All students engage with history from Year 7 to 10, and Rose Bay Secondary College offers students the opportunity to use higher order thinking skills, individual investigation and collaboration to explore a range of local, national and global events. As a Year 7 student, you will be greeted by our passionate and committed History Team who are looking forward to introducing you to the 'real' work of the historian. We adopt an inquiry based approach to the study of history and encourage our students to be curious and inquisitive learners who think critically and intelligently about the past.

As well as the Mandatory Syllabus for Years 7-10, we also teach Elective History and Philosophy in Stage 5, Modern and Ancient History in Stage 6 and Extension History in Year 12. We also offer Society and Culture and Studies of Religion as senior courses. We are very fortunate to have a highly experienced staff with HSC markers in Modern History and staff who have designed high quality teaching and learning programs as part of a state-wide curriculum implementation program. In this way, we believe our role extends beyond our own faculty and also see the value in supporting History teachers across the state.

Our dedicated teachers also value learning beyond the classroom. Year 7 and 8 students recently participated in the 'History Mastermind Challenge' organised by the Historical Teachers' Association. We were delighted when our passionate Year 8 student historians successfully reached the semi-finals of this competition.

Course Resources

In NSW high schools, languages is a key learning area. Language study allows students to develop communication skills, learn about languages as systems and explore the relationship between language and culture. Students engage with the linguistic and cultural diversity of societies and reflect on their understanding of social interactions.

The study of a language is compulsory for 100 hours in one continuous school year in Year 7. Students at Rose Bay Secondary College are invited to study French or Italian in Year 7. In Year 7 French, students are given the opportunity to demonstrate their skills in speaking a foreign language through an excursion to a french restaurant. Engaging in authentic learning tasks encourages students to see the real world scenarios in which they can apply their knowledge from the classroom.

Students are also provided with the opportunity to continue their language studies through Open High School from Years 9 to 12. This approach ensures that we are able to offer our students a broad range of language options that cater for their individual preferences.