St Mary Star of the Sea College

Preliminary Modern History Project

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Introduction

The first atomic bomb was dropped by the United States on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on 6 August 1945. Three days later the second was dropped on Nagasaki. Japan surrendered, ending the Second World War but the Atomic Age had begun.

The fear that one side might become more powerful than the other led to an arms race between the USA and the Soviet Union. By 1953, both had developed the hydrogen bomb. The fact that the A-bomb had actually been used in warfare was sufficient to alarm other nations, and by 1966, Britain and France had developed and tested new atomic weapons.

 In the 1950s and 1960s people probably knew less than we do today about nuclear weapons and what their governments were doing about them. On the other hand there was a real fear of an all out nuclear war between the USA and the USSR which could devastate those countries and much of the world with it, and protest groups began to form in the western world.

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Through this task you are going to try to understand how both people and politicians felt about nuclear weapons and the possibility of nuclear war in the 1950s and 1960s. You will uncover the policies followed by the leaders of the nuclear weapons countries which led to tests being conducted in the Marshall Islands, Australia and Mururoa. The links provided and other resources available will help you to discover how these areas were used, the role of local authorities and the impact of nuclear fallout.

A timeline of the period will give you a sense of the enormous dangers of the Nuclear Age while placing into context the focus of this study. You should draw your own conclusions on the reasoning, the legality and the ethics of the nuclear policies, strategies, threats and actions of those nations involved in tests in the Pacific.

Task description

Part A: oral empathy task (20 marks)

1. Working in pairs, select one of the Pacific locations listed above for your investigation. The Question page will help you with your research. You should print a copy if needed. Use as many links as you need to answer the questions.
   
2. You will each assume a role which will allow you to represent the perspective of one of the groups who were involved in the nuclear tests in your chosen region.
   
3. During the research time there will be teacher observation of the process of research and group work. One week prior to the assessment date you must submit your planning sheet which details the roles and three interrelated questions that you will be addressing.
   
4. Refer to the Process for guidelines for management of time.
   
5. Submit a transcript and bibliography on the due date.

In this task you will be assessed on your ability to:

• plan an historical investigation and collect, analyse and organise relevant information from a variety of sources
• explain motives and selection of location for nuclear tests
• work collaboratively
• communicate historical understanding and historical information in the selected form

Part B: Essay (20 marks)

Write a 500-750 word response

The arms race continued after 1945 partly as a response to political pressure on governments for national security. Explain why anti-nuclear groups began to emerge in the 1960s. What impact did they have on governments?

In this task you will be assessed on your ability to:

• Accurately describe and show relationships
• Use sources and evidence
• Express findings in a well structured text

 Refer to your assessment notification for important details including dates, outcomes, and weighting

Complete the evaluation on paper and submit with your transcript, bibliography and essay.

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Process

Week 1 - Examine the internet sites that have been listed for the topic that you have selected. Use the the Question Page to help in the collection of information. If time permits, make your own searches and add these addresses to your bibliography.

Week 2 - First lesson this week map your ideas on a graphic organiser. Gaps in your research should become obvious at this time. Write your own questions that you think need to be added. Work with your partner on negotiating the tasks for collection of additional information. All data should be collected by the end of this week. Points to consider:

• Have you been able to include primary source evidence?
• 'When you find useful visual resources, copy/paste them into MS Word and save them to a disk.
• Editing is an equally important role. Select the relevant information, then rewrite in your own words.

Week 3 - Begin the week by putting your information together. Allocate tasks, edit, refine, rehearse. Make necessary bookings for technical equipment. Write your individual essays. Make a copy of your transcripts, print your bibliographies.

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Glossary

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Evaluation

Answer the questions and submit with your written work.

1. Has this web page assignment made your internet research any easier? Explain.
   
2. What has been the most interesting part of this research task?
   
3. What difficulties have you experienced?
   
4. What changes would you like to be made to improve this type of research task in future?
   
5. Would you like to undertake further classroom tasks on a web page, such as a web quest?

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Credits

This web page has been designed by Cheryl Chenery for the use of her students at St Mary Star of the Sea College, Wollongong.

A special thanks to:

the NSW History Project coordinators

Mike Horsley at the University of Sydney for acting as mentor

Sue Martin of St Mary Star of the Sea College for technical assistance.

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