Year 10 CORE - Social Studies

Course Overview

Term 1
Colonisation & Te Tiriti o Waitangi

Students build on prior learning about Te Tiriti o Waitangi to focus on what this has meant for New Zealand today, in particular the promises of rangatiratanga, mana motuhake and self-determination. Students will gain an understanding of the historical events which lead up to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, and the legacy of colonisation which has had impacts on today's society. It is important in Social Studies to make sense of today's world, so there will be a balanced focus on history as well as current day case studies.

Term 2
Power Balance

Students will develop an understanding of systems of government, how they differ and how they affect people's lives. We will study New Zealand's system of government in detail and understand how people's use of power has had varied impacts on society.
During the Term each class goes on a day visit to a guided tour of the District Court, old High Court and Supreme Court followed by a tour of parts of Parliament House and observing question time from the public gallery. Other themes of this unit include human rights, equality and justice, and students will learn various aspects of New Zealand's history as well as current case studies.

Term 3
Tūmātauenga & Conflict

This unit of learning studies the concept of conflict over time, while weaving mātauranga Māori through Tūmātauenga, Atua Māori of mankind and war. Students will learn about how power and its misuse has historically caused conflict, the extent of the impact of conflict on economies, society and cultures, and how the nature of conflict and how we commemorate it has changed over time. This is learned through local, national, and global case studies including New Zealand's involvement in World War 1 and the Vietnam War, as well as the current role of the New Zealand Army, Ngāti Tūmātauenga.

Term 4
Lights, Camera, Social Action!

Students will learn about how different values, traditions and perspectives can lead to different actions towards justice, and that there is power in taking individual action towards change one wants to see. We will learn about historical examples of action taken towards social, cultural or environmental justice. There is an important aspect of social action in this unit, where students will design and implement a social action towards a cause they are passionate about, in order to deepen their understanding of citizenship and the power of community.