Course Summary

Are you interested in human behaviour, how you fit into society and what it means to live in a society together? Studying Sociology gives you the knowledge and skills to understand how this interaction works and doesn’t work in society. You’ll develop critical thinking skills, research skills, interpersonal and cross-cultural skills. In Unit 1 & 2, you’ll take a deep dive into Youth, Family, Education and the Workplace. In Unit 3 & 4, you’ll explore culture and ethnicity.

VCE: Unit 1, Unit 2 and Unit 3 & 4 sequence available

Learning Activities & Assessment

• Examine the role of the family and the impacts on it
• Explore the historical impacts of how we shape First Nations identity today
• Develop an understand of social justice and human rights
• Analyse social movements and evaluate their impact on social change

Course Summary

In the first unit of this subject, students investigate the nature of social, political, economic and cultural change in the later part of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Modern History provides students with an opportunity to explore the significant events, ideas, individuals and movements that shaped the social, political, economic and technological conditions and developments that have defined the modern world. This study could include the end of World War One and the development of the Treaty of Versailles; the introduction of the League of Nations; the Great Depression of the late 1920’s and early 1930’s; the introduction to new ideologies such as communism, socialism and fascism; the rise of Adolf Hitler and the plunge into another world war.

In the second unit of this subject, students investigate the nature and impact of the Cold War; challenges and changes to social, political and economic structures and systems of power in the second half of the twentieth century through the investigation of Apartheid in South Africa, or civil rights in America and with the new millennium, not a new threat but terrorism comes to the fore with the attack on the Twin Towers in 2002, the Bali Bombings in 2002 and the rise of groups such as Al Qaeda in the first decade of the twenty-first century.

VCE: Unit 1 and Unit 2 available

Learning Activities & Assessment

• A historical inquiry in which you research a chosen topic and prepare a written report on it
• An analysis of primary sources in which you will respond in a combination of short and long answers
• An analysis of historical interpretations in which you will respond in a combination of short and long
• An essay in which you will use a variety of evidence to support your arguments