Subject details

At the completion of this subject students will:

1. read and analyse different kinds of historical evidence, including visual and textual sources;

2. find, analyse and apply historical information (especially self-located research materials);

3. communicate effectively in a range of written forms;

4. engage effectively in group discussions with their peers;

5. communicate respectfully; we also hope that students will acquire and demonstrate knowledge in the following areas:

6. describe the main changes and continuities in Australian society and the economy

7. understand the basic political, administrative and economic structures of the period

8. outline the dominant understandings and ideologies throughout the century

9. explain how Australia interacted with the rest of the world

10. understand the interactions between white Australia and Aboriginal Australia

11. discuss the emergence of new political and social forms in the 1960s and 1970s

12. consider the social and political movements of the 1980s and 1990s

13. pinpoint moments of crisis between 1901 and 1999.

  • Topics

    • Federation and White Australia
    • World War I
    • The Great Depression
    • World War II
    • Stolen Generations
    • Class War/ Cold War
    • Vietnam
    • Whitlam and the dismissal
    • Women's liberation
    • Migration and multiculturalism
    • The Age of Mabo? Native Title & Reconciliation
    • Teaching Australian History

Entry Requirements

Others

You should have studied some History or Politics at Level 1 and 2 before starting this subject.

Special requirements

No special requirements

This subject was previously known as MHIX302 Australian History Since 1901.

This subject presents a social and cultural history of Australia in the twentieth century, offering broad ranging and diverse interpretations of the period. We cover the fundamental political changes from the early years of the Labor Party, right through to the rise of the Right and Pauline Hanson on the cusp of the new millennium. We explore the foundations of the Australian national identity and analyse the manifest social changes that occurred across the century. We feature the central developments of the century, from war to depression and back to war again, as well as addressing the everyday experiences of Australians through looking at migration, suburbanisation, protest, and popular culture. The subject will be of particular interest to education students who are intending to teach Australian history in schools.

  • Assignment 1 (30%)
  • Assignment 2 (50%)
  • Assignment 3 (10%)
  • Online Discussion (10%)

Textbooks are subject to change within the academic year. Students are advised to purchase their books no earlier than one to two months before the start of a subject.

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Related degrees

Undergraduate

Bachelor of Arts