian at all times when they were home.
Uruguay
Tristan Carnovale
Who did you interview? My Mother
Where and when did they come from?
My mother and her family arrived in Australia from Uruguay when she was about four years old.
What are some interesting things you found out from your interview?
They were many interesting things I found out about my mother through the interview. I found out that the military ruled the government, setting up tanks at the end of every road. I also found out that citizens would be randomly selected by the military and held at gunpoint whilst reciting their ID number. Many failed this task and were displaced from their families where they were either killed or simply disappeared.
Lebanon
Christa Warda
Who did you interview?
My Mum
Where and when did they come from?
My mum and family came from Lebanon 2 years ago
What are some interesting things you found out from your interview?
From the interview I found some interesting things, like the fact my mum used to work in a sewing company. During her life in Lebanon my mum faced many bad things, like the war, where she witnessed hardship and violence.
Croatia
Dominic Muscara
Who did you interview?
My Grandfather
Where and when did they come from?
He had come from Croatia in a little village next to the city of Karlovac
What are some interesting things you found out from your interview?
I found out that when he first came to Australia he first lived in Melbourne, Victoria for a few years before finally coming to Sydney to live.
Serbia
Elena Kozul
Who did you interview?
My Dad
Where and when did they come from?
He came from former Yugoslavia. He was born in Zadar and lived in Serbia. He came to Australia in 2002 by plane travelling all alone.
What are some interesting things you found out from your interview?
When my dad was eight years old his father was killed and his mother left him. He lived all alone for three years and with the help of his grandma he started working to save up enough to come to Australia to start a new life. The most interesting part of my dad’s story is that he started with nothing and nobody. Now he is living the best life he could with a family that loves him and a place to call home.
Thank you to our students for sharing their family story with us.
Mr Howard and Mr Collins
Year 9 Advisers