Year 9 Australian History
Semester 2
Revision class
Section A: Multiple choice
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You have 30 questions to answer.
Each gives you 4 choices of possible answers.
This section should be read thoroughly in reading time.
Eliminate the questions that you know are INCORRECT.
This section requires you to recall:
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Facts
Dates
Statistics
People
Events
Places
………..So on and so forth.
Example:
 1. people on ‘susso’ were given:
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A) Free cinema tickets
B) unlimited free public transport
C) a food allowance
D) employment assistance
The best method is elimination. This means to cross out the WRONG
answers to find the most likely answer.
Section B: Short Answer Questions
 In this section there are 10 questions, you MUST choose FIVE
only.
 Each is worth 6 marks.
 To get full marks you must:
A) answer EXACTLY what has been asked.
B) make 3 - 4 points in your answer (see example)
C) Use evidence or an example to support your
analysis
 Dos
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Be concise
Prepare for at least 4 different topics
Memorise evidence (quotes, statistics, legislation, visuals)
 Don’ts
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Ramble on with limited direction
Use colloquial language or slang
Don’t refer to yourself as ‘I’ or ‘my’
Example:
 1. How did Australians respond to the declaration of war in 1914?
(you must read the question carefully. Here it is asking you to explain. It is
also asking you about a very specific time; the declaration of war.)
 When war was declared in 1914 the people of Australia responded in
many different ways. There was bipartisan support by the government.
Opposition leader Andrew Fisher said that Australia would fight to the
“last man and the last shilling”. The community responded similarly,
there were celebrations in the streets and in the first two months 27,000
men signed up for service from NSW and Victoria alone. However, some
Australians opposed Australia going to war as they believed in pacifism,
others expressed the opinion that it was “not our bloody war”.
Section C: Document Analysis
 You MUST chose ONE topic. You have three options.
 You will be asked a variety of different question asking you to refer to the
document and also to your own knowledge.
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Who?
How?
What?
Strengths and limitations of the document/s
To what extent (using your own knowledge)
 You MUST attempt to use evidence from the documents (particularly
when asked) and also your own knowledge.
 ATTEMPT ALL QUESTIONS
Example:
 ... there will still be Australians fighting on Australian soil until
the turning point be reached, and we will advance over
blackened ruins, through blasted and fire-swept cities, across
scorched plains, until we drive the enemy into the sea.
 (Prime Minister John Curtin in a radio broadcast, 14 March
1942) Sourced from
http://www.ww2australia.gov.au/allin/index.html
 1. According to Prime Minister Curtin, how long were
Australians going to fight for?
 2. Using your own knowledge explain the event/s
which led Prime Minister Curtin to broadcast this
message.
 3. Identify and explain two ways Australians helped
to support the war effort on the home front.
 4. To what extent is this an accurate explanation of
the impact of Japanese attacks on Australian soil?
Section D: Essay
 You MUST chose ONE essay question only.
 You have a choice from 5.
 Your essay will require you to draw upon your own knowledge of one or
more topics studied this semester.
 You MUST provide some form of CONTENTION. This is an overall
argument.
 You are expected to use evidence and examples to support your
response.
 You should aim to make 3 - 4 points in your response.
 Your essay should be about 250 - 500 words.
Example
 1. Australian involvement in WWI was a unifying experience for all
Australians.
To what extent do you agree?
 The first thing you must do is develop your own opinion. This can be
most easily achieved by turning the statement into a question. Ie. Was
Australia’s experience in WWI unifying for all Australians?
 For a more difficult questions you will need to underline the key words
and the limiting statements. Ie. Australian involvement in WWI was a
unifying experience for all Australians.
 Once you have decided what you think then you must take 2 - 3 mins to
plan your argument.
 Eg. It was unifying for white men, but not for women, or foreigners.
 Because:
a) ANZAC legend brought men together. It was a sign of
 manliness if you fought for your country, however some
men were pacifists and didn’t want to fight others had other
priorities.
 b) Women were seen as fragile and could only be nurses.
They had to wait at home for the boys to return
 c) Foreigners were feared by Australians and were under
strict surveillance as stated in the War Precautions Act.
German Australians in particular were persecuted. They
were spat on, beaten up and locked up in internment
camps.
 From here you need to construct an introduction and write the body
paragraphs of your essay. Don’t forget your conclusion.
 REMEMBER: that your argument MUST be clear and that the more you
use evidence to support your argument the better. This will get you the
best possible marks.
HANDY HINTS
 Have a healthy lunch before your exam. Nuts, grain bread fruit ()
lollies, energy drinks ()
 Have a good night’s sleep Sunday.
 Have a bottle of water with you.
 Have at least 3 pens (black or blue)
 Liquid paper is a waste of time. Cross it out and write else where.
 Read ALL instructions carefully. If you misread the question you miswrite
the answer.
 Make sure you attempt ALL questions (particularly document questions)