12 Modern History

SUBJECT OVERVIEW

Students investigate the growth of modern nations at a time of rapid global change. They engage in a study of one nation, and of interactions between or among nations. Students investigate the social, political, and economic changes that shaped the development of that nation.

Students will explore relationships among nations and groups, examine some significant and distinctive features of the world since 1945, and consider their impact on the contemporary world.

Students build their skills in historical method, explore different interpretations, draw conclusions and develop reasoned historical arguments.

Students investigate the political and economic interactions of nations and the impact of these interactions on national, regional, and/or international development. They consider how some nations, including some emerging nations, have sought to impose their influence and power, and how others have sought to forge their own destiny.

Through their studies, students build their skills in historical method through inquiry, by examining and evaluating the nature of sources. This includes who wrote or recorded them, whose history they tell, whose stories are not included and why, and how technology is creating new ways in which histories can be conveyed. Students explore different interpretations, draw conclusions, and develop reasoned historical arguments.

Topics may include

Students will study one topic from the following ‘Modern Nations’ options

• Australia (1901-56)
• United States of America (1914-45)
• Germany (1918-48)
• Soviet Union and Russia (1945-2004)
• Indonesia (1942-2005)
• China (1949 – 1999)

Students will study one topic from the following ‘The World Since 1945’ options:

• The changing world order (1945-)
• Australia’s relationship with Asia and the South Pacific region (1945-)
• National self-determination in South-East Asia (1945-)
• The struggle for peace in the Middle East (1945-)
• Challenges to peace and security (1945-)
• The United Nations and establishment of a global perspective