Topic: Keep on rocking in the free world Popular Culture 1945-now

Key Historical Terms & Concepts (Glossary)

Site Study

Contribution

Popular Culture v High Culture

Communication technology

Hype

Australian Museum exhibits & others (virtual)

Resources

Books –

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  Arrow, M., Friday on Our Minds: popular culture in Australia since 1945, 2009
  

Websites –

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  For more ideas on activities, lessons and tasks, go to http://www.achistoryunits.edu.au/unit-program/y10-overview-v3-1.html
  
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  Activities, lessons and more http://www.tesaustralia.com/teaching-resource/Yr-10-History-Resources-Post-War-Australia-and-amp-Exam-7010086/
  
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  Australian Cartoon Museum – Pop culture 1945-present http://theaustraliancartoonmuseum.com.au/projects/pop-culture-1945-present /
  
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  The People History (list of events by year) - http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/1945.html
  
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  DFAT website on People, Culture and Lifestyle since 1945 https://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/people_culture.html
  
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  Skwirk [watch this website for plagiarism in this topic and others] http://www.skwirk.com/p-c_s-14_u-189_t-506_c-1875/american-and-british-cultural-influence-1950s/nsw/american-and-british-cultural-influence-1950s/australia-s-social-and-cultural-history-in-the-post-war-period/social-and-cultural-features-of-the-1950s
  

Depth Study 5A

Popular Culture

Semester 1

Term 2 , Week 1

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  Reflective response: To what extent did life change in Australia during WWII?
  
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  Investigation into sportsmen and women – develop a persuasive speech
  
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  Film analysis
  

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  Beatlemania research – students will reflect on the research process and be able to explain how they approached it
  
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  Interviewing parents about favourite bands (students need to evaluate own questions)
  
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  Finding sources on different bands from different decades – peer assessment of each other’s sources
  

b. Students write a reflective response about what changes occurred during WWII using the brainstorm. Sample question: “To what extent did life change in Australia during World War Two?”

In each lesson (beginning and/or end), students should be exposed to a different form of music (artists, bands, genres) which were considered the most popular. Teachers should select songs that are appropriate to what is under investigation.

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  identify the main features of Australian popular culture at the end of World War II, including music, film, fashion and sport
  

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  Students source a definition of “popular culture” and discuss the difference between popular culture and other types of cultural activities/movements such as high culture, leisure time. Teacher could incorporate the word “zeitgeist” (the spirit of the times) and suggest that pop culture is any work, movement or person that exemplifies the zeitgeist of a particular year or decade. Discuss the role of economic prosperity and a flourishing culture.
  
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  Teacher-led presentation of mindmap on four key areas of popular culture: a) music, b) film, c) fashion, and d) sport – examples could be provided from pre-WWII Australia e.g. Phar Lap for sport. Students could either research these areas and focus on decades or this could be filled in as the unit progresses.
  
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  Case study: Beatlemania – Students investigate why Beatlemania occurred in Australia in the 1960s and what this shows us about popular culture. Students might compare/contrast to another case of a hyper-popular artist or band from the last decade. Youtube newsreel from 1964 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPr2QrgJaXg How did the Beatles affect fashion and other aspects of culture? Do other artists do this?
  

VisuWords – useful for definition of popular, culture etc.

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  explain ways in which Australia in the 1950s was influenced by American culture
  
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  assess the way American and British music influenced post-war Australian entertainment, such as rock 'n' roll 
  
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  use a range of sources to explain the nature and impact of television on Australian popular culture 
  

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  The old Australian record industry – questions and thinking from “Things to think about” http://splash.abc.net.au/media/-/m/521155/vinyl-the-australian-record-industry-1963
  
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  Students find evidence of the music charts from the 1950s and identify the following features: American bands/artists, British bands/artists, Australian bands/artists. They could then compare and contrast different years and explain if there is a trend, or not, towards particular groups in terms of popularity at this time.
  
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  Students could watch documentaries (clips) from such series as Long Way To The Top (ABC) which charts the history of Australian music & in particular rock n roll.
  
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  Students should interview their parents about what kind of bands/musicians they listened to growing up. Compare/contrast different parents’ favourite bands in terms of genre, etc. Could also compare/contrast to the types of music now being produced and compare for quality, originality etc. This activity will also require them to 1) formulate questions and 2) use sound research methods for analysing these responses, which can be applied to other tasks. (clear literacy links here)
  

Hippy Culture - http://www.tesaustralia.com/teaching-resource/Hippy-Badges-Teaching-Aid-for-and-quot-Hippy-Culture-and-quot-7010448/

The Stomp – a 1960s dance craze – questions and thinking from “Things to think about” http://splash.abc.net.au/media/-/m/522277/the-stomp-a-1960s-dance-craze

Class debate: That the Rolling Stones were the greatest band of the post-war period. (to be precursor to class debate or persuasive writing task towards the end of unit)

How to conduct an interview http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plan/how-conduct-interview

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  describe how advances in communication technology changed at least ONE of the following during the post-war period in Australia: music, film or television 
  
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  discuss how overseas influences have affected ONE aspect of Australian popular culture 
  

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  Students will investigate the way in which films changed over time thanks to advances in technology. It would be most effective to choose a genre such as science-fiction or action in order to most easily identify the advances in, for example, computer-generated imagery (CGI).
  
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  Students could view a series of films and create critical reviews of the films for technical achievement (using Oscar nominations and winners from 1945-2010 would be useful). This could be done as a website or blog or as a written or spoken task.
  
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  Students might like to focus on a sub-genre such as children’s animated films such as the progression from the classic Disney movies through to Pixar animations such as Toy Story and Up!. This could easily be linked to studies of other nations’ animated films such as manga or anime in Asia.
  
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  Star Wars: Students could compare/contrast the CGI used in the Star Wars films of the 1970s/1980s to the Episodes produced in 2000s. Could also link to influence of Australian sci-fi e.g. Matrix, (also later Star Wars episodes were filmed in Australia)
  
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  Many film DVDs have “behind the scenes” or “the making of” type documentaries in the Extras area. One of these could form the basis of a class discussion or framework for analysing another film.
  
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  Alternative: students could find trailers of famous/award-winning film from the post-war period and compare/contrast the audiences for which the film was targeted.
  

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  assess the contribution of Australian men and women to international sport, eg Olympic Games and Test Cricket
  
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  using a range of sources, investigate and assess the contribution of Australian men and women to international music, film and television 
  

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  Class discussion & teacher example: Draw on learning from the Between the Wars (Australians at War unit) and discuss role of Don Bradman during the Great Depression as symbol of popular culture. http://sportinghistory.com.au/sir-donald-bradman/
  
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  Investigation: Students are to find (or be given) a list of Australian sportsmen and sportswomen. They are to ‘adopt’ one of these figures and assess their significance on the following features (or a list of their own choosing) in a table form:
  
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    Their contribution to their sport within Australia
    
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    Their success on an international stage e.g. Olympics/Commonwealth Games
    
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    Their recognition (officially and unofficially) e.g. medals, championships
    
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    Their contribution beyond the sport (e.g. within the community)
    
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  Students should focus on using a range of sources and providing an accurate bibliography – the Re:cite website might be useful here. http://www.lib.unimelb.edu.au/recite/
  
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  Assessment: Students could then write a persuasive speech to convince an audience as to why their adopted sportsperson deserves to be placed in the Australian sports hall of fame. This speech could be delivered orally (informal assessment task) in front of the class (or as a video) or written in class, or could be a simply hand-in task.
  

Sporting History

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  outline and assess the impact of Americanisation and global events on Australian society over time 
  
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  discuss the nature of Australian popular culture today and the legacy of past influences 
  

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  This could be an informal assessment task, requiring students to gather their understandings from the unit and write, speak or otherwise present their views on at least four clear examples of Americanisation and/or globalisation. This will link to Geography in that they may start with an easy example such as McDonalds (also discussing the impact of this on the health/food/culture of Australia).
  
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  Ask students to brainstorm other international events which have had an impact on Australia (prompt with events such as 9/11, Olympics, environmental issues, conflicts, agreements/trade).
  
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  Students then choose four from the list or four they have developed themselves.
  
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  FINAL QUESTION: Has Australian popular culture changed since 1945 or is it essentially the same?