Activity Introduction
Quick summary: In this lesson, students explore how workplace and systemic structures can impact their employees or stakeholders. They investigate how diversity can benefit business and society and, likewise, how businesses can adapt their systems to create a better work/life balance for all their workers. Students will then create a business or project plan to improve diversity in STEMM fields, taking inspiration from Fabian Dattner’s Homeward Bound project, documented in the film, The Leadership.
It is highly recommended that this lesson is conducted after students have completed The Leadership: Viewing And Responding To The Film – English – Year 10. Please be mindful that this lesson handles difficult topics and may impact different students in different ways. Please ensure students have access to confidential support if they need it.
The Leadership is rated M for mature audiences and contains coarse language and themes of sexual harassment and abuse. Consider whether viewing this film or clips is appropriate for your students.
Learning intentions:
- Students understand that workplace and systemic structures impact upon whether diversity thrives in a particular industry/environment or not
- Students understand how diversity in the workplace can improve outcomes for everyone and lead to innovation
- Students understand the responsibilities of workplaces to make room for diversity and encourage new ways of working to overcome systemic barriers
- Students can create a business plan that improves diversity in an organisation or industry while also improving business outcomes.
21st century skills:
Australian Curriculum Mapping
Content descriptions:
Years 9 & 10 Health and Physical Education:
- Investigate how empathy and ethical decision making contribute to respectful relationships (ACPPS093)
- Plan, implement and critique strategies to enhance health, safety and wellbeing of their communities (ACPPS096)
- Critique behaviours and contextual factors that influence health and wellbeing of diverse communities (ACPPS098)
Year 10 Work Studies:
- Complete an action project utilising entrepreneurial behaviours to address an identified challenge or opportunity (ACWSCL031)
- Explain how diverse work arrangements are impacting on the rights and responsibilities of employers and workers (ACWSCL039)
Year 10 Economics and Business (optional):
- The ways businesses respond to changing economic conditions and improve productivity through organisational management and workforce management (ACHEK054)
- Generate a range of viable options in response to an economic or business issue or event, use cost-benefit analysis and appropriate criteria to recommend and justify a course of action and predict the potential consequences of the proposed action (ACHES058)
- Reflect on the intended and unintended consequences of economic and business decisions (ACHES061)
Syllabus outcomes: PDHPE5.3, PDHPE5.6, PDHPE5.7, PDHPE5.8, PDHPE5.11, PDHPE5.13, C5.2, C5.3, C5.4, C5.5, C5.6
General capabilities: Literacy, Numeracy, Critical and Creative Thinking, Personal and Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Intercultural Understanding
Cross-curriculum priority: Sustainability, Asia and Australia’s Engagement with Asia
Relevant parts of Years 9 & 10 Health and Physical Education achievement standards:
Students critically analyse contextual factors that influence identities, relationships, decisions and behaviours. They analyse the impact attitudes and beliefs about diversity have on community connection and wellbeing.
Relevant parts of Year 10 Work Studies achievement standards:
Students explain the relationship between changing circumstances, learning and 21st century work opportunities and identify the skills needed to manage changes. They analyse emerging 21st century work arrangements and the resultant changing relationships between participants, the opportunities arising and the skills needed for these emerging work arrangements. Students explain the benefits of different cultural perspectives in managing work and problem-solving. Students process the skills required to manage change and transition. They apply entrepreneurial skills to plan, implement and complete a negotiated action project. Students evaluate their findings, propose actions, make recommendations and present these to an audience of stakeholders. Students collect and interpret information on different cultural approaches to ways of working. They explain the importance of culturally diverse workplaces to managing work, work relationships and productivity.
Relevant parts of Year 10 Economics and Business achievement standards (optional):
Students explain how businesses respond to changing economic conditions and improve productivity. Students evaluate the effect of organisational and workforce management on business performance. Students generate alternative responses to an issue, taking into account multiple perspectives. They use cost-benefit analysis and appropriate criteria to propose and justify a course of action.
Topic: Learning Through Film, Social Issues
This lesson is part of the wider unit of work The Leadership – HPE & Work Studies – Year 10.
Time required: 105+ mins.
Level of teacher scaffolding: Medium – teacher will need to lead discussions and activities. Less intensive guidance is needed for the business plan component.
Resources required:
- Device capable of presenting a video to the class
- Handling Sensitive Topics And Issues Factsheet
- Jigsaw Activity Materials – four to five copies of each
- Job Scenarios – one for each group of 4-5 students, cut up and placed into an envelope
- Student Worksheets – one copy per student.
Keywords: change, project, entrepreneurial, diversity, 21st century workplace, cultural perspectives
Cool Australia’s curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum.
Teacher Preparation
