British Colonisation of Australia
The aim of this unit is to apply skills of historical inquiry to explore issues related to Australia’s original inhabitants, and the British arrival and occupation of Australia. The unit is divided into four learning sequences. Each sequence is intended to span approximately two lessons.
The following concepts are taught:
Continuity and change: (some things change over time and others remain the same) Students will gain an appreciation of the cultural and linguistic diversity of the original inhabitants. Students will gain an appreciation of the “Dreaming” and its significance in Aboriginal culture. Students will be exposed to traditional art and music. They will also gain an understanding of the system of laws and customs that existed at the time the British arrived. The doctrine of “Terra Nullius” is exposed as a myth.
Cause and consequence: (events, decisions or developments in the past that produce later actions, results or effects) Students will learn why the British settled in Australia and some of the early impacts of that settlement.
Perspectives: (people from the past will have different views and experiences) There is an emphasis on obtaining information from different sources in order to develop understandings of different viewpoints of one event.
Empathy: (developing an understanding of another’s views, life and decisions made) Students are encouraged to empathise with both the original inhabitants and the “new arrivals” and consider what they may have been thinking and feeling at the time and what their everyday life was like. Students are invited to compare and contrast the arrival of the British with today’s immigrants to Australia.
Significance: (importance of an event, development or individual/group) Students will explore case studies of key figures from both societies including Captain Arthur Phillip, Bennelong, Barrangaroo, Governor King and Pemulwuy.
Throughout the unit issues of intercultural understanding, ecological sustainability and social justice will be highlighted.
Key Inquiry Questions:
What do we know about Australia before the British came?
Why did the British come to Australia?
How did the arrival of the British change the lives of the original inhabitants?
What was life like for the people who arrived from Britain?
The aim of this unit is to apply skills of historical inquiry to explore issues related to Australia’s original inhabitants, and the British arrival and occupation of Australia. The unit is divided into four learning sequences. Each sequence is intended to span approximately two lessons.
The following concepts are taught:
Continuity and change: (some things change over time and others remain the same) Students will gain an appreciation of the cultural and linguistic diversity of the original inhabitants. Students will gain an appreciation of the “Dreaming” and its significance in Aboriginal culture. Students will be exposed to traditional art and music. They will also gain an understanding of the system of laws and customs that existed at the time the British arrived. The doctrine of “Terra Nullius” is exposed as a myth.
Cause and consequence: (events, decisions or developments in the past that produce later actions, results or effects) Students will learn why the British settled in Australia and some of the early impacts of that settlement.
Perspectives: (people from the past will have different views and experiences) There is an emphasis on obtaining information from different sources in order to develop understandings of different viewpoints of one event.
Empathy: (developing an understanding of another’s views, life and decisions made) Students are encouraged to empathise with both the original inhabitants and the “new arrivals” and consider what they may have been thinking and feeling at the time and what their everyday life was like. Students are invited to compare and contrast the arrival of the British with today’s immigrants to Australia.
Significance: (importance of an event, development or individual/group) Students will explore case studies of key figures from both societies including Captain Arthur Phillip, Bennelong, Barrangaroo, Governor King and Pemulwuy.
Throughout the unit issues of intercultural understanding, ecological sustainability and social justice will be highlighted.
Key Inquiry Questions:
What do we know about Australia before the British came?
Why did the British come to Australia?
How did the arrival of the British change the lives of the original inhabitants?
What was life like for the people who arrived from Britain?