Welcome To Year 8 History

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." (George Santayana)

Aboriginal and Indigenous Peoples, Colonisation and Contact History

The following information is from the Board of Studies Stage 4 and 5 History Syllabus. All syllabus materials can be found at the Board of Studies.

This topic builds upon prior learning of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal contact history in K-6. The nature of colonisation and its impact on Aboriginal peoples outside the Sydney region will lead to further study in Years 9 and 10. Students will also develop an
understanding of the impact of colonisation upon another indigenous people.

Inquiry questions
• What can we learn about Aboriginal and indigenous peoples?
• What has been the nature and impact of colonisation?

Throughout this topic, students work with particular focus on the outcomes
listed below.

A student:
4.2 describes significant features of Aboriginal and indigenous cultures, prior to colonisation
4.3 explains the ways indigenous and non-indigenous peoples of the world have responded to contact with each other
4.7 identifies different contexts, perspectives and interpretations of the past
4.9 uses historical terms and concepts in appropriate contexts
4.10 selects and uses appropriate oral, written and other forms, including ICT, to communicate effectively about the past

In Year 8, students have the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of:
• Aboriginal and indigenous cultures
• the impact of European colonisation on Australian Aboriginal and worldwide indigenous
cultures
• the responses to contact with colonising peoples
• the impact of colonisation and government policies on Aboriginal peoples
• the diversity in the cultures, beliefs and values of different societies in the past

Students in Year 8 have the opportunities to develop knowledge and understanding of:
• effects of historical events on the culture of peoples and their rights and responsibilities
• impact of exploration and colonisation on Aboriginal and indigenous peoples
• importance of preservation and conservation of heritage
• different experiences of being a citizen and forms of government in civilisations of the
past
• the impact of difference on marginalised groups, including the impact of colonisation
• similarities and differences between cultures of the past
• the roles and contributions of men and women in the past

Students must study Section A and at least one country or region from Section B.

Section A - Australia 1788-–1900
The Nature and Impact of Colonisation and Contact
• pre-contact Aboriginal culture
• Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal perspectives of the relationship to land and country
• British contact with Aboriginal peoples to 1820
• differing experiences of contact between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples from 1820 to 1900. These
could include:
                     -the impact of disease
                     -land disputes
                     -dispossession
                     -massacres and frontier wars
                     -Aboriginal responses to dispossession
• increasing government control of the lives of Aboriginal peoples
• the consequences of colonisation

Section B - North America & Central America
• the nature of colonisation
• the features of a pre-colonial indigenous culture
• the nature of contact between the indigenous and non-indigenous peoples
• the responses of indigenous and non-indigenous peoples to colonisation
• the consequences of colonisation
• the experiences of colonisation