Australia has a varied and abundant food supply. Globally, many people do not have access to a secure and varied food supply and many Australians, amid a variety of influences, consume food and beverage products in quantities that may harm their health. Also, food and cooking, and their central roles in our lives, have become prominent topics in digital media and publishing. This study examines the various factors for this increased exposure and the background to this abundance of food, and it explores reasons for our food choices.
VCE Food Studies is designed to build the capacities of students to make informed food choices and develop an understanding about food security, food sovereignty and food citizenship. Students develop
their understanding of food while acquiring skills that enable them to take greater ownership of their food decisions and eating patterns. This study complements and supports further training and employment opportunities in the fields of home economics, food technology, food manufacturing and hospitality.
The study is made up of four units:
Unit 1: Food origins
Unit 2: Food makers
Unit 3: Food in daily life
Unit 4: Food issues, challenges and futures
Each unit deals with specific content contained in areas of study and is designed to enable students to achieve a set of outcomes for that unit. Each outcome is described in terms of key knowledge and key skills.
There are no prerequisites for entry to Units 1, 2 and 3. Students must undertake Unit 3 and Unit 4 as a sequence. Units 1–4 are designed to a standard equivalent to the final two years of secondary education. All VCE studies are benchmarked against comparable national and international curriculum. Each unit involves at least 50 hours of scheduled classroom instruction.
Satisfactory completion
The award of satisfactory completion for a unit is based on the teacher’s decision that the student has demonstrated achievement of the set of outcomes specified for the unit. Demonstration of achievement of outcomes and satisfactory completion of a unit are determined by evidence gained through the assessment of a range of learning activities and tasks.
Teachers must develop courses that provide appropriate opportunities for students to demonstrate satisfactory achievement of outcomes.
The decision about satisfactory completion of a unit is distinct from the assessment of levels of achievement. Schools will report a student’s result for each unit to the VCAA as S (satisfactory) or N (not satisfactory).
Levels of achievement
Units 1 and 2
Procedures for the assessment of levels of achievement in Units 1 and 2 are a matter for school decision. Assessment of levels of achievement for these units will not be reported to the VCAA. Schools may choose to report levels of achievement using grades, descriptive statements or other indicators.
Units 3 and 4
The VCAA specifies the assessment procedures for students undertaking scored assessment in Units 3 and 4. Designated assessment tasks are provided in the details for each unit in VCE study designs.
In the study of VCE Food Studies students’ level of achievement will be determined by School-assessed Coursework and an end-of-year examination. Percentage contributions to the study score in VCE Food Studies are as follows:
Unit 3 School-assessed Coursework: 30 per cent
Unit 4 School-assessed Coursework: 30 per cent
End-of-year examination: 40 per cent.
In this unit students focus on food from historical and cultural perspectives, and investigate the origins and roles of food through time and across the world.
In Area of Study 1, students explore how humans have historically sourced their food, examining the general progression from hunter-gatherer to rural-based agriculture, to today’s urban living and global trade in food. Students consider the origins and significance
of food through inquiry into one particular food-producing region of the world.
In Area of Study 2, students focus on Australia. They look at Australian indigenous food prior to European settlement and how food patterns have changed since, particularly through the influence of food production, processing and manufacturing industries and immigration. Students investigate cuisines that are part of Australia’s culinary identity today and reflect on the concept of an Australian cuisine.
Students consider the influence of innovations, technologies and globalisation on food patterns. Throughout this unit they complete topical and contemporary practical activities to enhance, demonstrate and share their learning with others.
In this unit students investigate food systems in contemporary Australia. Area of Study 1 focuses on commercial food production industries, while Area of Study 2 looks at food production in domestic and small-scale settings, as both a comparison and complement to commercial production. Students gain insight into the significance of food industries to the Australian economy and investigate the capacity of industry to provide safe, high-quality food that meets the needs of consumers.
Students use practical skills and knowledge to produce foods and consider a range of evaluation measures to compare their foods to commercial products. They consider the effective provision and preparation of food in the home, and analyse the benefits and challenges of developing and using practical food skills in daily life. In demonstrating their practical skills, students design new food products and adapt recipes to suit particular needs and circumstances. They consider the possible extension of their role as small-scale food producers by exploring potential entrepreneurial opportunities.
In this unit students investigate the many roles and everyday influences of food.
Area of Study 1 explores the science of food: our physical need for it and how it nourishes and sometimes harms our bodies. Students investigate the science of food appreciation, the physiology of eating and digestion, and the role of diet on gut health. They analyse the scientific evidence, including nutritional rationale, behind the healthy eating recommendations of the Australian Dietary Guidelines and the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating (see www.eatforhealth.gov.au), and develop their understanding of diverse nutrient requirements.
Area of Study 2 focuses on influences on food choices: how communities, families and individuals change their eating patterns over time and how our food values and behaviours develop within social environments. Students inquire into the role of food in shaping and expressing identity and connectedness, and the ways in which food information can be filtered and manipulated. They investigate behavioural principles that assist in the establishment of lifelong, healthy dietary patterns.
Practical activities enable students to understand how to plan and prepare food to cater for various dietary needs through the production of everyday food that facilitates the establishment of nutritious and sustainable meal patterns.
In this unit students examine debates about Australia’s food systems as part of the global food systems and describe key issues relating to the challenge of adequately feeding a rising world population.
In Area of Study 1 students focus on individual responses to food information and misinformation and the development of food knowledge, skills and habits to empower consumers to make discerning food choices. They also consider the relationship between food security, food sovereignty and food citizenship. Students consider how to assess information and draw evidence-based conclusions, and apply this methodology to navigate contemporary food fads, trends and diets. They practise and improve their food selection skills by interpreting food labels and analysing the marketing terms used on food packaging.
In Area of Study 2 students focus on issues about the environment, climate, ecology, ethics, farming practices, including the use and management of water and land, the development and application of innovations and technologies, and the challenges of food security, food sovereignty, food safety and food wastage. They research a selected topic, seeking clarity on current situations and points of view, considering solutions and analysing work undertaken to solve problems and support sustainable futures. The focus of this unit is on food issues, challenges and futures in Australia.
Practical activities provide students with opportunities to apply their responses to environmental and ethical food issues, reflect on healthy eating recommendations of the Australian Dietary Guidelines and the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating, and consider how food selections and food choices can optimise human and planetary health.
Food Studies Study Design and Curriculum
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