Impact of war

• As a class, watch 'The Forgotten' by Glen Stasiuk, a 40-minute documentary highlighting the Indigenous soldiers in the Australian Armed Forces. The DVD is available for purchase from Message Stick, 'The Forgotten', http://www.abc.net.au/tv/messagestick/stories/s820390.htm
• Discuss the contribution of Indigenous servicemen and servicewomen as outlined in the film.

• Once students have learned more about the conditions awaiting returned soldiers, ask them to write a letter to the editor of the local newspaper, protesting about the inequality of the treatment of Indigenous soldiers, such as Sid, and non-Indigenous soldiers after they returned from the First World War.

Student Activity Sheet H10.4: Letter to the editor

• Ask students: what would it feel like to be discriminated against? Discuss this concept and ask  students to draw on any personal experiences they may have of being discriminated against. Use a Y-Chart to express their view on the following focus questions:

1. What does discrimination look like?
2. What does discrimination feel like?
3. What does discrimination sound like?

• Students watch the clip 'Impact of war' again, this time focusing on the body language and voices of Bertie, Sid and Mr Watson. Using the Student Activity Sheet provided, they should respond to the questions on what discrimination looks like and sounds like, using examples observed in the clip. All responses can be shared with the class.

Student Activity Sheet: H10.5: Discrimination conflict wheel

• After viewing the clip, ask students to describe what is happening in this scene, using evidence from the text to support their explanations. What clues have been given previously that will help the viewer to understand what is happening here? Focus on the opening scene with the telegram boy and discuss what this signals to the viewer. Have students think about how this makes them feel. Ask them to look carefully to find out what the filmmaker is drawing viewers' attention to in this scene, how this is achieved and the possible reasons why.
• It may be necessary to give students some background about telegrams and their critical role in communication in times before it was common for people to have telephones in their homes. It is important to highlight the significance of a telegram received during wartime. Viewers must appreciate this if the scene is to have the intended impact. There may be some students whose grandparents have kept telegrams from the past, for example, wedding telegrams. Look at the format of a telegram. The message was conveyed in as few words as possible, with words such as articles omitted.
• Discuss why telegrams were abbreviated, and find out the cost of sending a telegram. Discuss how telegrams are similar to SMS text messages. What other text formats have replaced the telegram?

• Ask students to use the worksheet to analyse the impact of this clip. List the sounds heard in one column and the vision in the other, and note what they consider to be significant. The audio of the bicycle bell comes first, a piercing noise which precedes the image, immediately focusing attention on the bicycle and the boy. Other factors colouring the tone of this scene are the demeanour of the boy on the bicycle and the symbolism of the uniform, both designed to create particular meaning for the viewer.
• Have students look closely at the way this opening scene is edited, with the montage of shots cutting back and forth between Bertie and Sid, and others. Ask students:

1. What is the purpose of this? What is the filmmaker trying to make you feel?
2. How does it make you feel?
3. How does the filmmaker use this technique to help tell the story?

Student Activity Sheet E10.5: Delivering news

• Consider how Sid, an Aboriginal soldier, is portrayed in this clip, and discuss the meaning of 'prejudice'. Ask students to suggest some ways in which people can treat others in a prejudiced manner. How does the filmmaker portray the prejudice that Sid encounters, for example, Sid's discomfort at entering the backyard, and Mr Watson's and his daughter's treatment of Sid?
• Think about how Sid and Bertie relate to each other, and then how Mr Watson relates to them. Discuss the differences, and think about the reasons why the filmmaker has portrayed these relationships in this way.

• Ask students to consider how Sid felt when Mr Watson made him stay outside his shop. What could be the reasons for the difference in Mr Watson's treatment of Sid and Bertie? Use the Student Activity Sheet E10.6 to respond to the questions. Teachers can give students some context about the conditions that Indigenous people returned to after fighting in the First World War. They did not receive the same government benefits as non-Indigenous soldiers and did not even have the right to vote at the time.

Student Activity Sheet E10.6: Sid