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Updated: Dec 1999

Memory & War How Australians Experienced & Remember the Vietnam War Phase of Development: Early Adolescence Learning Area Outcomes Curriculum Framework Strand Statements Outcomes & Standards Framework Substrand Statements Outcomes & Standards Framework Investigation, Communication & Participation Students investigate the ways in which people interact with each other and with their environments in order to make informed decisions and implement relevant social action. Planning Investigations Students critically review and reflect on their understandings, formulate questions as a focus for investigation, predict possible answers or formulate hypotheses, and design suitable methods for organising and gathering information. Conducting Investigations Students identify sources of information; collect, organise and evaluate these sources; question the sources by comparing and evaluating bias and perspectives; record their evidence; and consider ways of identifying gaps in the information. Processing & Interpreting Information Students translate and interpret new information; analyse information by distinguishing between fact and opinion, seeking collaboration, judging the credibility and relevance of information and identifying values; synthesise information to make conclusions/judgements; and decide how best to communicate conclusions. Evaluating & Applying Findings Students communicate findings according to purpose/audience; predict consequences/ questions arising from conclusions as well as areas needing further investigation; identify implications for now/the future; modify original hypotheses; actively apply and practise strategies in applying key values areas in their lives. Time, Continuity and Change Students understand that peoples' actions and values are shaped by their understanding and interpretation of the past. Understanding the Past Students understand that continuity and change result from social, political, cultural, environmental and economic forces. Interpretations and Perspectives Students understand that there are many versions of history based on varied sociocultural perspectives over time, which inform and may influence people's actions. Active Citizenship Students demonstrate active citizenship through their behaviour and practices in the school environment, in accordance with the principles and values associated with the democratic process, social justice and ecological sustainability. Democratic Process The student values and participates in the political process; values and participates in community life; and respects legitimate and just authority structures and the role of the law. Social Justice The student values and cares for other people; upholds the equality of all people while appreciating and respecting their differences; and works cooperatively to resolve conflict peacefully. Brief Description Progress Towards Outcomes Context   Learning Experiences Assessment Criteria Library Research Activity Website Design Website Development Applying Research Through a Database Interviewing Continuing Research Presentation of Survey Results Applying Findings Reflective Report Learning Technology Resources Assessment Brief Description Students used technology to explore the ways in which Australian mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, soldiers, children, protestors, politicians and others experienced and remember the Vietnam War. The unit involved Australian Social History, Politics, International Relations and Values Education. Project Duration This project progressed over a semester. I have indicated how many 40-minute periods the initial activities took. The later activities were inter-related and occurred simultaneously. They are ongoing, as indicated by this graphic. Progress Towards Outcomes This unit of work focused particularly on the Investigation, Communication and Participation strand of the Outcomes and Standards Framework. Students demonstrated progress towards all four substrand outcomes of this strand during their work. Through the use of various learning technologies, they investigated the ways people interact with each other and with their environment in order to make informed decisions and to implement relevant social action. The unit also focused on the three substrand outcomes of the Time Continuity and Change strand. At the level they were able, students demonstrated understanding that people's actions and values are shaped by their understanding and interpretation of the past, in particular the many social, political, cultural, environmental and economic forces underlying the Vietnam War. Students also explored the strand Active Citizenship, and the substrands of Democratic Process and Social Justice. Once again, the learning technologies provided them with tools to enable them to pursue such exploration. Context The School: Scarborough Senior High School - The school is a small high school in the northern beach suburbs of Perth. Because of dwindling numbers students have easy access to computer and library resources. Students: The students were a Year 10 class, working mainly at Levels 3 to 5, with a few achieving at higher levels. Their degree of computer experience and skills in internet use varied greatly. Teacher: Susan Wilson Learning Experiences Assessment Criteria Many of the activities described here formed part of the students' portfolios for assessment. Before we began each portfolio activity the students and I discussed what they would need to do in order to demonstrate success at various levels in the Outcomes and Standards Framework. In this way they were aware of the criteria on which they would be assessed. Library Research Activity Students gathered basic information about the Vietnam War: When? Where? Why? Who? How? They used the Jigsaw strategy to research and share information. (1 period) In the light of their research findings, students then worked collaboratively in class discussion and group work to develop questions to be used in a survey of the experiences of Australians during the Vietnam War. (1 period). All students word processed the survey and saved it on disk. (1 period) Website Design (4 periods) In the computer lab, we looked at a range of websites, discussed their features, and brainstormed the characteristics of a good website. Students identified such aspects as: Simple visuals. Clear and concise language. Short blocks of text divided on the screen by graphics. A variety of fonts to indicate different types of information. A large amount of blank space on each screen. Use of hyperlinks to move people around a text. I also explained the concepts of the URL and the search engine and demonstrated their use. We then identified possible search terms for this project, and gave students opportunities to find appropriate websites. Using these websites as models, and considering the characteristics of a good website that we had identified earlier, students designed their own websites on paper. In this website they were required to explain the purpose of the project and to invite visitors to: Complete the survey. Email any memories from the period (e.g. I remember when..., What I remember most...). Scan or digitally photograph and email any useful artifacts (e.g. discharge papers, letters, newspaper articles, photographs). Leave their names and email addresses/fax numbers/phone numbers if they lived locally and would be prepared to visit the school to speak to or be interviewed by students. Website Development (4 periods) For those who needed it, I demonstrated computer skills such as how to cut/copy and paste text and how to crop and insert a picture. Students then created their own documents in Word, with help from me and students experienced in word processing. Assessment: The websites formed part of the students' portfolios. As a class we voted on whose document we would place on the Internet, and we worked together using the Word HTML facility to post it to the Web. Click here to see the website the class created. Click here to see some useful criteria for assessing website design. Applying Research Through a Database Students discussed the headings they would use to evaluate and categorise the artifacts and memories they received, as well as information found during library/class research. They agreed on the following headings: Type of source? Primary or Secondary? Who wrote it? When? Where? Why? Reliable? (Rank 1-3) Provides evidence of? Acknowledge donor. They then constructed a database in Microsoft Excel, using these headings. Later, students were able to use the database to select sources according to various categories, such as primary/secondary source, degree of reliability, form (eg. all letters) and author (eg. all sources written by veterans). Click here to see an example of our database. Assessment: The database, sorted according to two criteria, formed part of the students' portfolios. Interviewing Students designed interview questions based on the information they had already discovered in their research. We discussed the questions and they redrafted them based on feedback from me and from each other. They then arranged to interview their subjects. They could record interviews using audio or video. Assessment: The interview questions formed part of the students' portfolios. Continuing Research Simultaneously students were exploring the Vietnam War experience by conducting research on the Internet, in the library. Primary sources: newspapers, magazines, photographs. Secondary sources: magazines, newspapers, texts including histories, literature, art, poetry, music, documentaries, films. Assessment: Notes made on their research formed part of the students' portfolios. Presentation of Survey Results (1 period) Students correlated survey results using Excel to create graphs (bar/pie) comparing the responses of individual Australians by age, gender, role in war etc. Assessment: The graphs formed part of the students' portfolios. Applying Findings (4 periods) Alternative #1: Museum Display Students worked in groups organised according to the themes they had identified regarding Australian experience and/or memories of the war (e.g. Mateship, Guts 'n Glory, Protest, Sons and Lovers, Man's Inhumanity to Man, The Wasteland). The idea was for students to arrange the information and evidence they had gathered in a way that engendered a particular response from the viewer. Alternative #2: Virtual museum display Students working in the same thematic groups created a Virtual Museum Website, with the same instructions as for Alternative #1. Depending on the students' expertise and the equipment available, the virtual display could have included video clips, digital photographs, audio clips, scanned letters, and charts and graphs. For both of these alternatives, we brainstormed appropriate assessment criteria before the students began their work. We agreed on the following criteria: Appropriate material selected. Clear and interesting presentation of material. Clear written background information and labelling of material. Chosen theme developed successfully. Particular response encouraged successfully in the viewer. Reflective Report (3 periods) All students completed this report. They worked through the Writing Process (see Stepping Out's Literacy and Learning Strategies, pp.105-06 for the Writing Process and pp.107-08 for Writer's Conferences), planning, drafting, conferencing with me and with each other, and editing so that their final copy was of a high standard. For this Reflective Report they were required to reflect on some of the following questions. I stressed that while they might respond to some questions briefly, others might demand a more detailed answer. During Writer's Conferences I encouraged and challenged individuals to respond to particular questions more thoroughly. What have you learnt about accessing websites in this unit? What have you learnt about creating your own website in this unit? What have you learnt about the value of working in a group, and about peer teaching of computer skills? How successful do you feel you have been working with others during this unit of work? How successful do you feel the class website has been? Why? What response did you seek from the viewer of your (Virtual) Museum Display? How successful do you feel you were in encouraging this response? Which particular source interested or affected you the most? Why? Did you disagree with the opinions or beliefs expressed in any of the sources? What would you say in response to those people if you were in a direct conversation with them? According to these sources, how did Australians respond to the Vietnam War? What beliefs and values do you think influenced these responses? Did you notice patterns or common threads in the memories and experiences gathered about the Vietnam War? How do you explain such patterns? Did you notice any inconsistencies among the sources? How do you explain them? How do you think the experiences of these Australians during the Vietnam War might still influence them today? How might they influence other Australians? Assessment: The Reflective Report formed part of the students' portfolios. Learning Technology Resources Internet Excel Word Processing Microfiche Scanner Video Camera Audio Cassette Digital Camera Assessment Group Work Individual contributions to group work were assessed by their peers. Click here [link to proforma on top level of site] for some sample assessment checklists that you might modify for your purposes in assessing group work. Portfolios Students submitted portfolios containing: Samples of their note-taking. Their website designs. Interview questions. A print out of the Excel catalogue sorted according to two different criteria. All graphs generated. Copy of their survey and results. Their Reflective Report. Looking at the portfolios as a whole, and placing them against the appropriate Substrand Outcome Statements for the substrands on which I had been focussing, it was easy for me to gauge what levels the students were working in, and to give them appropriate feedback about each substrand. I have always made my students aware of what is required of them to work at particular levels in the Outcomes and Standards Framework, so it was also easy for them to understand the feedback they received. Museum or Virtual Museum Display I assessed students according to the criteria on which we had agreed before beginning the activity. It was easy, also, to assign to their performance appropriate levels in the substrands Processing and Interpreting Information, and Evaluating and Applying Findings (Investigation, Communication and Participation Strand). Sue Wilson Scarborough Senior High School