Details for Geography and History

This subejct explores the disciplines of Geography and History as they relate to teaching in primary schools, focusing especially on the content, concepts and skills required.

Awards offering Geography and History

This unit is offered as a part of the following awards:

• Associate Degree in Education Studies
• Bachelor of Arts (Education Studies)
• Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood and Primary)
• Bachelor of Education (Primary)
• Diploma of Arts
• Diploma of Education Studies

Unit Content

Curriculum Objective

The Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS) area of the Australian Curriculum includes both History and Geography as sub-strands. In New South Wales, these subjects are taught through the Key Learning Area (KLA) of Human Society and its Environment (HSIE), which includes the History K–10 Syllabus and the Geography K–10 Syllabus. CRS204 explores the disciplines of Geography and History as they relate to teaching in primary schools, focusing especially on the content, concepts and skills required. History is the study of the past whereas Geography is the study of place. Specifically, the content of History includes the impact of people together with their cultures, politics and worldviews, their memories, their commemorations, their discoveries, artefact collection and preservation, the impact of colonisation and immigration, and how we interpret and learn from the past. Geography focuses on the interrelationship between the physical and human elements of the environment, including climate and the atmosphere, oceans and coasts, rivers and valleys, population and migration, food and health, settlement and industry, economic development resource use and quality of life. Both Geography and History open up many possibilities for integrated studies with other KLAs, including the significant role of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in shaping Australia’s history and geography.

Outcomes

1. Examine ways in which assumptions, cultural perspectives and underlying worldviews cause people to view historical events and geographical issues in different ways within the context of both the History K–10 Syllabus and the Geography K–10 Syllabus;
2. Prepare a teaching plan for a half-day or full-day field trip for a Year 5 or Year 6 class to investigate a local geographical planning issue or local historical event;
3. Apply skills of observation, inference and critical thinking to analyse the conflicts and/or ethical dilemmas demonstrated by a site that is studied in the field;
4. Demonstrate an applied understanding of ethical behaviour expectations, legislative, administrative and organisational policies, health and safety requirements, and strategies for differentiating teaching to meet specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities and from diverse backgrounds;
5. Use the Understanding by Design framework to develop a classroom-ready, student-centred, outcomes-focussed, innovative and soundly constructed lesson sequence that incorporates skills development, knowledge acquisition, literacy formation, and critical/creative thinking capabilities, linked to the cross curriculum priorities, and which differentiates for the full range of student abilities and diverse backgrounds (including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) while providing explicit strategies to support students’ well-being and safety – legally and educationally – in a range of school contexts.

Subject Content

• The scope, characteristics, methodology and distinctive nature of the discipline of Geography
• The scope, characteristics, methodology and distinctive nature of the discipline of History
• The relationship between the ACARA Curriculum and the NESA Syllabi
• The place of Geography and History in the continuum of learning in K-12
• The place of Geography and History within Christian and other school contexts
• Geographical and historical concepts, skills, and tools
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s perspectives on Australian History and Australian Geography

This course may be offered in the following formats

• Face to face (onsite)
• eLearning (online)

Please consult your course prospectus or enquire about how and when this course will be offered next at Alphacrucis University College.

Assessment Methods

• Minor Essay (30%)
• Field Study Plan (40%)
• Lesson Plan Sequence (30%)

Prescribed Text

• References will include the most current curriculum requirements for schools.

Check with the instructor each semester before purchasing any prescribed texts or representative references