Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS) is an engaging and challenging learning area at Calwell High School. HaSS incorporates the disciplines of History, Geography, Civics and Citizenship, and Economics and Business. Students explore how people interact with each other, with environments, and across time and place.
Subjects are taught in line with the Australian Curriculum. Across all HaSS subjects, students develop critical thinking and inquiry skills that support deep understanding of the world around them.
Year 7
In Semester 1, Year 7 students study Geography, exploring the concepts of place and liveability, and water as an environmental resource. In Term 2, students also undertake Civics and Citizenship, focusing on Australia’s system of government, the law, and diversity within Australian society. In Semester 2, students study History, covering The Ancient World (60 000 BCE to 650 CE).
Year 8
In Semester 1, Year 8 students study Geography, investigating geomorphology through landscapes and landforms, as well as examining changing human geography around the world. They also study Economics and Business, focusing on consumers, businesses and markets, and issues related to people and work.
In Semester 2, students undertake History studies covering the Ancient to the Modern World (650 CE to 1750 CE).
Year 9
In Semester 1, students study Geography and Civics and Citizenship. They explore food security and global biomes, developing critical thinking skills and learning to propose solutions to global challenges.
In Semester 2, students examine major world changes resulting from the Industrial Revolution and colonisation, before studying World War I and its impact on society.
Year 10
In Semester 1, Year 10 students investigate society through Geography, Civics and Economics. Learning involves a mix of individual classwork and project-based learning. Units include Society and Change, Ancient History, Big History, Workplace and Life Skills, Legal Studies, Business Studies, Environmental Change and Global Studies.
In Semester 2, students study the Modern World (1750 CE to the present). Units may include Rights and Freedoms, Wars and Battles, Popular Culture, and Societal Change. Each history unit builds student capability in analysing sources, interpreting evidence and developing inquiry skills in preparation for senior secondary study.
Assessment
Assessment tasks may include research projects, tests, creative tasks, portfolios of work, oral presentations, group work, essays, film studies, reports, posters and source analysis.