How can we explain the ideas, practices and institutions which make up the modern Australian school? This unit looks for the answers in the history of Australian education and educational ideas more broadly. Why is schooling compulsory? Why are there separate primary and secondary schools? Why do teachers need university degrees? Why do so many children and young people attend religiously-affiliated schools? What are the origins of current school funding regimes? Understanding the histories of current educational arrangements helps us better understand the present and offers useful knowledge for shaping the future of schooling. The unit looks at the history of Australian schooling within an international context, with a particular emphasis on the period from the 1950s to the early C21st.
Classes
1x1-hr lecture/wk for 9 wks, 1x2-hr seminar/wk for 9 wks
Assessment
1500wd reading guide (30%) and 2500wd essay (45%) and 1000wd take-home examination (25%)
42 credit points of units
Semester 2
03 Aug 2020