Embedding the principles of Discovering Democracy in the Living
Historians Project
Stages: 3
School: Masada College Primary School
Address: 15a Treatts Road, LINDFIELD NSW 2070
Telephone: 02 9416 8066
Facsimile: 02 9416 6520
Contact: Kate Smyth
Rationale, aims and objectives:
The Living Historians Project has been the highlight of the Year 6 calendar at
Masada College. This project runs for nine weeks and is the focus for our five
learning areas: HSIE, English, Jewish Studies, Computing and Library. The
principles of the Discovering Democracy have been embedded in this project
since the year 2000.
Masada is an Orthodox Jewish Day School with a very high percentage of
students having recently arrived in Australia. The Living Historians Project is a
unit of work designed to teach students about the principles that support
Australian democracy. It has relevance to the community and to the outcomes
of the curriculum by providing students with learning experiences to equip
them with values and attributes for participation in the political process and
contribution to civic life.
The Living Historians Project is an oral history. When the historians tell their
story, the students are offered a unique view of the past. The personal
experiences of the historian open up a view of history that cannot be found in
books.
The biographies of the historians enable the students to explore concepts of
citizenship and the rights and responsibilities of citizens. All historians are of
the age where they have all been affected in some way by World War II. For
many students, their historians were adversely affected by totalitarian regimes
so the benefits of living in a democracy could be demonstrated through
comparison of life experiences. The students could also examine issues of
immigration, citizenship and the history and operations of Australia’s system
of government.
Outcomes for principal KLA (HSIE):
CCS3.1 Explains the significance of particular people, places, groups, actions
and events in the past in developing Australian identities and heritage.
Best practice in civics and citizenship
NSW Discovering Democracy professional development
http://www.abc.net.au/civics/democracy/default.htm
CUS3.3 Describes different cultural influences and their contribution to
Australian identities.
SSS3.8 Explains the structures, roles, responsibilities and decision-making
processes of State and Federal Governments and explains why Australians
value fairness and socially just principles.
Indicators of student achievement (Discovering Democracy through Research,
page 4)
At the Upper Primary level the students can:
 use different kinds of data to obtain information
 identify evidence to support a particular idea
 identify additional information and/or interpretations that may need to be
gathered
 represent data in a variety of ways, e.g. written report, oral presentation
 work with others and in groups and determine how to report on group
investigations
 contribute to decision making at appropriate levels, such as the groups
work or the class.
Outcomes (English):
TS3.1 TS3.2
RS3.5 RS3.6 RS3.7
WS3.9 WS3.10 WS3.11 WS3.12 WS3.13 WS3.
Implementation:
The students work in small groups. They conduct three interviews with their
historian who is a senior member of the community. Before each interview,
the students write questions relating to their historian’s childhood, their
adulthood and their values. The students are taught interviewing techniques
and then, after the interview, the students organise their notes and start to
piece together the life story of their historian. The teachers then edit the
written drafts. These are published using Word and PowerPoint. The final
product is a written biography and the culmination of the project is an oral
presentation of the biographies to the historians.
Learning sequence:
1. Establish nature of the Living Historians Project
 The students will interview a senior member of the community over three,
one hour interview sessions and work cooperatively and productively in
small groups.
Best practice in civics and citizenship
NSW Discovering Democracy professional development
http://www.abc.net.au/civics/democracy/default.htm
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Ask for volunteers from the community to be living historians and inform
them of interview dates and interview themes (1st interview: childhood,
2nd interview: adulthood and 3rd interview: values)
Clarify historian’s role at a morning tea with the staff and other living
historians involved.
2. Organise groups of students
 The teachers will determine the structure of the group to suit the historian
and to best complete the task (mixed ability, interests, talents, needs and
gender)
 Allow time for groups to allocate roles (e.g. leader, recorder, art director,
archivist, interviewer, greeter, scribe or technology person).
 Clarify the parameters of the task, e.g. time available, deadlines,
resources.
3. Questioning
 Teacher to model different types of questions for students. Encourage
open-ended questions.
 Assessment task: students to write a list of five different questions relating
to interview showing different types of questions. Provide positive
reinforcement for student questions.
 Draft of interview is written. Practice interview in small groups.
4. Conducting the interview
 Arrange suitable interview times (three sessions of one hour) and confirm
interview times and dates with historians.
 Discuss with students appropriate behaviour during interviews.
 Arrange for Print Room Staff to be available to scan or copy any
documents or photographs that the historian has provided.
 Ensure that all documents are handled carefully and that all originals are
given back to the historian immediately.
5. After the interviews
 Debrief students as soon as possible.
 In their small groups, students write a summary of the interview (narrative)
while it is still fresh in their minds.
 The students should also use other means of gathering information about
their historian, e.g. photographs, documents, visas and immigration
papers.
 Provide a list of times in history which the students could discuss, research
and include in their written presentations, e.g. WWII, The Depression,
inventions.
Best practice in civics and citizenship
NSW Discovering Democracy professional development
http://www.abc.net.au/civics/democracy/default.htm
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6.
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Sources such as maps, newspaper articles, and historical accounts of
significant events that occurred during the historian’s life should be
researched.
Teachers edit drafts. The historians should also be given drafts to check.
Approved drafts published.
Layout of text and photographs.
Two copies of written presentation made (one for school archives and
original for historian).
Oral presentation
Expectations discussed.
Five-minute oral presentation prepared by small groups.
Oral presentation of the written work to the historian.
Family and friends invited to celebrate with the historians and students.
7. Follow-up activities
 Written personal response (reflection)
 P.M.I.
Resources:
Discovering Democracy through Research, 2000, Curriculum Corporation,
Carlton South, ISBN 1-86366-494-7
Human Society and Its Environment K–6 Units of Work, 1998, Board of
Studies, Sydney.
Evaluation:
The Living Historians’ project is the highlight of the year for both Year 6
students and staff at Masada College. It is an outstanding example of a unit of
work that has relevance to the community and to the outcomes of the
curriculum.
The success of The Living Historians’ project depends on the careful
organisation and ongoing commitment of the Year 6 team- the classroom
teachers as well as the Jewish Studies staff, the Librarian, the Computer
teacher and other members of the school community. Time and resources
must also be provided for the project to work. A clear learning sequence
outlining the planning and managing of the project is vital.
The Project demands time and energy from not only the staff involved but also
the students. Being able to work with others in a productive and cooperative
way is very important and is often very challenging to the students. Teachers
must be on hand to offer advice and support where needed.
Best practice in civics and citizenship
NSW Discovering Democracy professional development
http://www.abc.net.au/civics/democracy/default.htm
English outcomes as well as H.S.I.E outcomes are assessed in this project.
Although the Project is a group based unit of work the students are assessed
individually. It can often be difficult to assess individual’s level of achievement
so specific tasks need to be planned where this is possible.
The principles of Discovering Democracy have been embedded into the Living
Historians’ Project at Masada College and the students are encouraged to
research ‘bigger picture’ issues such as citizenship, immigration and
democracy. As each historian has experienced world events differently, the
teachers need to help the students understand the various issues affecting
their particular historian. For example, one historian may have lived through
World War 2 in Europe while another may have experienced the WW2 in
Sydney. The European experience may have been of Concentration Camps
or of a totalitarian regime while the Sydney experience may have been of
having a family member join the war effort or of food rationing. In each case,
the teacher must ensure that the students are asking both personal questions
as well as political or civics based questions.
The Living Historians’ Project could not be so successful without the
commitment and contribution of the historians themselves. The historians are
a valuable resource. Their biographies offer a unique view of history and world
events. Importantly too, the relationships forged between the historians and
the Year 6 students are special and often continue after the Project has
finished.
The Living Historians’ Project will continue to be an important unit of work at
Masada College. It is a demanding project with many challenges however the
learning opportunities offered through this unit are wide reaching and
important.
Best practice in civics and citizenship
NSW Discovering Democracy professional development
http://www.abc.net.au/civics/democracy/default.htm