Centenary State High School
The school
Centenary State High School began
in 1999 in response to community
support for a secondary school in the
Centenary suburbs of Brisbane.
Since this time the school has grown
rapidly, and in 2003 has a student
population of 1,140 students.
Courtesy Centenary State High School
It is a state secondary school and is located in Jindalee in Brisbane's western suburbs.
The school started with Years 8, 9 and 11 in 1999 and extended to Years 10 and 12 in
2000. The school offers a range of Authority and non-Authority subjects in the senior
school. A unitised vertical curriculum has been developed to meet student needs in the
junior school.
Contact details
1 Moolanda Street
Jindalee Queensland 4074
Website: http://www.centenaryshs.com/
Program overview
The unit 'Rights and Wrongs: Indigenous Australians and the Democratic System' is
aimed at Level 6 in the Studies of Society and Environment (SOSE) curriculum. The
unit outline is based on student inquiry. For continuity and skill development it uses
the five-stage inquiry approach adopted for the new trial Modern and Ancient History
syllabuses in Queensland. The aspects of this style of inquiry include:
 defining the scope of the inquiry;
 examining sources;
 investigating backgrounds, changes and continuities, motives and causes;
 examining the major effects, interests and arguments;
 reflecting.
The project incorporates information and communication technology (ICT) by using
CD-ROMS and word-processing software. However, the main ICT focus is the use of
a variety of technologies to enable students to develop a multimedia presentation. The
unit is designed to cover 21 hours of class time (seven weeks).
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Students working on their multimedia project. Courtesy Centenary State High School
In our school the unit is the first Level 6 SOSE unit. It is generally completed by
students in the second semester of Year 9. However, as 'Rights and Wrongs' is part of
our unitised vertical curriculum it could also be undertaken by younger students
accelerating their studies or by older students who need more time to achieve the
outcomes of the SOSE curriculum.
The students
In 2003 two classes (a total of 48 students) have trialled the unit. Students in these
classes are all taking the standard pathway in SOSE and therefore generally have
literacy levels expected of 14-year-olds. There are no students with learning
disabilities following this pathway this semester. We will be trialling the unit with a
'catch-up' class of students next semester. The classes undertaking the unit next
semester will be undertaking activities linked to the school's literacy program, which
is a key project in our school. There are two teachers involved with no teacher aide
assistance within the classroom.
Learning needs
The aims of the unit are to:
 examine the social, economic and political effects of historical events on
Indigenous Australians;
 evaluate Australia's democracy from the perspective of Indigenous Australians;
 examine the roles of prominent Indigenous Australians in political life and in the
wider community;
 engage students in reflecting on what they have learnt and how this study has
influenced their personal development.
The unit focuses on the relationship between Indigenous Australians and the
democratic system. The SOSE department plans to embed the Common Curriculum
Elements into the curriculum and to achieve this using student inquiry.
The program was designed to address the needs of Level 6 students and to incorporate
the key values from the Years 1 to 10 SOSE Syllabus. These values are democratic
process, social justice, ecological and economic sustainability and peace. The
program was also designed to incorporate the processes of investigating, creating,
participating, communicating and reflecting. The Queensland school curriculum is
designed to assist students become lifelong learners.
The unit provides opportunities for students to develop in each of the following areas
outlined in the syllabus document:
 a knowledgeable person with deep understanding;
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a complex thinker;
a creative person;
an active investigator;
an effective communicator;
a participant in an interdependent world;
a reflective and self-directed learner.
Learning outcomes
The following Level 6 outcomes from the Queensland Years 1 to 10 SOSE Syllabus
have been addressed.
Time, Continuity and Change 6.1
Time, Continuity and Change 6.3
Time, Continuity and Change 6.4
Culture and Identity 6.1
Culture and Identity 6.4
Culture and Identity Discretionary
Learning Outcome 6.7
Systems, Resources and Power 6.5
Students evaluate evidence from the past to
demonstrate how such accounts reflect the
culture in which they were constructed.
Students collaboratively identify the values
underlying contributions by diverse individuals
and groups in Australian or Asian environments.
Students produce a corroborated argument
concerning causes of a change or continuity in
environments, media or gender roles. (Focus on
media.)
Students analyse the ways in which various
societies inhibit or promote cultural diversity.
Students describe instances of cultural change
resulting from government legislation or
policies that have impacted on cultural groups.
Students evaluate a country's response to
internal dissent or cultural diversity.
Students apply understandings of social justice
and democratic process to suggest ways of
improving access to economic and political
power.
Discovering Democracy resources used
A range of Discovering Democracy resources has been used in the development of
this unit. These are:
 Australian Readers Discovering Democracy Lower Secondary Collection: 'When
Law Breaks Down' (The Myall Creek Massacre pp 17–19); 'Unity and Diversity'
(White Australia pp 55–6; My Place p 57).
 Discovering Democracy Middle Secondary Units Assessment Resources: 'Human
Rights' (Rights Denied to Indigenous Australians pp 40–7).
 Discovering Democracy Middle Secondary Units: 'Human Rights' pp 47–73 (with
special emphasis on 'What is Australia's record on Indigenous people's rights?' pp
67–71).
 Discovering Democracy Secondary Video: 'Men and Women in Political Life'.
 Stories of Democracy CD-ROM.
Other resources are listed in the Unit Overview.
The development of the unit
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The unit grew out of a desire by Beryl McLachlan and Denise Horton to incorporate
more Civics and Citizenship Education into our junior school SOSE program. We had
an existing unit written by Debra Mansini that covered some issues relating to
Indigenous Australians, but we wanted to incorporate a Discovering Democracy
theme or themes into the unit. Beryl, Denise and Janice Cooper developed the concept
of the Multimedia Scrapbook as a way to incorporate the contributions of Indigenous
Australians into the unit. Beryl developed the new unit outline and then Janice
developed the Multimedia Scrapbook activity. She completed all the research and
designed the entire Multimedia Scrapbook task. Steve Lippingwell has joined our
original team at the conclusion of the project as he is teaching the unit. He has
developed the criteria sheet to accompany our multimedia task. Debra has overseen
the implementation of the unit and the final presentation of materials for publication.
Evaluation
Formative evaluation is ongoing in the classroom. The major summative piece is the
Multimedia Scrapbook. The multimedia activity clearly outlines what the students
need to do and a criteria sheet has been developed to accompany this.
Reflections
As a team we are very happy with our collaboration and the product developed.
Factors contributing to the success of the unit were the support received from the
school administration team in providing time for planning, the dedication of the team
members and the enthusiasm of the students. The main obstacle we have found is that
websites change and need to be checked regularly. This was not, however, a major
problem.
Acknowledgements
Project team leader: Beryl McLachlan
Contributing teachers: Janice Cooper, Denise Horton, Steve Lippingwell, Debra
Mansini
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