Level 1 Social Justice Studies (SJS101)

This Social Sciences course has an overarching theme of social justice which will be explored using historical and contemporary case studies, and combine assessments from both the social studies and history learning areas.  This is a completely internally assessed course.

The first part of the year will focus on the concepts of social justice and social action which will be explored by looking at New Zealand case studies such as: the formation of the Polynesian Panthers, the formation of Nga Tamatoa, the 1981 Springbok Tour protests, and the anti Nuclear movement.   These groups and events will be also viewed through an international lens. 

The second part of the year will focus on contemporary society, first by looking at the global flows of ideas, people, and objects and how they interact with and influence present societies and possible futures. Case studies will include Fair Trade practices in the chocolate and coffee industries, and the exploration of the impact of Fast Fashion on the environment, producers, consumers and of course workers.  

Finally students will explore viewpoints on controversial contemporary issues and learn to: form arguments, justify their position, and explain why people hold the viewpoints they do.  A case study looking at whether 16 year olds should be able to vote in Aotearoa will be explored.

This is an integrated course where students complete 15 internally assessed credits (10  credits from Social Studies and 5 credits from History).  Students will develop their inquiry skills, their ability to use the the internet for research, their ability to evaluate sources, their ability to describe a range of viewpoints on controversial issues, and their ability to form their own arguments.

All assessments will be completed in class time throughout the year.

Please discuss this course with your Social Studies teacher, or Mrs Peszynski in E11.