HASS | OpenSTEM Pty Ltd

Nellie Bly – investigative journalist extraordinaire!

May is the birth month of Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman, better known as “Nellie Bly“. Here at OpenSTEM, we have a great fondness for Nellie Bly – an intrepid 19th century journalist and explorer, who emulated Jules Verne’s fictional character, Phileas Fogg, in racing around the world in less than 80 days in 1889/1890. Not only was she a bold individual with a keen eye for detail and a gifted wordsmith who could capture an audience with her tales of her exploits, but she was also a thoroughly investigative journalist with a sharp interest in social justice.

She was born 154 years ago in a part of Pittsburgh, USA, named after her father, Michael Cochran, who had worked his way up from being a labourer to a major landowner, postmaster and respected justice. A passionate advocate for women’s rights from the age of 16, her eloquence landed her a job as a writer for the local newspaper. At the age of 21, she served as a foreign correspondent in Mexico, later publishing her experiences in a book. She was forced to flee Mexico after criticising the Mexican government for imprisoning a local journalist.

Emboldened by this experience, she decided to embark on an even more dangerous assignment and, with the support of Joseph Pulitzer’s newspaper, the New York World, she feigned insanity to go undercover inside a women’s mental asylum and report on the conditions there. After 10 days, the World intervened to have her released and her damning report, later published as the harrowing account: “Ten Days in a Mad-House” did lead to an increase in funding for these institutions and some reforms.

Nellie’s next exploit was to attempt to match the journey from Jules Verne’s novel “Around the World in 80 Days”. The attempt became a race with a rival newspaper fielding another candidate, travelling in the opposite direction. As in the novel, using steamships and railways, Bly started on 14 November, 1889 and travelled through England, France (where she met Jules Verne), Italy, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Penang, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan (as well as a visit to a leper colony in China). She sent short updates on her progress by telegraph from most places, now connected by submarine cables for the new electric telegraph network. She returned victorious to New York a mere 72 days later, on 25 January, 1890, also beating her rival by 4 1/2 days. Her success inspired a board game, no doubt helping 19th century children with their Geography knowledge!

She went on to marry a millionaire manufacturer, many years her senior, whom she succeeded in business as his health failed, becoming a renowned industrialist in her own right. She was responsible for several innovations and inventions (such as a new milk can and a stack-able garbage can) and was a staunch supporter of the Women’s Suffrage movement.

Nellie Bly features as one of the explorers in our Women Explorers series. She is included in the list of explorers for the OpenSTEM® Understanding Our World® Unit 5.2 for students in Year 5, although her adventures are suitable for examining historic methods of transport with students in Years 2 and 3, as well as social issues surrounding women’s suffrage and industrialisation for students in Year 6.

Be Gonski Ready!

Gonski is in the news again with the release of the Gonski 2.0 report. This is most likely to impact on schools and teachers in a range of ways from funding to curriculum. Here at OpenSTEM we can help you to be ahead of the game by using our materials, which are already Gonski-ready!

The latest review of “Educational Excellence in Australian Schools” (known colloquially as “Gonski 2.0”) by a panel chaired by Mr David Gonski AC is now available and once again the media has jumped onto the decline of Australian student outcomes and the description of the educational system as “industrial” and out-of-date. The report also mentions “multiple calls on the time of teachers” and “assessment regimes… focused on periodic judgements of performance, rather than continuous diagnosis of a student’s learning needs and progress” (Gonski et al. 2018:ix). The report highlights three core priority areas with five specific recommendations. The first of these recommendations is:

“Embed a focus on individual student achievement through continuous learning progress…”

This emphasis on tracking “continuous learning progress” is repeated in recommendation #4:

“Introduce new reporting arrangements with a focus on both learning attainment and learning gain…”

(in order to track learning gain, we need to provide continuous assessment). This change has been highlighted in the media – suggesting a move away from periodic exams to a system of continuous assessment.

Here at OpenSTEM, we have long known that continuous assessment is a better route, especially in the primary years. Continuous assessment allows teachers to track their students’ progress and understanding and identify areas of concern quickly and effectively. Continuous assessment means that students are working more effectively towards their learning outcomes, teachers are aware of each student’s progress towards those outcomes and thus time is more efficiently used by all parties. Teachers can provide the timely feedback advocated in the Gonski recommendation #10. Teachers are also spared the giant load of marking a whole class’ worth of assessment pieces in a few days at the end of term, in time for reporting. A few minutes each week spent checking each student’s work means that by the end of term both teacher and student are aware of how the student is tracking and their grade for that term.

The OpenSTEM® Understanding Our World® program for HASS + Science has always provided for continuous assessment for all curriculum items for years Foundation/Kindy/Prep to Year 6 for all HASS and Science subjects. By using this program for these subjects, teachers and students will reap the benefits of continuous assessment. This program also directly addresses recommendation #7:

“Strengthen the development of the general capabilities, and raise their status within curriculum delivery, by using learning progressions to support clear and structured approaches to their teaching, assessment, reporting and integration with learning areas”

These issues are at the heart of the Understanding Our World® program: all of our units contain all of the general capability skills for each curriculum area; progression is maintained through a series of linked units that build upon earlier work; and integration is fundamental. Our Teacher Handbooks and Assessment Guides provide clear and structured information to teachers to guide them through teaching, assessment, reporting, and, of course, integration.

So be Gonski-ready! Use the OpenSTEM® Understanding Our World® program for HASS + Science now and be future-proof in your classroom and school!

NAPLAN and vocabulary

It is the time of year when the thoughts of teachers of students in years 3, 5, 7 and 9 turn (not so) lightly to NAPLAN. I’m sure many of you are aware of the controversial review of NAPLAN by Les Perelman, a retired professor from MIT in the United States. Perelman conducted a similar review in 2005 in the US, which was influential in leading to a change in the American Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SATs). At the time, Perelman published a guide on how to “ace the essay writing test” and he has produced a similar PDF text for Australia’s NAPLAN writing test. Perelman criticises the fact that NAPLAN essays are marked according to which words in a vocabulary list are included in the essay, with those words on the list rated as “Challenging” being awarded the highest marks. Perelman states that students who use these particular words, regardless of whether or not they demonstrate that they understand the meaning of the words, will score higher, and that students can thus be trained to use these words in their essays. However, Perelman also warns that if students are unsure of the spelling, then they should not use a word because of the emphasis placed on correct spelling in the marking of NAPLAN essays.

Perelman had been asked to review the planned robot-marking of NAPLAN essays in October 2017, and his criticism was so harsh that the plan was scrapped. ACARA seems to be taking Perelman’s concerns seriously. ACARA have stated that they believe that teachers focus on building and expanding the vocabulary of students and students should be able to use this vocabulary in “meaningful, constructive ways”. It seems certain that ACARA will re-evaluate the marking of NAPLAN essays in the face of these criticisms.

So how can teachers best help students to improve their vocabulary? Well, one way may be to study Perelman’s list, but surely there are better ways, more closely aligned to our goals of enhancing students’ understanding of words as well. It is well known (and scientifically proven) that reading improves children’s vocabulary, especially if they are reading texts which use decent vocabulary. The OpenSTEM® Understanding Our World® program, which covers the HASS + Science curriculum for the years: Foundation/Prep/Kindy to Year 6 prides itself on the vocabulary used in its resources, which cover a huge range of curriculum-aligned subjects. We maintain a reasonably high standard of vocabulary aimed at stretching students to improve their knowledge of more complex words. We encourage the concomitant use of a dictionary to ensure that students learn the meanings of these words.

Teachers have already reported to us that they find these resources a useful addition to students’ preparations for NAPLAN. This is a wonderfully efficient use of time – while engaged in HASS or Science learning, students are actually also preparing for NAPLAN’s literacy tests, practising vital curriculum-aligned core skills that will improve their performance in NAPLAN, as well as increasing their overall educational outcomes. It really is the best of all worlds! These resources (over 200 on topics as vast as geography, indigenous peoples, explorers, Australian history, electricity, the seasons, celebrations, sport etc, etc, and including many activities) are available for free download to subscribers, or can be purchased individually, or as part of the Understanding Our World® units.

So let’s help our students to become the best they can possibly be, whilst efficiently covering the curriculum, and most importantly helping them to prepare to face the world armed with the knowledge and skills they will need in their future lives!

Amelia Earhart in the news

Recently Amelia Earhart has been in the news once more, with publication of a paper by an American forensic anthropologist, Richard Jantz. Jantz has done an analysis of the measurements made of bones found in 1940 on the island of Nikumaroro Island in Kiribati. Unfortunately, the bones no longer survive, but they were analysed in 1941 by a doctor, D.W. Hoodless, from the Central Medical School in Fiji. Dr Hoodless concluded that the bones were of a stocky male, however, later researchers have argued about his conclusions. Jantz has examined a wide range of evidence, including photographs, measurements from Earhart’s clothing and the original measurements of the bones and has concluded that the bones are 84 times more likely to belong to Amelia Earhart than to any other person.

Let’s quickly recap the mystery surrounding Amelia Earhart:

Earhart learned to fly in the early 1920s, taught by a pioneer female aviator, Anita Snook. Earhart worked at several jobs to save up for the tuition fees. She saved up again to buy a secondhand biplane. After Charles Lindburgh flew solo across the Atlantic in 1927, a female aviator, Amy Guest, unwilling to attempt the feat herself, offered to sponsor any woman prepared to try the Atlantic crossing. Earhart was part of a team of 3 who flew the Atlantic shortly after this and then completed the solo crossing herself in 1932. In 1937, Earhart was part of a team trying to fly around the world. Their first attempt ended when their aircraft had mechanical problems. The second attempt started on 1 June, 1937, leaving Miami, Florida and flying to South America, Africa, India and South-East Asia.

On 28 June, 1937, Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, set off from Darwin, Australia on the final leg of their voyage – crossing the Pacific. They had a brief stop in New Guinea on 29 June, before setting off for Howland Island in the Pacific – their next refuelling stop. It was planned that Earhart and Noonan would get radio directions to Howland Island from their support ship, the USCGC Itasca. However, the ship soon realised that although they could hear Earhart on the radio, she could not hear them. She was running low on fuel and was unable to see the island or the ship. The last clear broadcast said that she would run along a certain bearing. Later broadcasts were recieved but were faint and garbled and with many vessels now calling on that frequency it was no longer clear which signals were from Earhart. Sporadic signals continued for 4 or 5 days, but Earhart and Noonan were never found.

The search started almost immediately, with the Itasca searching the immediate area of Howland Island. A week later, US Navy planes flew over many of the surrounding islands, but didn’t find anything, although they did note signs of “recent habitation” on Gardner, now Nikumaroro, Island. The search was called off on 19 July, 1937. In 1938 Nikumaroro Island was settled and a skeleton of a woman, with “American” shoes was found, as well as the skull of a man. These bones had been disturbed and damaged by crabs. A cognac bottle with fresh water was found near the skeleton. Some of these bones were those analysed by the doctor in 1941.

Evidence such as the women’s shoes, a Benedictine liqueur bottle (which Earhart was known to have with her) and an American sextant, all found with the bones, suggest strongly that these remains are of Earhart and Noonan. Jantz’s research includes trying to reconstruct the likely size of Earhart’s bones to compare them with the 1941 measurements. It is therefore likely that Earhart and Noonan either crashed or landed close enough to Nikumaroro Island to be able to reach it, however, they were unfortunately not spotted by the Navy planes a week later.

OpenSTEM® does not actually have a resource on Amelia Earhart (yet! Watch this space!), but we do have many other resources on fascinating Women Explorers, such as Nellie Bly, Isabella Bird, Gertrude Bell and Ida Pfeiffer. So if you’re keen to follow up on these topics with students, do have a look at some of these resources. As well as the interesting stories themselves, following their paths on maps and globes, can add enormously to the exploration of Geography curriculum material.

At Mercy of the Weather

Black Thursday, 1851 — 1864 Painting by William Strutt of the 1851 Black Thursday fires

It is the time of year when Australia often experiences extreme weather events. February is renowned as the hottest month and, in some parts of the country, also the wettest month. It often brings cyclones to our coasts and storms, which conversely enough, may trigger fires as lightening strikes the hot, dry bush. Aboriginal people carefully managed the Australian environment in the period before contact with Europeans. They used strict fire-management regimes on small and large scales to manage the timing and occurrence of fires, the impact on vegetation (including for those native plant species that need fire to germinate), as well as the impact on people (who had inhabited every corner of the continent for many thousands of years) and animals.

Black Friday bushfire Matlock — 1939 fires in Victoria (house in Matlock)

Disruptions of traditional Aboriginal ways of life in the 18th and 19th centuries had many severe impacts – on Aboriginal people, on the Australian environment, and on the European settlers in turn. One of these impacts was the breaking down of the country-wide fire management schemes which has been in place before the colonial period. European settlers did not recognise the necessity for regulated burning in the Australian landscape. The build-up of dry timber fuel meant that when storms brought lightening, as in Victoria in February, 1851, large swaths of bush burnt with unstoppable fury. Similarly ferocious fires in Victoria in 1939 (the Black Friday fires) led governments to start to re-introduce fire management schemes. Today these fire management schemes protect us from the worst fury of bushfires, just as they did back in pre-colonial Australia.

At the other end of the scale the storms and cyclones of February often bring flooding rains, especially to Queensland, NSW and Western Australia. In 1852 in Gundagai, NSW, in February 1893 in Brisbane and in many other times and places, most recently 2011 in Brisbane, devastation and loss of property and life have accompanied these events. Seven of the worst 10 floods in Australia have occurred in summer, with several in February. Aboriginal people avoided living in low-lying areas, especially during times of potential flooding, during the pre-colonial period. In fact, Aboriginal people warned the people of Gundagai, NSW, that their settlement was too close to the river before the floods, and were instrumental in saving one fifth of the town’s population from drowning during the floods themselves.

Fortunately this year we have not had any dramatic extreme weather events, but, these topics can still be built into HASS studies (as they are in the OpenSTEM® Understanding Our World® program). Students in Year 5 study natural disasters and the environment as part of the HASS curriculum, however, discussions about climate (Year 3) and Aboriginal Australia (Year 4) can also be incorporated into these topics. OpenSTEM® resources (some of which are linked above) also include quotes of primary sources, as well as contemporary paintings and photographs, addressing necessary skills across a range of year levels.

Australia at the Olympics

The modern Olympic games were started by Frenchman Henri de Baillot-Latour to promote international understanding. The first games of the modern era were held in 1896 in Athens, Greece. Australia has competed in all the Olympic games of the modern era, although our participation in the first one was almost by chance. Of course, the Olympics predated Federation by 5 years, so there was officially no “Australia” as a unified country – rather a collection of separate colonies of Britain. In fact, OpenSTEM®‘s Understanding Our World® program offers National Sport as a optional topic for students in Year 6, for studying Federation and the development of a national identity.

Edwin Flack, first Olympian — Edwin Flack

An Australian, Edwin Flack, born in London and moved to Victoria at the age of 5, later attending Melbourne Church of England Grammar School, was a keen runner, taking part in amateur athletics with the Melburnian Hare and Hounds Athletics Club. Flack went overseas to work in London and New York as an accountant, at the age of 21, and decided to attend the inaugural Olympic games as a spectator. He spent 6 days travelling by rail and sea, and was dreadfully sea-sick, before arriving in Athens. However, once there, he decided to take part in the games and won his first race on the opening day – an 800m heat, which he completed in 2 min 10 sec. On the second day he beat the American favourite in the 1500m race and then won the 800m final on the fourth day. Flack competed in the colours of his high school in Melbourne, there being no official national colours or uniform for Australia yet. He is credited with 2 gold medals and a bronze medal for doubles tennis, although it was not until 1904 that medals were actually awarded at the games. Flack later joined the Australian Olympic Committee and represented Australia at the International Olympic Committee Congress. Flack’s medals have been credited to Australia by the international Olympic committee, which means that Australia is ranked as a country that has taken part in every modern Olympics.

1936 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony (Bundesarchiv)

Winter Olympics did not begin until 1924 and Australia did not compete in the Winter Olympics until 1936, although they have participated in every one since, with the exception of the games of 1948. In 1936 the games were held in the market town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany. A picture taken at the opening ceremony shows a rather concerned looking Henri de Baillot-Latour standing between Rudolf Hess and Adolf Hitler. History may have justified Baillot-Latour’s expression… Australia was represented by Kenneth Kennedy, who took part in the speed skating event, coming 33rd in both the 1500 and 5000m events and 29th in the 500m event. Not being a country renowned for its winter sports, and having a climate not particularly conducive to supporting the training of local athletes, it was many years before Australia was a serious contender in any of the winter sports. It was not until 1994 that Australia won its first medal at the Winter Olympics – a bronze in the short track relay.

However, modern technology which increased access to training options for athletes and increased support for the winter sports by the Australian Olympic Committee have seen Australia forge ahead in recent decades. In 2002 Australia won its first 2 gold medals (the first time any country from the southern hemisphere had won a winter Olympics event) for short track speed skating (which Steven Bradbury won after all the other competitors crashed out) and aerials.

Torah Bright, 2010 — Torah Bright, gold medal 2010 (Allie from Vancity)

2010 was Australia’s most successful Winter Olympics. The games were held in Vancouver, Canada and Australia won 2 gold and 1 silver, with a further 7 athletes finishing in the top 10 in their events. Torah Bright, who was the Australian flagbearer, won a gold medal for the snowboard half-pipe. Lydia Lassila took gold in the aerial skiing. Dale Begg-Smith took silver in the men’s mogul skiing.

This year Australia has 51 athletes competing in 10 sports in PyeongChang in South Korea. Matt Graham has already taken a silver medal in men’s moguls and Scott James has taken a bronze in men’s snowboard half-pipe, with many events still to be completed. Go Aussies!

Current events such as the Winter Olympics can be a great vehicle for teachers to achieve student engagement. There are heaps of ways that these events can be incorporated into students’ learning – from looking at how they can hold the Winter Olympics while we’re sweltering through the tail-end of summer (our Torch and Ball activity demonstrates global seasons as well as day and night, specifically aimed at Science for Years 1 to 3 , it can be a great thing to revise in higher years too); to the Geography and climate of the different venues around the world; from the historical events surrounding many Olympics to the development of an Australian national identity, and national sport, around Federation. The broad range of OpenSTEM® resources are aimed at helping teachers to guide the interests of the students towards the outcomes of the curriculum, whilst keeping the process interesting and engaging.