HSIE

Human Society and Its Environments  

Overview

The HSIE faculty of the middle school campus offers a range of subjects including:

Mandatory core subjects: History and Geography – these are School Certificate external examination subjects.

Elective subjects: Commerce, Work Education, Aboriginal Studies, History or Geography.

The subjects offered by the HSIE faculty of the Middle School campus provide excellent opportunities for students to build on and further extend their literacy, numeracy and technology skills. These subjects also provide an excellent framework for future studies with the senior campus HSIE faculty. HSC subjects include: Economics, Business Studies, Legal Studies, Society & Culture, and Ancient and Modern History.

MANDATORY HISTORY

History is a disciplined process of inquiry into the past that allows students to locate themselves in the broad continuum of human experience. It enables students to appreciate and enjoy the human endeavours and achievements of the past, both for their own intrinsic interest and for their legacy to later generations.

History provides opportunities for students to explore human actions in a range of historical contexts and encourages them to develop understanding of motivation, causation, consequence and empathy.

The study of history provides the intellectual skills to enable students to critically analyse and interpret sources of evidence in order to construct reasoned explanations, hypotheses about the past and a rational and informed argument. History also enables students to understand, deconstruct and evaluate differing interpretations of the past. The cognitive skills of analysis, evaluation and synthesis underpin the study of history and equip students with the ability to understand and evaluate the political, cultural and social events and issues that have shaped the world around them.

Students at BWSC Umina Campus will complete their History course in semesterised blocks of 120 hours each. They will undertake Stage 4 in Years 7 & 8 and begin their Stage 5 studies in Year 9.  

History Topics

MANDATORY GEOGRAPHY 

Geography is a rich and complex discipline involving two key dimensions:

• the spatial dimension – where things are and why they are there
• the ecological dimension – how humans interact with environments.

A study of Geography builds on students’ prior learning and experience to enable them to explain patterns, evaluate consequences and contribute to the management of physical, social, cultural and built environments.

The study of Geography develops a wide range of skills such as gathering, organising and evaluating geographical information from a variety of sources, including fieldwork.

Through the study of Geography students develop knowledge and understanding of different cultures and develop perspectives that enhance their understanding of the world. They will also develop knowledge and understanding of civics and citizenship, decision-making processes and explores ways they can participate as responsible and informed members of society.

Students at our campus will complete their Geography course in semesterised blocks of 120 hours each. They will undertake Stage 4 in Years 7 & 8 and begin their Stage 5 studies in Year 9.

Geography Topics