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Draft curriculum content

This page is based on the draft Year 10 content for Social Sciences, which is currently open for feedback. Schools are not required to implement changes until the consultation process is confirmed.

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Consultation for Year 0 to 10 draft curriculum content

The Social Sciences help students understand how people live together, make decisions, and shape communities so they can participate thoughtfully in society. In years 9–10, students build upon their prior learning and engage with complex contexts related to political ideologies, governance systems, and human rights frameworks. In Year 10, these include:

  • History: Asia-Pacific and New Zealand, circa 1910–1970s, Germany 1918–1939, and New Zealand’s role in World War Two
  • Civics and Society: political ideologies, parties, and human rights
  • Geography: place, disease, and future planning
  • Economic Activity: International development, employment, taxation, and budgeting.

History#

Ideas to help at home

With your child, you could:

  • discuss the ways one country takes over another, for example, through war and conquest, or colonisation
  • watch documentaries or shows about life during different wars, including the experiences of people left behind and those on the front lines
  • talk about how resistance in a country you have connections with was similar to Māori resistance to land loss and other effects of colonisation
  • use words and phrases like colonial administration, imperial expansion, movement, independence.

What the teacher will focus on#

The teacher will focus on the Asia-Pacific and New Zealand, circa 1910–1970s, Germany 1918–1939, and New Zealand’s role in World War Two. For example, by the end of the year, your child may be able to:

  • explore the causes of imperialism in the Asia-Pacific, for example, British Malaya, French Indochina, its impact on people’s lives, and the rise of anti-colonial and nationalist movements
  • explain how the Cold War began and why New Zealand sent soldiers to Korea and Vietnam
  • explain the impact of New Zealand’s rule over Western Samoa, the resistance by the Mau Movement, and the significance of New Zealand’s apology in 2002
  • find out what caused the fall of the Weimar Republic, how the Nazi Party took power, and how they kept it using fear and propaganda
  • identify the key factors that led to the outbreak of World War Two and New Zealand’s decision to join the fight
  • explore how different people saw and experienced the war, at home and overseas
  • describe some of the consequences of the war, such as refugee resettlement and the new threat of nuclear weapons.

Civics and Society#

Ideas to help at home

With your child, you could:

  • discuss political ideologies in relation to the news, current events and political parties, looking at the ideological perspectives that shape people’s actions
  • explore a human rights issue that interests them and how you might participate to improve how these human rights are met in New Zealand
  • discuss how the English and Māori Waitangi documents are different and the impact of this, focusing on the constitutional importance of honouring the document signed by the Indigenous people.

What the teacher will focus on#

The teacher will focus on political ideologies, parties, and human rights. For example, by the end of the year, your child may be able to:

  • identify political ideologies they have learned about at school, for example, from the French and American revolutions
  • use a range of sources to compare what different parties say about a current issue, like climate change or animal rights, to understand their values and viewpoints
  • analyse sources to find out about a human rights law or agreement and why it was made, for example, the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990
  • discuss what one of New Zealand’s human rights organisations does, how it works, and how well it works
  • explain why Te Tiriti o Waitangi | The Treaty of Waitangi is important to New Zealand’s system of government, and what the principles of partnership, protection, and participation mean.

Geography#

Ideas to help at home

With your child, you could:

  • choose places that are memorable or special to you and talk about why they are, then discuss how feelings and memories help turn a space into a place
  • research the names of three or four places in your community and talk about their personal, historical, and community meanings
  • talk about how information about community diseases is collected, and how governments or communities use this data to plan and protect people.

What the teacher will focus on#

The teacher will focus on the concept of “place”, disease, and future planning. For example, by the end of the year, your child may be able to:

  • understand that a “place” is what a space becomes when people interact with it and give it meaning
  • use examples to show how a place grows meaning through:
    • people’s personal experiences of that place
    • its cultural or historical significance, for example, a marae or war memorial
    • the social connections it creates, for example, a community hall
  • explain why place names can be very important, for example, honouring Māori heritage
  • discuss how people can be made to feel included or excluded within a place
  • use maps, graphs, and quantitative data to show how diseases can spread and explain how this information can be used to help manage disease
  • collect, analyse, record, and interpret information about a local initiative designed to prepare for the future, for example, a tree planting project to protect a stream bank.

Economic Activity#

Ideas to help at home

With your child, you could:

  • talk about why it isn’t possible for all countries to produce the same things, why some countries are known for the production of certain products, and how geography and resources influence what jobs and industries a country develops
  • choose an example of a large purchase, such as a laptop, phone, or bike, that costs around $1000, and compare the advantages and disadvantages of three ways of paying for it:
    • saving up
    • low-interest loan
    • high-interest credit card
  • use an employment agreement from someone in your whānau or find a sample online, and ask your child to highlight and label the key parts:
    • type of contract – for example, casual, full-time, fixed-term, permanent
    • wages or salary
    • working hours and breaks
    • leave entitlements – for example, sick leave, annual leave
    • notice period.

What the teacher will focus on#

The teacher will focus on international development and employment, taxation, and budgeting. For example, by the end of the year, your child may be able to:

  • understand that the goods a country produces are based on its human geography, like labour and infrastructure, and its physical geography, such as climate and natural resources
  • interpret and create tables, graphs, and maps that measure indicators of economic development
  • investigate what causes countries to have different levels of economic development, and the impact of global inequalities in wealth, health, and education
  • read an employment contract and identify its type, such as casual, full-time, fixed term, or permanent, and what it says, for example, about wages and working hours
  • evaluate the benefits of contributing to KiwiSaver, including comparing different types, conservative, balanced, growth, aggressive, and time periods
  • use different kinds of information to make financial decisions, for example, comparing the long-term cost of a purchase if they use savings, a low-interest loan, or a high-interest credit card.