STUDENT INCLUSION LEADER

MODERN HISTORY WW1

The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians has identified key areas that need to be addressed for the benefit of individuals and Australia as a whole. Intercultural capability aims to build a society that is ‘cohesive and culturally diverse, and that values Australia’s Indigenous cultures’.

VO Modern History classes are studying World War II this term. Before starting the unit, students needed to gain a brief understanding of World War I. One class was given a 'speed task' where students were given a topic they had to research to present in groups to the class. They were only given twenty minutes to be readty to present. The topics were:

Conscription: pros and cons
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander soldiers in World War I
Life as a soldier in World War I
Trench warfare
Gallipoli campaign
Women in war
ANZACs
End of World War I
The impact on Australia

It was easy to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander soldiers in World War I as a topic. Their experiences are relevant, and as you can see by the presentation slides the students created below, students were able to identify the perspectives of Aboriginal soldiers, including some of their triumphs and struggles.

ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER CULTURE IN THE CLASSROOM

YEAR 7 HUMANITIES

Year 7 students are currently studying Historical Concepts in Humanities. Learning how to create a scaled historical timeline is an important concept which helps the Year 7 students visualise the sequence and evolution of events from human civilization. A linear timeline is also a great way to demonstrate the sovereignty of Aboriginal people on the country which we reside.

I asked 7Y to plot a list of events from our curriculum in chronological order on a scaled timeline. On the whiteboard they plotted the current day, WWI, WW2, the Birth of Christ, the birth of Buddha, the span of the Qin Dynasty, and the reign of Tutankhamun. However, the boys whose job it was to plot the time which Mungo Man and Lady lived were stumped. 'Mungo man doesn't even fit on the whiteboard, Miss!' they complained. 'Well, get the measuring tape and figure out where it is!' I replied. The boys calculated and continued the timeline using the tape measure. By the time they got to 41,000 years ago they were out of the classroom heading towards the Maths & Science Centre! The students were amazed at the sheer time Aboriginal peoples have lived on this land.

When teaching the Western concept of a linear timeline, there is an opportunity to incorporate traditional Aboriginal concepts of time and discuss non-linear concepts such as 'the everywhen', ' the dreaming' and the meaning behind phrases such as 'Always Was, Always Will Be'.

YEAR 8 DANCE

Year 8 Dance students are participating in various types of dances.

In week 5 we had Taya from Mildura Men’s/Women’s Aboriginal Dance Group teach the students some local Indigenous dances. It was an amazing lesson and all of the students loved it.

SECONDARY YOUTH LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

On March 6 and 7, 17 students across Years 7 to 12 went to Adelaide to attend the Secondary Youth Leadership Conference designed by the Youth Leadership Academy Australia.

Upon arrival we all had a swim in the ocean, where squeals of pure joy were heard amongst the waves. After an all-you-can-eat restaurant for dinner and a sunset walk on the Glenelg Jetty, we settled in for the night in preparation for the conference on Tuesday.

The conference was a high energy event run for youth, by youth. We listened to keynote speakers including an international comedian, an aspiring Olympian who just missed out on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and an entrepreneur who started his first business at eleven years old. Our college had many mentions throughout the day as the organisers were impressed we had travelled so far. Levi McClelland, Giselle Ribarits and Emily Birch all spoke on stage and Jaxon Allen asked multiple questions. All of our students represented our college confidently and courageously.

Thanks to Marcus Parker for managing the smoking bus ten minutes into the journey, and for supporting our aspiring leaders on this camp.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

Leadership is the ability of individuals to influence and guide themselves and others.
Preparation + Action = Confidence.
Leaders realign and reflect.
A boss says ‘do it’, a leader says ‘let’s do it’.

Our students are the leaders of tomorrow. 'We are the writers of our stories, we hold the pen.'

Mrs Michelle Winderlich

Student Inclusion Leader