Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

Assessment: Year 12 Modern History : Task 1

Core study :Power and Authority in the Modern World 1919-1946
Focus of Study : The Nazi regime to 1939 (the impact of the Nazi regime on
life in Germany)
Type of Assessment: oral

Weighting: Marks: 25 Length: Due:

25% 6 minutes

Conditions:
4 weeks to complete assessment including class time

Rationale:
The purpose of this assessment task is to develop and strengthen students’
source analysis skills in order to prepare them for section one of the HSC.
This is particularly important because the ‘high value mark’ questions in
section one of the HSC will require students to analyse and interpret sources.
This task also aims to build students’ historical investigation and research
skills as it requires them to locate their own sources in order to answer the
historical inquiry presented to them. Furthermore, the mode of this
assessment task is designed to relive the pressure associated with traditional
written exams. Therefore this task provides students with an opportunity to
achieve a high school based assessment mark that will contribute to their
overall HSC mark .The mode of this assessment also helps students build on
their explanation and communication skills.

Differentiation:
*Differentiation through the use of clear and explicit language/vocabulary
when communicating instructions and marking criteria to students
*Differentiation through the provision of scaffolded instruction & examples:
Students are provided with an acronym to help them analyse their sources.
An example of how to analyse a source using the acronym has also been
provided. Students have also been given a list of useful resources that will
help in their research as well as useful tips on presenting.
*Differentiation through pace: Students are given four weeks to complete
the task.
*Differentiation through mode: The task allows students to respond in a
mode (oral & visual) other than the traditional (written) essay
*Differentiation through choice- students are given a list of topics which
they can choose from to focus their presentation on, they can also choose
their own visual representation(PowerPoint, Prezi, poster etc.) to support
their presentation

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

Outcomes Assessed
 evaluates the role of historical features, individuals, groups and ideas in
shaping the past
 analyses the different perspectives of individuals and groups in their
historical context
 analyses and interprets different types of sources for evidence to support
an historical account or argument
 discusses and evaluates differing interpretations and representation of
the past
 plans and conducts historical investigations and presents reasoned
conclusions, using relevant evidence from a range of sources
 communicates historical understanding, using historical knowledge,
concepts and terms, in appropriate and well-structured forms

Instructions

PART A
 Students must locate a minimum of four and maximum of six sources
and evaluate what these sources reveal about everyday life in
Germany under the Nazi regime.
 Sources must be a combination of primary and secondary sources
 Students must discuss the usefulness, reliability and perspective of
each source
 Source materials can include: photographs, cartoons, paintings,
graphs, government papers, extracts from newspaper articles, letters,
diaries and literary sources
 Students will present their response to the class in the form of a 6
minute oral presentation,
 The presentation must be supported by visual items such as a
PowerPoint presentation, Prezi, poster, a display, or handouts for the
class, (instructions on how to make a Prezi can be found on
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Make-a-Prezi/)
 Sources must be clearly displayed on your visual document either in
full, an extract or a screenshot.
 Students must integrate the key historical concept “perspectives”
into their presentation
 Students must include a bibliography using APA reference guide
 Students must upload a written copy of their speech to turnitin before
class on the first Monday of the week

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

PART B

 Students must write a 300 word reflection on how your study of

everyday day life in Nazi Germany has helped inform your
understanding of power and authority in the contemporary world
 Students must upload a written copy of their reflection to turnitin
before class on the first Monday of the week

N.B. Failure to complete the task on the due date may result in a mark of zero.
Absence on the due date must be explained by a doctor’s certificate.

Topics you can focus your presentation on include:

Cultural religion Workers/unemployed Youth

expression
Women Political Ethnic minorities Other minorities
opponents -Jews, (anti-Jewish including homosexuals,
legislation) the disabled
gypsies

How to analyse a source using the OMCAPRU acronym

Origin:  Is the source primary or secondary? When was the

source created? Who created the source? Where was it created?

Motive:  Why did the author create the source? To convince,

inform, condemn, provoke justify a position, express an
opinion?
Content: Look at symbolism, tone and language, images, what it has left
out, bias
Audience: Who is the source aimed at? If It is a historian it is likely that
the audience is the general public or an academic circle. If the
source is a diary entry it is highly likely that the intended
audience was either solely to author or their family.
Considering the audience is very important, as it will also
reveal elements of bias that may be present in the source.

Perspective: What is the author’s standpoint/beliefs? I sit a national

perspective, gender based, class base? Would another author
have a different perspective depending on their background? Is
the source objective or subjective?
Reliability: To what degree is it reliable? (Highly /fairly reliable, highly

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

/fairly unreliable) Is the source consistent with other

information available about the topic? Are there other sources
which could validate the information given from this source?
Does it have scholarly credibility? In what ways is it biased?
Does the source fulfil an agenda? What does it leave out
Usefulness: In order to accurately determine whether a source is ‘useful’,
consider the three R’s
 Is the source relevant to what is being asked?
 Has the source revealed an insight into the question?
 Is the source reliable in providing the information
required to answer the question?
A source can be useful, even if not reliable, all sources have
some use as long as they are related to the question
Example Source Analysis using OMCAPRU
QUESTION: Evaluate what source A reveals about recruitment and
propaganda in Australia during WW1

Origin: Source A is a primary source created during WW1 by the

Win the War League which was founded in 1917 by the
Women’s State Recruiting Committee -an Australian
Government organisation
Motive: The motive behind Source A is to encourage young, able-
bodied Australian men to enlist in the army As Australia did
not have a conscription policy during the First World War, all
of the recruits to the Australian military were volunteers
Content: Source A features. A young man enjoying himself in the
surf, but the text printed over the image reminds the target
audience that while young, men can enjoy their recreational
activities, they are forgetting about those serving in the
trenches. The circular emblem of the Win the War League is
positioned prominently on the right hand side of the image.
Audience: The intended audience of source A is young Australian
men as well the general public because Families of eligible
men were also targeted to encourage their
brothers/husbands and sons to volunteer

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

Perspective: The perspective presented in Source A is pro-enlistment,

coming from the Australian Government via the Win the
War League
Reliability: Although source A is a subjective source of information as it
is designed to sway its intended audience to join the war
effort, it does give reliable information on recruitment and
propaganda in Australia during WW1
Usefulness: Source A would be an extremely useful piece of information
for historians studying the nature of propaganda and the
recruitment effort of Australia during WWI. It gives great
insight into the way propaganda was used by government
agencies such as Women’s State Recruiting Committee to
recruit young men

Useful websites for locating primary and secondary sources

 http://alphahistory.com/nazigermany/nazi-germany-documents/

 http://libguides.mq.edu.au/primarysources/germany

 https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/mod/modsbook43.asp

 https://cla.umn.edu/chgs/collections-exhibitions/narratives-and-testimonies

Useful books for locating primary and secondary sources

 Hitler's 'national community’: society and culture in Nazi Germany /

Lisa Pine. (available at state Library of NSW)

 Documents on Nazism : 1919-1945 / introduced and edited by Jeremy

Noakes and Geoffrey Pridham (available at state Library of NSW)

 Woman in Nazi Germany / by Clifford Kirkpatrick. (available at state

Library of NSW)

 Jewish daily life in Germany, 1618-1945 / edited by Marion A.

Kaplan. (available at state Library of NSW)

 Daily life during the Holocaust / Eve Nussbaum Soumerai and Carol

D. Schulz.

 Shattered youth in Nazi Germany: primary sources from the

Holocaust / Linda Jacobs Altman.Jacobs, Linda, 1943-( can be viewed
online through google books)

Useful Images of Propaganda magazines aimed at women

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 Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

 https://dangerousminds.net/comments/the_reich_stuff_the_grim_nazi_
propaganda_magazine_aimed_at_women
NOTE
It is highly recommended that you get a NSW State Library card in order to
access a wide range of books and e -resources. This will be very helpful for all
your assessment tasks and it’s free to join. To sign up for a library card, simply
visit the NSW State Library website, click on JOIN and apply online

Advice on structuring Speaking advice Presenting advice

presentation
State your hypothesis clearly at Speak loudly and Don’t just read off notes
the start of your presentation clearly
Use dot-point speech
notes or palm cards
display images of your sources Don’t rush Put in action cues {like
and show important direct quotes this} into your script to
remind yourself to use hand
gestures or move around
explain how your sources and key Pause briefly when Limit slide information to
quotes support your hypothesis needed a few short sentences. The
audience should be
listening to what your say,
not reading chunks of text
off slides.
integrate Use eye-contact when Have one
your analysis and evaluation of appropriate slide per paragraph in your
script
your chosen sources into your
script
Restate your hypothesis clearly at Use hand gestures To avoid distracting the
the end of your presentation when needed audience, only use moving
images or pieces of film for
moments when you're not
talking

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 Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

Historical Concept ‘Perspectives’ ( Courtesy of ACARRA )

In historical study, a perspective is a person’s point of view, the position from which
they see and understand events going on around them. In studying history, two types
of perspective are important. First, there are the perspectives of people in the past
and the social, cultural, intellectual, and emotional contexts that shaped their lives and
actions. It should be remembered that a person’s point of view on a particular issue can
be affected by simple self-interest, rather than by deeply held values and attitudes.
Second, there are the perspectives on the past. People, particularly historians, can
disagree markedly about past events, their causes and effects. There are various
reasons for these differences among historians, including which historical sources they
studied, how they interpreted those sources, and the historian’s background,
knowledge, expertise and values.

Criteria for Assessment – you will be assessed on how well you:

 Use appropriate historical terms and concepts when communication your
response
 Use relevant evidence from primary and secondary sources to support
your argument
 Integrate the key historical concept of perspective into presentation
 Effectively convey information orally with the support of an appropriate
visual aide
 reflect on your understanding of power and authority in the contemporary
world

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Marking Criteria Mark: /25

21-25
 Presents an extensive, logical and highly sophisticated response using
appropriate historical terms and concepts
 Provides a critical analysis and sophisticated annotation of a wide
range of primary and secondary sources that provide clear and accurate
information and evidence on everyday life in Germany under the Nazi
regime
 Extensively integrates the key historical concept ‘perspectives’ into
presentation
 Makes highly effective use of visual and media properties of ICT to
support presentation
 Makes extremely effective use of volume, pace, eye contact and body
language to clearly convey meaning
 Presents a highly sophisticated personal reflection demonstrating an
extensive understanding of power and authority in the contemporary
world

 Presents a thorough and logical response using appropriate historical 16-20

terms and concepts
 Provides a thorough analysis and well developed annotation of primary
and secondary sources that provide clear and accurate information and
evidence on everyday life in Germany under the Nazi regime
 Thoroughly integrates the key historical concept ‘perspectives’ into
presentation
 Makes effective use of visual and media properties of ICT to support
presentation
 Makes effective use of volume, pace, eye contact and body language to
clearly convey meaning
 Presents a well-developed personal reflection demonstrating a clear
understanding of power and authority in the contemporary world

 Presents a coherent response using some appropriate historical terms 11-15

and concepts
 Provides a sound analysis and annotation of primary and/or secondary
sources that provide relevant information and evidence on everyday life
in Germany under the Nazi regime
 Briefly integrates the key historical concept ‘perspectives’ into their
presentation
 Makes some use of visual and media properties of ICT
 Makes some use of volume, pace, eye contact and body language to
convey accurate meaning

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 Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

 Personal reflection demonstrates some understanding of power and

authority in the contemporary world

 Presents a basic response and may use some historical terms and 6-10
concepts
 Provides a basic analysis and brief annotation of primary and/or
secondary sources that provide some information and evidence on
everyday life in Germany under the Nazi regime
 May mention the key historical concept ‘perspectives’ in their
presentation
 Elementary use of visuals or media properties of ICT
 Makes basic use of volume, pace, eye contact and body language to
convey the information
 Personal reflection demonstrates basic understanding of power and
authority in the contemporary world

 Presents a limited response with little or no use of historical terms and 1-5
concepts
 Little or no attempt to use primary and/or secondary sources to present
an argument about everyday life in Germany under the Nazi regime
 Little or no attempt to integrate the key historical concept
‘perspectives’ in their presentation
 Little or no use of visuals or media properties of ICT
 Makes limited use of volume, pace, eye contact and/or body language to
convey the information
 Personal reflection demonstrates limited or no understanding of power
and authority in the contemporary world

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

PART B: EVALUATION

Assessment is the process of gathering valid and useful information and

making judgements about student progress and achievement of syllabus

outcomes (NESA,2017). Assessment is also about providing teachers with

feedback on how to improve their own teaching practices (Taylor, 2012). This

paper evaluates how assessment, including approaches to feedback and

assessment design, is integral to the teaching and learning process, with

specific focus on how assessment provides opportunities for feedback to

inform and improve student learning. The paper will also examine challenges

associated with assessment, and identify how History teachers can use

assessment methodology to design authentic and relevant assessment tasks.

According to Taylor (2012), assessment is important for establishing

students’ learning needs, monitoring students’ progress, informing parents,

providing grades and enabling students to regulate and monitor their own

learning. Assessment is also important for evaluating teaching, so that

teachers can adopt their planning in response to students’ progress (Taylor,

2012) .The stage six syllabus further highlights the importance of assessment

for enhancing student engagement and motivation, particularly when it

incorporates interaction with teachers, other students and a range of

resources (NESA, 2017). Brown, Bull & Pendlebury (1997) also argue that

assessment is essential because it defines what students regard as

important, how they spend their time and how they come to see themselves

as students. This is echoed by Boud & Falchikov (2006) who further propose

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

that assessment is significant for directing students to what is important and

in providing them with an incentive to study. John Hattie (1997) further points

out the importance of using assessment as feedback for teachers particularly

when the assessments are timely, informative, and related to what teachers

are actually teaching.

Notwithstanding, there are significant limitations associated with assessment .

In particular, the use of assessment to label and group students into

low-achievement classes ,which can result in teachers developing low

expectations (Taylor, 2012). Another problem with assessment according to

Boud & Falchikov (2006), is that it focuses on students demonstrating current

knowledge and generating data for grading, rather than focusing on the actual

process of learning. Consequently, students are not being sufficiently

equipped to learn in situations outside of the school context (Boud &

Falchikov 2006). This is echoed by Carless, Joughin, & Liu. (2006), who also

argues that assessment in general, fails to equip students for lifelong

learning .Carless, Joughin, & Liu (2006) further argue that feedback is a

problem in assessment because it is generally inadequate and ineffective.

Similarly, Higgins, Hartley and Skelton (2001) contend that most assessment

feedback in high school education comes too late for students to make

effective use of it.

In light of current research identifying feedback as a key limitation of

assessment, it is important for teachers to closely examine opportunities for

adequate and effective feedback in order to inform and improve student

learning .The importance of this is emphasised in the stage six syllabus,

which states that “assessment is most effective when students receive

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

feedback that helps them understand how to improve their learning” (NESA,

2017). Kluger and DeNisi (1996) further argue that feedback, when

combined with effective instruction, can be powerful in informing and

improving the learning outcomes of students. This is echoed by Hattie (2007)

who argues that “the most powerful single innovation that enhances

achievement is feedback” (p.g16). Black& William (1998) also emphasise that

descriptive feedback on assessments is more effective than grades or

percentages. Hattie & Timperley (2007), further state that feedback is

important for getting students from where they are to where they need to be

by answering the questions “where am I going? how am I going? and where

to next?” .They also classify feedback into four levels .The first and most

common level is the ‘task’ level. This provides feedback on how well the

student performed on a particular assessment and specifies what the student

needs to improve. The ‘process’ level encourage students to consider how

information is obtained, and challenges them to develop a deeper

understanding of learning .The ‘self-regulation level’, addresses the ways

students examine and adjust their own actions toward their learning goal.

While this type of feedback encourages students to critically self-assess their

learning, teachers need to be mindful that it will only benefit students who

are confident in their own abilities ( Sutton, Hornsey & Douglas, 2012).The

‘self’ level of feedback focuses on complimenting the actual student rather

than their work .Although this is good for building students’ confidence, it

does however give them little direction for improvement. In fact, (Sutton,

Hornsey & Douglas, 2012) suggest that this common type of feedback is

counterproductive; it interferes with the student’s ability to self-assess and

provides little assistance to answering the three feedback questions. Overall,

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

it is important for teachers to understand the three feedback questions as

well as the four feedback levels developed in order to maximise the

effect of assessment feedback.

To maximise the effect of assessment feedback in History,

teachers should provide students with immediate written feedback on

both summative and formative assessments. The feedback provided

should be specific, focus on students’ strengths, relate to the

assessment intention and provide information on how students can

improve (NESA, 2017). According to Shute (2008), effective feedback

should also be unbiased and objective, and help students see where they are

in achieving their goals. Higgins, Hartley, & Skelton (2001) also warn

teachers that the feedback they give, may not necessarily be received. This is

because many students find it difficult to understand and interpret feedback

comments, which is why it is necessary to use clear and simple language

when providing assessment feedback. Edmunds (2006) also indicates that,

feedback on assessments should be criterion-referenced rather than norm-

referenced. In other words feedback should be connected to an established

standard of learning, rather than comparing one student against another

student. In all, feedback is an integral part of assessment because it informs

and improves student learning.

In addition to feedback, assessment design is also an integral part of

assessment. In History, it is important for teachers to understand how to use

assessment methodology as a tool to create quality, inquiry based

assessment tasks that are authentic and relevant to what historians actually

do. In other words, History assessment tasks should engage students in the

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

process of “doing history” and “thinking historically”. This according to (Van

Sledright, 2004) involves designing assessment tasks “that mirror the practice

of investigating the past through source works” (pg. 3). For instance, when

designing an assessment task around the core study ‘Power and Authority’,

students can be asked to locate a combination of primary and secondary

sources and evaluate what those sources reveal about everyday life in Nazi

Germany (as illustrated in part A). According to the stage six syllabus

rationale, source based tasks like this, will encourage students to “interpret

sources for evidence, establish which evidence is relevant to an inquiry, and

use evidence to construct and analyse historical accounts” (NESA, 2017).

These skills are essential, given that many high value mark questions is the

HSC particularly in section one, require students to analyse and interpret

sources. Moreover, designing school based assessment tasks that prepare

students for the HSC, is an effective way to relive students’ test anxiety, which

is a fundamental problem associated with high stakes testing (Cizek, (2001).

History teachers can further relive anxiety and pressure associated with

traditional exams by designing authentic tasks that allow students to respond

to questions in various modes other than the traditional essay. Alternative

modes for presenting an assessment can include multimodal or oral

presentations, voice threads and webpages. Designing assessments around

various modes is also a form of differentiation as it allows teachers to cater for

the diverse needs of students including those with special needs and

gifted and talented students. It also provides students with an opportunity to

incorporate ICT capability into their assessment task, which according the

stage six syllabus, is “important in the study of Modern History, particularly in

relation to historical investigation, analysis and communication” (NESA,

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

2017).History teachers must also design assessment tasks that align with the

syllabus outcomes, and incorporate the key historical concepts In addition to

this, assessment tasks should be designed around ‘Bloom’s Revised

Cognitive Taxonomy’ because it provides a useful framework to develop

specific historical questions and promotes higher order thinking (Taylor,

2012).

Furthermore, History teachers need to carry out summative assessments

near

the beginning of a unit of work rather than at the end “in terms of students’

capacity to frame their inquiry, so that they are not simply assessing the end

results of that inquiry” (Taylor, 2012).

 In conclusion, assessment is central to the learning process, as it determines

whether student outcomes as well as education standards are being met.

Assessment is also important for providing students with sufficient and

immediate feedback about their learning, it is also essential for providing

teachers with feedback about their own teaching practices . In

History, it is vital that teachers design school based assessment tasks that

relive pressure associated with traditional exams and are authentic and

relevant to what historians do. Notwithstanding there are limitations

associated with assessment that teachers need to bear in mind when

designing assessment tasks.

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

References
Black, P., & Wiliam, D. (1998). Assessment and Classroom
Learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 5(1), 7-
74.

Brown, G., Bull, Joanna, & Pendlebury, Malcolm. (1997). Assessing

student learning in higher education. London: Routledge.

Boud, D (1995). Assessment and learning: contradictory or complimentary? In

P. Knight (ED.), Assessment for Learning in higher education (pp.35-
48).London: Kogan

Boud, D., & Falchikov, N. (2006). Aligning assessment with long-term

learning. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 31(4), 399-
413.

Carless, D. (2006). How assessment supports learning learning-oriented

assessment in action. Hong Kong : London: Hong Kong University
Press ; Eurospan [distributor].

Cizek, G. (2001). More Unintended Consequences of High‐Stakes

Testing. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 20(4), 19-27.

Edmunds, J (2006) How to Assess Student performance in History: Going

Beyond multiple choice questions,

Hattie, J., & Timperley, H. (2007). The Power of Feedback. Review of

Educational Research, 77(1), 81-112.

Higgins, R., Hartley, P., & Skelton, A. (2001). Getting the Message
Across: The problem of communicating assessment feedback. Teaching
in Higher Education, 6(2), 269-274.

NSW Education Standard Authority, (NESA). (2017) Principles of

Effective Feedback. NSW Gov.

Shute, V. (2008). Focus on Formative Feedback. Review of Educational

Research, 78(1), 153-189.

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Mayada Ibrahim 98119934 History Assignment Two

Sutton, R., Hornsey, Matthew J, & Douglas, Karen. (2012). Feedback :

The communication of praise, criticism, and advice (Language as social
action ; v. 11). New York: Peter Lang.

Taylor, T. (2012). Place and time : Explorations in teaching geography

and history. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: Pearson Australia.

VanSledright, Bruce A. (2004). What does it mean to think historically ...

and how do you teach it? (Research and Practice). Social
Education, 68(3), 230-233

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