SCHOOLS: Can we interest students in Australian history?*

A secondary school teacher James Gilchrist outlines his successful teaching approach.In 1988, at St Patrick’s College, Ballarat, Victoria, my VCE (Victorian Certificate of Education) Australian History teacher spoke with an imposing gravitas that demanded one’s respect and attention.In his custody, historians like Geoffrey Blainey and Manning Clark resonated like Old Testament prophets, giving a kind of epic sweep to the stories of our nation’s past. He captured our imagination with his sense of…

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