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Stage 6 | Modern History Unit of Work

TOPIC: Investigating Modern History; The Nature of Modern History; The Stage 6 Year Duration: 4 weeks
Construction of Modern Histories; Personality Study: 11
Detail: 16 hours/ 16 lessons
The Che Effect

Rationale
The topic investigating history aims to compliment the rest of the following topics through to year 12, to help shape a better understanding of the world and the
multiple views that exist. The construction of modern histories helps students develop their investigating skills that will further aid in interpreting sources and
build on the growth of their perspectives. Che Guevara is a stimulating personality study that compliments the next case study: Cuban Revolution. The
deconstruction of Che Guevara in this unit of work will overlap much of the Cuban revolution which develops students background knowledge and
influencers.
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Focus questions
 Who is Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara?
 Why is he significant?
 What were the origin of his communist’s ideologies?
 How was he significant to the Cuban revolution?
 How is he historically significant?
 What are historian’s views of Che Guevara?
 What was Ernesto ‘Che Guevara’s legacy?
 Why is he a symbolic idol today?
Historical Concepts and Skills
SKILLS:
MH11-6 analyses and interprets different types of sources for evidence to support
an historical account or argument
MH11-7 discusses and evaluates differing interpretations and representations of the
past
MH11-8 plans and conducts historical investigations and presents reasoned
conclusions, using relevant evidence from a range of sources
MH11-9 communicates historical understanding, using historical knowledge,
concepts and terms, in appropriate and well-structured forms
MH11-10 discusses contemporary methods and issues involved in the
investigation of modern history
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Outcomes
MH11-1 describes the nature of continuity and change in the modern
world
MH11-2 proposes ideas about the varying causes and effects of events
and developments
MH11-3 analyses the role of historical features, individuals, groups
and ideas in shaping the past
MH11-4 accounts for the different perspectives of individuals and
groups
MH11-5 examines the significance of historical features, people,
ideas, movements, events and developments of the modern world
Resources
 Transcript of Letter to Fidel,
http://sayed7asan.blogspot.com/2017/10/farewell-letter-from-martyr-
ernesto-che.html
 Official Che Trailer HD, 2008, retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqTw2dtVQzw
 The Motorcycle Diaries (2004), Biographic Film.
 Quote retrieved from:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legacy_of_Che_Guevara#Written_legacy
 The Fall of Che Guevara and the changing face of the Cuban revolution,
retrieved from, https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/CIA-
RDP79T00472A000800020004-5.pdf
 Che Guevara's Last Moments and Death retrieved from YouTube,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0vHvHmoioE
 Graffiti art retrieved from,
https://www.flickr.com/photos/129643884@N04/40508050783
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Content Teaching and learning strategies Resources

 Introduction to topic: Ernesto ‘Che’  Place students into six groups, aiming to refresh their memories based Official Che Trailer HD,
Guevara on the main “isms” they will be needing for the following topic. 2008, retrieved from:

 Students background knowledge  Capitalism https://www.youtube.com/wat

ch?v=fqTw2dtVQzw
 Glossary terms  Communism
 Egalitarianism
 Imperialism The Motorcycle Diaries
(2004), Biographic Film.
 Nationalism
 Socialism
What time period did they emerge? What influenced the rise of each ism?
How are they relevant today?
 Mind map to discuss students background knowledge of Che Guevara
and revolution.
 Watch movie trailer to give students an idea of the personality traits of
Che, also to be more familiar with glossary terms mentioned.
 Discuss traits and introduce glossary terms for topic;
 Authoritarian
 Biography
 Capitalism
 Communism
 Context; historical, cultural, social
 Fidel Castro
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Content Teaching and learning strategies Resources

 Guerrilla warfare
 Historiography
 Marxism
 Nationalism
 Oppression
 Rebellions
 Revolution
 Discuss time periods, the importance of the time periods: what is
occurring in south America during this time? What is occurring around
the world during this time? How is it affecting specific countries within
south America?
RISE OF CHE GUEVARA
 Introduce the movie that students will be watching to show the origins
of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara’s beliefs in order to provide context to his
significance to South America and Cuban Revolution: The Motorcycle
Diaries. (2hrs 6mins)
 Whilst watching the biography, assist students in creating a timeline of
Ernesto’s ‘Che’ Guevaras significant events that led to the production of
his character.
 Teacher should pause movie during important scenes to contribute to
student’s timeline. The end of the biography timeline should be
discussed amongst the class to fill gaps between teacher and students.
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Content
Student & teacher centred discussions in
class.
Movie Reflection
Apply the quote to reflect on the biography
movie as a class task initiated with
similarities and differences between both.
Discuss both sources to determine constant
personality traits that led Ernesto to become
a revolutionist/controversy figure, aim that
they use their own research and add the use
of historiography to back up their
perspective.
Teaching and learning strategies Resources
 NOTE: Provide parents with permission slips in order for students to be
allowed to watch the biography.
 Reflective thinking: Resource 1. Resource 1
 Discuss answers: teacher must fill gaps that are missing
particularly with concepts, glossary terms to build a solid
foundation for topic. Further discussion questions include:
 Origin of leftist beliefs
 What initiated Che’s Journey?
 Introduce students to Cuban Revolution: Batista Regime,
emergence of communism, Fidel Castro.
 Causation, continuity, change that occurred through Cuba
through the significance of the rebellion.
“Che was not only a heroic fighter, but a revolutionary thinker, with a political Quote retrieved from:
and moral project and a system of ideas and values for which he fought and
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
gave his life. The philosophy which gave his political and ideological choices
their coherence, colour, and taste was a deep revolutionary humanism. For Che, Legacy_of_Che_Guevara#Wr
the true Communist, the true revolutionary was one who felt that the great itten_legacy
problems of all humanity were his or her personal problems, one who was
capable of "feeling anguish whenever someone was assassinated, no matter
where it was in the world, and of feeling exultation whenever a new banner of
liberty was raised somewhere else. Che’s internationalism -a way of life, a
secular faith, a categorical imperative, and a spiritual "nationality"- was the
living and concrete expression of this revolutionary Marxist humanism."
— Michael Löwy, author of The Marxism of Che Guevara: Philosophy,
Economics, Revolutionary Warfare
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Content Teaching and learning strategies Resources

Discussion questions:
 What is the main idea of the above quote?
 What does it reveal about Che Guevara?
 In what ways might this source be reliable/unreliable?
 How can a historian be able to use this source to understand Ernesto Che
Guevara?
 The above questions should provide students the scaffolding for an
essay. Use both questions & resource 1 as a scaffold to their essays for
assessment 1.

Research Che Guevara’s significant battles
that was implicitly involved in his
importance.
RESEARCH TASK: Place students in six groups and assign each group a battle ICT rooms.
that influenced the rise of Che Guevara that shows his significance: Retrieved from YouTube, The
1. Battle of Las Mercedes story of Ernesto Che Guevara
2. Battle of Santa Clara | Short Story | The OpenBook
(2017)
3. Bay of Pigs Invasion
Resource 2.
4. Nancahuazu Guerrilla
Resource 3.
5. Cuban Revolution
6. Operation Verano
Each group researches the time period of each event, causation, effect,
significance, create their own sources to support their research and provide
an analysis them in relation to the battle to back their research. Resource 2
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Content Teaching and learning strategies Resources

Must focus on analysing the role of the historic figure, his ideologies and how it
has shaped the past. This will also further fill the gaps of their timelines from
previous week.
Must also use appropriate historical terms, figures, concepts provided within the
beginning of the topic.
IMPORTANT: must include guerrilla warfare: use YouTube video to discuss.
Base a topic on guerrilla warfare and Che Guevara’s knack to the rivalry should
be included to show his capabilities that upheld the spread of communism,
derived from movie and YouTube video. Think, pair, share: pro & cons traits.
Resource 3. Guide students to focus on values and attitude of the historical
figure. Use all resources to build a pro & con trait, which will further assist for
their assessment 1.
This research task aims for students to conduct their own investigation to learn
more about Che Guevara and how his personality/beliefs/influence led a
regime into significant battles that cultivated his character and brought attention
to the world.
 Was Che Guevara a controversial figure?
 What were some conflictive perspectives based on Che Guevara?
Their own individual research will further assist them in shaping their essays for
assessment 1. Discuss all answers to keep all students in the loop.
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Content
The use of sources to determine Che
Guevara as a living symbol around
the world even after death.
Teaching and learning strategies Resources
FALL OF CHE GUEVARA Che Guevara's Last Moments and Death
retrieved from YouTube,
Introduce the progress of the personality study on Che
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0vHvHmoi
Guevara’s last years. Mind map to discuss Che’s personality
oE
traits even towards the end.
Teacher should build a historical comparison of Che Guevara’s
progress has led to his last years. Study source to identify and
explain how he has become the face of revolution in pop
culture. How is Che Guevara a historic symbol? Discuss in
accordance to graffiti wall found in Italy.
Read The fall of Che Guevara and the changing face of the
Cuban revolution.
Read the summary as a class. Mind map what Place students
into pairs:
1. Industrialisation- Guevara’s greatest failure
2. Guevara’s dispute with the national bank
3. Guevara’s polemic over centralisation
The Fall of Che Guevara and the changing face
4. Dorticos challenge Guevara
of the Cuban revolution, retrieved from,
5. Guevara’s views on foreign policy https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/C
6. The abrogation of Guevara’s policies IA-RDP79T00472A000800020004-5.pdf
7. Cuba without Guevara
Each pair should analyse and interpret their section. Scaffolding
questions can include:
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What is the origin of the document?
Is the source reliable?
Is the source bias?
Who is the intended audience?
How is Che Guevara viewed in each section?
Why do you think the document was released?
Collectively discuss each section, the effect of each section,
how Che has been represented from other sources.

Analysing Sources SOURCE INVESTIGATION: To end the topic, hand out

sources and have students investigate the purpose of them.
Place students in groups and provide attachments of sources:
 What is the subject?
 Who was the source made for? (for public, private or
limited audience?)
 Why was the source made? (for the purpose of Point of
view, to convince, to condemn, to provide information?)
 How is the aim achieved? (appeals to emotions?)
 Was it made to reach a mass audience?
 What is the main idea?
 In this task each group should give their collective
opinions to create a historical narrative based on the
evidence in the sources.
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Follow this by handing out the transcript of translated letter to
discuss their answers and follow up with aiming to encourage
each groups narrative as a type of historian’s perspective.

Assessment Essay: In class task.

“Discuss why Che Guevara is known as the face of revolution.”
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Mausoleo Che Guevara (Che Guevara Mausoleum),

The portrait of Che just behind the
open in October 1997
revolution square in Havana.
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TRANSCIPT OF LETTER (TRANSLATED)

“Havana, Year of Agriculture [1965].

Fidel,

At this moment I remember many things: the day I met you in the house of Maria Antonia, when you asked me to come with you [to participate in the Cuban Revolution] and all the tension of the preparations.

One day they came by to ask who should be notified in case of death, and the real possibility of this (death) struck us all. Thereafter, we knew it was true, and that in a revolution one triumphs or dies, if it is true.
Many comrades fell on the road to victory.

Today, everything has a less dramatic tone, because we are more mature; but the event repeats itself. I feel like I have accomplished the part of my duty that tied me to the Cuban revolution in its territory, and I take
my leave of you, of the comrades, of your people who is now also mine.

I formally resign my positions in the leadership of the Party, my position as Minister, my rank of Commander and my Cuban citizenship. Nothing legal binds me no longer to Cuba, except the links of another kind
that cannot be broken, unlike titles or ranks.

Reviewing my past life, I believe I have worked with sufficient honesty and dedication to consolidate the revolutionary triumph. My only fault of some seriousness, is not having had more confidence in you from
the first moments in the Sierra Maestra and not having been able to discern quickly your qualities of leader and revolutionary.

I have lived magnificent days, and I felt at your side the pride of belonging to our people in the luminous yet sad days of the Caribbean [Missile] crisis. Rarely, a head of state was as bright as you were in these
circumstances. I am also proud to have followed you without hesitation, to have fully adhered to your way of thinking, and to have been able to see and appreciate the dangers and principles the way you did.

Other nations of the world summon my modest efforts of assistance. I can do what is denied to you due to your responsibility at the head of Cuba, and the time has come to part.

Know that I do it with a mixture of joy and pain. I leave here the purest of my hopes as a constructor and the dearest of all the ones I love. And I leave a people who adopted me like a son. It tears a part of my soul.
On the new battlefields, I will bring the faith that you inculcated me, the revolutionary spirit of my people, the feeling of accomplishing the most sacred of duties: fighting against imperialism wherever it may be. It
comforts and heals advantageously the deepest wounds.

I repeat once again that I free Cuba from all responsibility, except that which emanates from its example. If one day, in other lands, occurs to me the fateful hour (of martyrdom), my last thought will be for this people
and especially for you.

Thank you for your teachings and your example to whom I will try to stay true to the last consequence of my actions. I was always in total agreement with the foreign policy of our Revolution, and I still am. Wherever
I find myself, I will always feel upon me the responsibility of being a Cuban revolutionary, and I will behave as such. I leave nothing material to my children and to my wife, and this does not grieve me. I am happy
that it is so. I ask nothing for them, because I know that the State will give them what they need to live and get an instruction.

I have much to say to you and to our people, but I feel that it is useless, because words cannot express what I would like to say, and it's not worth blackening more paper.

Until victory, always.

Homeland or Death!

I embrace you with all my revolutionary fervour.

(Signed :) Che.”
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Resource 1: The Motorcycle Diaries Movie

THINK: problems and issues PUZZLE: List the ways the EMERGE: how did Che Guevara EXPLORE: how might you find
occurring in South America, government attempted to address attempt to address these information on different ideas about
particularly Cuba. problems/issues that you identified. issues/problems? how societies (communism &
Capitalism) should be organised.
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Resource 2: CHOOSE 1: Battle of Las Mercedes - Battle of Santa Clara- Bay of Pigs Invasion- Nancahuazu Guerrilla -Cuban Revolution -Operation
Verano

Time period Cause Effect Significance Sources/ Historiography to Analysis of relation

back up
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Resource 3:

Che Guevara Traits

Pros Cons
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Justification

The unit of work provided covers the construction of modern histories, as an introduction to year 11, the personality study of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara. Through

the process of backward mapping it is important to choose topics that slightly overlap each other, in order to teach the syllabus in a complementary manner. The

topics that show similarities and interests within students can be viewed from year 12; term 3, The Nuclear age; term 2, The Cold War; term 1, Russia and the

USSR; (year 11) term 3, WW1; term 1, The Cuban Revolution. The significance of backward mapping highlights how crucial it is to pick topics that will guide

students into the following through slight overlapping. The unit of work aims to apply student’s prior knowledge and also to develop their skills, it can easily be

adapted to students that are gifted and talented and students on life skill programs. The unit of work often demonstrates scaffolding questions to guide students

through activities, this allows flexibility for teachers to apply within their classroom for a range of students, promoting an inclusive environment. The unit of

work uses a range of resources, discussions, group work and teach/student centred collaboration. It also aims to develop the student historical capabilities

including, interpreting sources, relevance of sources and how they apply to our world today.

The unit of work aims to develop students sense to investigate the past and initiate inquiry questions to the issues and problems of doing so. To understand the

subject is addressed with the focus of developing student’s skills through processes such as blooms taxonomy. Conceptual knowledge is vital for the subject

history, it improves students interpreting, summarising, explaining skills and their efforts to critique sources (Krathwohl, 2002). It further amplifies student’s

theoretical knowledge alongside with the unit of work, the range of sources provided, thoroughly exemplifies the use of applying, analysing and evaluation skill

sets needed to undertake the stage six course. The unit of work critically follows much of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers are explicitly

explored within the above unit of work demonstrating knowledge and understanding of particular content area with the use of multiple teaching strategies
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(2.1,3.3). also uses a range of resources and aims to apply effective classroom communication through a range of teaching strategies focussing on all student

participation through group work and class discussions (3.4, 3.5, 4.1). the unit of work also assesses student learning formally and informally each week (5.1).

Furthermore, it also incorporates much of the quality teaching model requirements. This is clearly shown with the use of metalanguage throughout the unit of

work, glossary terms are expected to be incorporated in all student activities, along with substantive communication amongst the teacher and students to apply

key concepts and ideas through class discussions, mind maps etc. higher order thinking is often expected from stage 6 students, therefore, not as much

scaffolding shall be needed to interpret certain sources if students rely solely on their background knowledge. The personality study of Che Guevara is

thoroughly undertaken within investigating modern history, allowing students to comprehend and demonstrate meaningful idea and relationships with specific

concepts with the topic known as deep understanding. The unit of work also includes range of strategies to allow positive social support system within the

classroom, which is also supported by explicit instructions. the personality study aims to promote inclusivity with the variety of participation by students within

the class.

The program also consists of all the curriculum outcomes and skills expected to be achieved. The topic clearly discusses the cause and effect of Che Guevara

(MH11-2) amongst south America, particularly Cuba. The personality study is an investigation of a controversial historical figure (MH11-3), that is often still

lives on in our world today. The unit shows sources to support these theories and allows students to perceive their own interpretation, this allows students to see

the role of Che Guevara in certain events and how his revolutionary mindset has shaped the world we live in today (MH11-5). A range of sources allows

students to come to their own theories to support their arguments, proposing ideas about Che Guevara’s actions. The biography allows students to see the origin
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of the historical figure and attempt to use their historical knowledge to adapt this to different perspectives they will be studying (MH11-4, MH11-6, MH11-7,

MH11-8). It is particularly crucial that students understand how Che’s ideologies have shaped the past and continue to shape the present (MH11-1). The

glossary terms aim to help shape students understanding of the knowledge of the topic and encourages students to use them within their activities to identify the

prevalence within the topic (MH11-9).

The unit of work aims to cause inquiry amongst students to infer their curiosity for further topics, to allow individual investigation to occur more naturally. The

personality study helps students understand how the past has shaped our presence and how it continues to do so, with the recurrence of significant people that

will continue to form our modern world.

References

Krathwohl, D. R. (2002). A revision of Bloom's taxonomy: An overview. Theory into practice, 41(4), 212-218.

Liberante, L. (2012). The importance of teacher–student relationships, as explored through the lens of the NSW Quality Teaching Model. Journal of Student
Engagement: Education Matters, 2(1), 2-9

Matruglio, E. S. (2007). Values and attitudes in ancient and modern history.

Voet, M., & De Wever, B. (2016), History teachers’ conceptions of inquiry-based learning, beliefs about the nature of history, and their relation to the
classroom context. Teaching and Teacher Education, 55, 57-67.