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Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016
Contents
Foreword1 Food, culture and community 19
Introducing the new VCE Food Studies 2 Supporting the nutritional wellbeing of
adolescents: Findings from the
Developing your own assessment tasks 4 Youth2000 surveys 22
Unit 1: Food origins (in other words, why Implementing the right to food in Australia 25
do we eat what we eat?) 8
Food systems infographics 30
Social struggle, tall tales and stereotypes:
A closer look at food in colonial Australia 12 Submission guidelines and contributor notes 34
About Home Economics Victoria
Home Economics Victoria was ISSN 1836–7275
established in 1958 as a professional
Home Economics Victoria
association for teachers, and is the
peak home economics organisation 605/198 Harbour Esplanade
in the state of Victoria, Australia. The Docklands VIC 3008 Australia
organisation supports educators in
Telephone: +61 3 9642 1061
empowering young people to live
Facsimile: +61 3 9642 2418
sustainably and take responsibility for
their own physical, mental and social Email: office@hev.com.au
wellbeing.
www.homeeconomics.com.au
Opinions expressed in this journal are
© 2016 Published by
those of the contributors and do not
Home Economics Victoria
necessarily represent the views of
Home Economics Victoria.
At the time of writing, all internet
addresses included in articles were
correct. Owing to the dynamic nature
of the internet, however, we cannot
guarantee their continued validity.
Cover image: Melbourne's
immigrant food culture is
The Victorian Journal of Home vibrant, dynamic and, for many,
Economics is published twice everyday: Raffela Muscatello
yearly. prepares anchovies for
Acting Editor: Jo Scanlan preservation
Designer: Savanah Design (Photography by Patrick Honan)
Foreword Welcome to this special VCE Food Studies issue. We hope you find it both interesting and of immediate use for your Food Studies planning and teaching. To those who don’t teach VCE or, for that matter, food-related subjects, do take a look. We think you’ll find it worthwhile. We are proud of the writing talent we have gathered for these pages, and the depth of expertise and insight they have delivered. Beyond the details and demands of the study design, we hope that one thing comes through: the intent of VCE Food Studies to equip young people to know their food. So many good things can flow from this: practical skills, confident decisions, discernment, enjoyment. Health. We begin with coverage of the VCE study review process, new content and approaches to assessment, courtesy of the VCAA’s Leanne Compton and 2016 State Reviewer Christine Wintle. Jo Scanlan and Charmaine O’Brien then provide some history on a plate, Jo from a global perspective and Charmaine taking aim at some entrenched views about Australian colonial food. Patrick Honan gets into the Food Studies nitty gritty by linking food with identity, culture and community, with a piece that is all at once charming, familiar, insightful and informative. Jennifer Utter and her team from the Adolescent Health Research Group (University of Auckland) have done a superb job in unpacking survey data and proposing how to promote and support the nutritional wellbeing of young people. Her conclusions reflect one of the cornerstone inquiry bases of VCE Food Studies: how does food (and the way we eat) have an impact on connectedness and wellbeing? Rebecca Lindberg, Martin Caraher and Kate Wingrove introduce the topic of the human right to adequate food and explore whether it is fulfilled in contemporary Australia, in light of ongoing food insecurity. Links are made throughout to different parts of the Food Studies curriculum. And finally – inspired by Nick Rose’s presentation at our July Food Studies Conference – we present a series of food systems infographics. The intent here is to provoke discussion and encourage inquiry – not to overwhelm you with complexity! All the best with your 2017 Food Studies adventures. Here at Home Economics Victoria, we will continue to support your ongoing implementation of the new curriculum. Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016 Page 1
Introducing the new
VCE Food Studies
Leanne Compton
Victorian Curriculum and
Assessment Authority
Abstract • analysis of Stage 1 information to
highlight themes and issues to be
During 2014 and 2015, the VCE Food and Technology study design was reviewed addressed as part of the review
and a revised study with a new name VCE Food Studies developed. This year,
• identification and debate of priority
professional learning has been provided to support implementation commencing in
areas which must be addressed as
2017. It has been a significant team effort that has been challenging and rewarding part of the review, versus areas that
for the many teachers and experts involved. could be addressed as part of the
This article outlines the process for reviewing and developing VCE studies and review
explains some of the major changes across the new and revised VCE Food Studies • presentation of possible solutions and
study design. A summary of key changes is presented in the article along with discussion and debate about strengths
specific changes to each of the four units. and weaknesses
How does a review drawn on if particular issues emerge,
for example an academic with particular
• developing teaching and learning
programs/activities and assessment
happen? expertise may be asked to contribute an aligned to possible solutions to test
analysis or targeted report. validity
The review or development of a VCE
study is a lengthy process and is really • revisiting national and international
an ongoing, continuous process. Every Stage 2 curriculum to test and source ideas
time the phone rings or I get an email Once the VCAA Board approves • consideration of impact on teacher
from a teacher with a question about the recommendation to review a and student workload.
the study design, this contributes to a study made at the conclusion of
picture of how well the study design is Midway through the review process, the
Stage 1, the review or development
working. writer and curriculum manager submit a
moves into Stage 2. Stage 2
draft of the study design to be released
The school-based assessment audits involves a representative group of
for public consultation. This draft must
that the VCAA runs annually also provide teachers, academics and industry
be approved by the Senior Secondary
useful information about how teachers representatives, who work with the
Curriculum and Assessment Committee,
are implementing the studies. Our other relevant curriculum manager to review
a sub-committee of the VCAA Board.
regular processes are also a useful the study in detail and propose specific
source of feedback: School-assessed changes. The review panel must be The consultation process is crucial to
task sessions, examination panels balanced in terms of representation canvass the opinion of the teaching
and assessors all provide information including (but not limited to) gender, community. Feedback received as part
about how the study design is being sector, age, experience and region. of the consultation must be considered
implemented in schools. The review panel members must be by the review panel. Consultation
approved by the VCAA’s senior internal feedback can and does change study
Stage 1 committee. designs. An important part of the
consultation process is the appointment
Once the end of an accreditation period The actual drafting of the revisions to
of the independent reviewers. These
is approaching, the review process a study design is the responsibility of
are experts who are usually academics
becomes formalised and moves into an expert, usually a teacher, who is
and teachers who provide a structured
what we call Stage 1. Stage 1 requires appointed and paid to do this significant
report on the study design. The
a recommendation to be made to work. The writer and the review panel
academic reviewer is usually from an
the VCAA Board about whether the have a close and important relationship.
interstate or international organisation.
accreditation period of a study can The review panel guides and advises on
be extended or whether a minor or the direction for the study design based Once the final draft of the study design
major review is needed. This stage on all of the information gathered in is complete, it must be submitted to
provides an opportunity for synthesis Stage 1. the VCAA Board with an account of
of feedback collected throughout the how consultation feedback has been
Needless to say, panel meetings are
life of the study design, analysis of addressed. Once approved by the
characterised by robust discussion
assessment and enrolment data, a Board, the study design is submitted
and debate, thorough referencing of
survey of national and international to the Victorian Registrations and
information and evidence, and any issue
practice and the collection of more Qualifications Authority (VRQA) for
that is contentious receives particular
formal feedback through focus groups, accreditation in the year prior to the
discussion. I can describe some of the
the chief assessor, exam panel chair, accreditation period.
activities that went on during this most
state reviewer and professional recent set of reviews: So, all of the above provides an account
associations. Other sources may be of how the review process happens.
Page 2 Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016
The following section takes each of
the key changes across the revised
Specific changes Unit 4: Food issues,
challenges and futures
Food Studies study design and gives a
rationale.
Unit 1: Food origins Unit 4 retains two areas of study,
Unit 1 retains two areas of study, now entitled Area of Study 1: Environment
Revised VCE Food entitled Area of Study 1: Food around and ethics and Area of Study 2:
Navigating food information. The
the world and Area of Study 2: Food
Studies in Australia. This unit introduces new content in this unit focuses on debates
content with a focus on food from relating to global and Australian food
VCE Food Studies is the study of food
historical and cultural perspectives and systems. There is also the addition of
and its effects on our daily lives. It takes new content with a focus on individual
an interdisciplinary approach to the an emphasis on critical inquiry. There
is a removal of content related to food responses to food information and
exploration of food, with an emphasis misinformation with an emphasis on
on extending food knowledge and safety and hygiene and classifications of
food to avoid duplication of content with critical inquiry.
skills and building individual pathways
F–10 curriculum. Content related to the
to health and wellbeing through the
application of practical food skills. VCE
functional properties of food has been Conclusion
moved to Unit 3 where the science of
Food Studies provides a framework for The reviews of VCE studies are thorough
food is studied.
informed and confident food selection and evidence-based, and it may be
and food preparation within today’s useful to consider the how and why of
Unit 2: Food makers the VCE Food Studies study review as
complex architecture of influences and
choices. Unit 2 also retains two areas of study, you set out to develop teaching, learning
now entitled Area of Study 1: Food and assessment programs that support
Practical work is integral to Food your students to achieve as well as they
industries and Area of Study 2: Food in
Studies. In the context of Food Studies, can during their VCE.
the home. In this unit there is a focus
the scope of practical activities has
on food systems in contemporary While there are some years before
been broadened and could include
Australia. There is new content related we start the review process formally
cooking, demonstrations, creating
to commercial food production in again, the ongoing process of
and responding to design briefs, gathering feedback has already begun.
Australia, encompassing primary
dietary analysis, food sampling and I encourage you to consider how VCE
production, food processing and
taste-testing, sensory analysis, guest Food Studies works, how it meets the
manufacturing, and the retail and food
speakers, industry visits, market needs of your students and whether
service sectors, providing an overview
tours, product analysis or scientific it teaches and assesses important
of the range of career paths in the food
experiments. knowledge and skills. And when the
industry. Content related to design
time comes, to take the opportunity
So in a nutshell, the new VCE Food processes and the Food Standards
to provide feedback and have your say
Studies study design: Code has been moved from Unit 3 Area
about the future of VCE Food Studies.
of Study 1 to strengthen the teaching of
• has an interdisciplinary approach to
the design process and the adaptation
food, with the inclusion of a broader
of recipes in this unit. Content related to References
range of new and contemporary issues
food safety and hygiene and selection of Victorian Curriculum and Assessment
• has a greater emphasis on healthy tools and equipment has been removed Authority 2013, Principles and
eating across all four units to avoid duplication of content in the guidelines for the development and
• incorporates evidence-based research F–10 curriculum. A strong emphasis review of VCE studies www.vcaa.vic.edu.
and a critical inquiry approach across on critical inquiry to build on the F–10 au/Documents/vce/VCE_principles_
all four units curriculum has been incorporated into guidelines_development_review_VCE_
the content. studies2013.pdf
• explores food through a range of
practical activities with increased Victorian Curriculum and Assessment
alignment with theoretical content; Unit 3: Food in daily life Authority 2016, Victorian Certificate of
there is a broader definition of Education Food Studies Study Design
Unit 3 now has two areas of study,
practical experiences and a focus on www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/Documents/vce/
entitled Area of Study 1: The science
development of food skills technology/FoodStudiesSD_2017.pdf
of food and Area of Study 2: Food
choice, health and wellbeing. This unit
• replaces the School-assessed Task
(SAT) in Units 3 and 4 with school- has an increased focus on the roles, Author biography
assessed coursework; a design influences and impacts of food from Leanne Compton is Curriculum
process, previously used in the SAT, scientific and social perspectives. There Manager, Design and Technologies
has been retained in Unit 2 is consolidation of content related to for the Victorian Curriculum and
properties of food, a greater emphasis Assessment Authority (VCAA) where she
• builds on knowledge and skills is responsible for VCE Food Studies.
on discussing and debating issues and
developed in the Victorian Curriculum Leanne has an extensive background in
at levels 9–10 critical inquiry, and a focus on evidence-
based research principles in regards home economics and digital learning.
• mandates practical work as part of the to food selection. Content related to She has a Bachelor of Education (Home
assessment of each area of study. Economics), Master of Information
design processes has been shifted
Technology in Education and is a PhD
to Unit 2, and content related to food
candidate.
safety and hygiene has been removed to
avoid duplication of content in the F–10 compton.leanne.l@edumail.vic.gov.au
curriculum. 03 9032 1698
Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016 Page 3
Developing your own
Christine Wintle assessment tasks
Principles of set goals after each progressive task,
identifying key knowledge and skills that
the task (e.g. 60 minutes); allocation
of marks (e.g. a breakdown of the
assessment require improvement and reviewing the questions and the mark allocation for
Assessment is carried out in a variety assessment preparation and process, each); details of materials requirements
of ways and can be used for a variety with the use of study skills, revision when completing the task (e.g. closed
of purposes. There are differences in programs, approaches to applying book – no text book or notes); and
who decides what is to be assessed, content and the use of effective information on how to demonstrate high
who carries out the assessment, where feedback in modifying responses. level of performance (e.g. the highest
the assessment takes place, how the level performance descriptors from the
resulting responses made by students Preparation and assessment handbook).
are scored and interpreted and what feedback Steps in developing
happens as a result (Wiliam 2004).
In the context of the Victorian Certificate
How effective is feedback in this
process? In 1999 Hattie (cited in
and managing
of Education, the assessment provides Hattie & Timperley 2007) reported a assessment
opportunities for further learning synthesis of over 500 meta-analyses,
by engaging students and allowing involving 450,000 effect sizes (i.e. 1. Task selection
them to perform at the highest level. measurements of the size of an effect)
It describes student achievement The first step involves choosing
from 180,000 studies representing
and allows teachers to establish a the assessment task where there
20 to 30 million students on various
ranking to assist with the process of is a range of options listed in the
influences on student achievement.
statistical moderation. This presents study design for School-assessed
Feedback was ranked in the top 5
as a challenge for teachers to pitch coursework. It is possible for
to 10 highest influences (0.79) on
the assessment correctly in order to students in the same class to
achievement in Hattie’s synthesis.
delineate the group of students they are undertake different options;
Feedback should cause thinking and
teaching in a given year. Simultaneously, however, teachers must ensure
provide guidance on how to improve
teachers set internal assessments that that the tasks are comparable in
with explicit reference to marking
articulate and maintain a standard that scope and demand. For example,
schemes and rubrics from internal
has been set through a study design, in VCE Food Studies, Unit 3 Area of
assessments. Ultimately, it should be
providing students with the skills they Study 1: The science of food, the
more work for the recipient and not the
require for an external examination at assessment tasks include a range
deliverer. The aim is for students to
the end of the year (VCAA 2014). of practical activities and records of
learn to become self-regulators of their
two practical activities related to the
School-assessed Coursework in VCE learning by using external feedback
functional properties of components
Food Studies can serve both summative provided by the teacher and internal
of food. In addition, any one or a
and formative assessment purposes. feedback when monitoring their own
combination of the following must
Summative assessment, or assessment performance.
be completed: a short written report
for learning, involves an evaluation of In setting school-based assessment (media analysis, research inquiry,
student achievement using internal in Victoria, it is common practice structured questions and case study
assessment tasks resulting in a score for schools to provide students with analysis), an annotated visual report,
that is submitted via the Victorian an assessment calendar with all of an oral presentation, a practical
Assessment Software System (VASS). the school-based coursework dates demonstration or a video or podcast
However, this type of assessment on it so that students get an overall (VCAA 2016).
does need to be a means to an end for picture of their assessment load.
either the teacher or the learner. Formal Specific information is also provided 2. Task mapping
and informal processes can be used to students about individual school-
by teachers and students to gather based coursework assessment as they The task(s) should then be mapped
evidence for the purpose of improving approach the completion dates. The against the key knowledge and
learning, as in formative assessment. conditions under which the task is to key skills. Each outcome that is
In other words, information derived be completed should be the same for contextualised in the study design is
from summative assessment in the all students. Documentation given to described in terms of key knowledge
form of School-assessed coursework the students should include: the type of and key skills. The key knowledge
tasks can be used to improve future task (e.g. short written test); the date provides the content and what
student performance. The learner might for completion; the time allowed for students are required to know. The
Page 4 Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016
key skills provide detail about how not all key skills may be applicable key skills are useful when writing
students are to apply the knowledge to any one assessment or School- assessments so that students
and what they are required to do assessed coursework but all key become familiar with their use and
in terms of the outcome. The key skills following each key knowledge application.
skills are examinable. However, should be covered in each unit. The
Figure 1: An example of how key knowledge and skills can be mapped against assessment tasks for VCE Food Studies, Unit 3,
Area of Study 1
Task type Key knowledge Key skills Task design
Practical activity • principles of heat transfer in cooking • demonstrate a range of practical food 1. Practical activities
with records of two techniques, and the effects on the skills to create healthy meals + infographic on
practical activities properties of food of dry and moist browning processes
• use appropriate food science
heat, electromagnetic radiation, (Piktochart)
on functional terminology and techniques to describe
mechanical action, enzymes and
properties of changes to pH
and demonstrate chemical and physical 2. Practical activities +
components of food changes to food during preparation annotated images of
• functional properties of protein, sugar, and cooking processes that change
starch, fats and oils and the physical the texture of food
and chemical changes that occur to • use equipment and techniques
during preparation
these components during preparation appropriately
(Thinglink)
and cooking including dextrinization,
• demonstrate organisational and
caramelisation, gelatinisation,
technical skills in relation to the
emulsification, denaturation and
preparation, cooking and presentation
coagulation, aeration and the Maillard
of nutritious meals in a range of
reaction
practical activities
Oral presentation • physiology and conditioning of • explain appetite, satiety and the 3. Food demonstration
or a practical appetite, satiety and sensory sensory appreciation of food (video format) on how
demonstration appreciation of food to prepare a recipe
• explain physiology of eating and
that addresses a
(video format) • microbiology of intestinal tract and digesting, absorption of macronutrients
food allergy or a food
sequential process of digestion of
• apply principles of Australian Dietary intolerance
carbohydrates, protein and fats,
Guidelines and Australian Guide to
including enzymatic hydrolysis,
Healthy Eating to planning food intake
absorption and utilisation of these
macronutrients in the body • evaluate nutritional quality of foods and
meals
• rationale and evidence-based principles
of the Australian Dietary Guidelines and • explain and justify the substitution of
the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating, ingredients in the management of food
with focus on ways in which food allergies and intolerances
selection can assist in prevention of
obesity and related lifestyle diseases • justify and apply principles of safe and
hygienic food handling practices in the
• biological reasons for differences in prevention of food poisoning
dietary requirements, considering
factors including age, sex, pregnancy
and lactation and activity levels
• physiology of food allergies and
intolerances including how allergy and
intolerance differ and their respective
symptoms and cause and management
• microorganisms that cause food
poisoning, their effects and
preventative practices for a safe food
supply
Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016 Page 5
Developing your own
assessment tasks
3. Planning for high 4. Teaching knowledge and 5. Diversifying tasks and
performance skills through assessment opportunities
In what can then be interpreted In a teaching program, learning When designing the assessment
as a backwards design, the activities developed by the teacher task, it is preferable for a range
characteristics in a student allow students to acquire the of task types to be used across
response are then determined for necessary knowledge and skills a given unit to give students a
each assessment task. This clarifies so that they can carry out the range of different opportunities to
exactly what it is students should be assessment. In following the example demonstrate their understanding.
able to do to allow them to perform of the oral presentation above, Clear instructions about the task
at the highest level. In Units 3 and learning activities might include: are communicated with students,
4, advice is provided for teachers • researching the differences between and in terms of equity, the scope
by the VCAA regarding performance food allergies and food intolerances and demands of the task need to be
descriptors. However, in Units 1 and representing the findings in a comparable for all students within
and 2 these are to be developed Double Bubble thinking routine the one class and for students
by the teacher. Sharing the in different classes of the same
• modifying a recipe to meet the needs subject. Stimulus material can be
performance descriptors or criteria of an individual with a food allergy or
for assessment with students allows used to develop the task, providing
a food intolerance
them to determine exactly what it is a source for developing questions
they are expected to do and what a • evaluating the nutritional quality that are related to the key skills.
high-level response looks like. of a daily diet, comparing the
In selecting a recipe to be used
requirements with food intake
If we look at the oral presentation as part of the food demonstration
and making recommendations for
task from Figure 1, the following example, students would need to
improvement
assessment criteria might be consider whether ingredients can
• researching the microorganisms that be modified to address a food
developed: comprehensive
are pathogenic, documenting the allergy as well as an intolerance.
description of the process of
type of microorganism against the For example, if Ricotta pancakes
digesting and absorbing food;
sources, symptoms and incubation with caramelised banana was
very detailed explanation of the period the recipe in focus, then an egg
relationship between appetite,
• making a list of preventative allergy and a lactose intolerance
satiety and the sensory appreciation
practices for the school canteen to would allow the student to analyse
of food; very thorough analysis of
reduce the risk of food poisoning similarities and differences in
the differences in the causes of
causes and symptoms. The original
symptoms of food allergies, food • undertaking a sensory analysis of recipe could be redesigned and
intolerances and justification of a new product and explaining the recipe modifications justified in
the substitution of ingredients in potential forces that manipulate the accordance with allergy/intolerance
their management; comprehensive way we think and feel about new and the Australian Dietary Guidelines
description of the causes and foods and the placement of the meal
effects of food contamination and in a healthy diet. The student
• writing a creative story from the point
very thorough identification and could identify preventative food
of view of the rice (carbohydrate) in
justification of preventable practices a nori roll as it travels through the hygiene and safety practices
for a safe food supply and a very digestive system. and describe these in relation to
clear understanding of the principles the causes and effects of food
of the Australian Dietary Guidelines contamination at key points during
and the Australian Guide to Healthy the demonstration. A description
Eating, with appropriate and very of the process of digestion for
effective application to meal the main macronutrients could
planning and evaluation. be discussed in the recipe, along
with an explanation of the sensory
properties with clear links to
appetite and satiety. This would
cover the key skills that have been
attributed to this assessment task
during the initial stages of planning.
Page 6 Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016
6. Authentication be applied to the assessment tasks
to reduce the risk of authentication
References
During the implementation of the issues arising. For example, test Education Services Australia,
assessment, every effort should be conditions might be applied when Curriculum Corporation, 'Formative use
made by the teacher to reduce any students complete a short written of summative assessment', retrieved
authentication risks to ensure that report. Also, learning tasks that allow from www.assessmentforlearning.edu.
the work is the student’s own. In the students to transfer their knowledge au/professional_learning/formative_
case of the food demonstration, all and skills in a way similar to how they use_of_summative_assessment/
students should be given the same would respond to examination questions formative_landing_page.html
amount of class time to plan and could be embedded into the teaching accessed 3 July 2016
demonstrate their performance. program. Responding to examination-
As mentioned above, students are Hattie, JA & Timperley, H 2007,
style questions provides students with
given the performance descriptors ‘The power of feedback’, Review of
an opportunity to develop skills such
at the outset of the task. Students Educational Research, vol. 77, no. 1,
as reading and accurately interpreting
should keep a record of their notes pp. 81–112.
questions, writing to a time constraint
during the planning and research and responding in sufficient depth when VCAA 2014, VCE Food and Technology
stages with the teacher monitoring considering the mark allocation and Assessment Handbook, p. 4.
the task during allocated class time. ‘action word’ that is used in the question
Acknowledging relevant sources VCAA 2016, VCE Food Studies Study
(i.e. determining what the question is Design 2017–2021, p. 18.
of data minimises any breach of asking the student to do).
copyright. A video of the food Wiliam, D 2004, Keeping learning
demonstration could be recorded
during class time – students
Conclusion on track: Integrating assessment
with instruction, retrieved from
might work in pairs to record each In concluding, the end-of-year www.dylanwiliam.org/Dylan_Wiliams_
other’s food demonstration in a examination might be considered website/Papers_files/IAEA%2004%20
practical kitchen as an efficient by some to be similar to running a paper.pdf accessed 3 July 2016.
way of completing the assessment. marathon. However, to prepare for a
A student’s performance would
then be assessed against the
marathon you don’t necessarily run a
marathon as part of the preparation.
Author biography
performance descriptor, with a raw Instead, you carefully prepare for the Christine Wintle is currently the State
score allocated. Students should event by using heart-rate data from Reviewer for VCE Food and Technology,
be made aware that their score training and races of shorter duration, auditing School-based assessment on
may alter according to statistical undertaking extra strength training behalf of the Victorian Curriculum and
moderation after the end-of-year and developing mental toughness. In a Assessment Authority. She is also on
examination. Feedback is then similar way, the SAC tasks can prepare the Top Designs panel for VCE Food and
provided to the student by the students by providing them with the Technology which involves selecting
teacher and can be used for both information they need to refine their work for display at Melbourne Museum
summative and formative purposes. skills. The relationship between the during the Season of Excellence.
student and the teacher is paramount Christine currently teaches at Methodist
Preparing for an end- in achieving success, as is the skill of Ladies’ College where she holds the
position of Head of Home Economics
of-year examination the teacher in writing assessment that
suits the program and lifts learning and and Hospitality.
Students will acquire key skills performance. Developing a winning
by completing School-assessed formula over time will be the key for
coursework tasks throughout the teachers of the new study.
duration of Units 3 and 4 in order
to demonstrate a satisfactory
understanding of a set of outcomes.
Students are also expected to apply
these skills in an externally set end-
of-year examination. It is important to
note that the skills can be applied in
different assessment tasks and not just
in tests. Instead, test conditions might
Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016 Page 7
Unit 1: Food origins
(in other words, why do
Jo Scanlan we eat what we eat?)
What’s it all about? plant the seed (like agriculturalists)
of adventurous eating and confident
nitrogen and enrich the soil. A natural,
free, edible fertilizer! No wonder it was
(Did someone mention cooking. called ‘the farmer’s friend’ (Saladino
sex?) 2016). But once the Brits decided
We all love food, right, and that is why
It’s about finding they didn’t really want to eat broad
we study, teach and work in this field. stories through food beans, the harvested crop was sold
as livestock feed (nowadays it is even
But we don’t all love history, and nor do Take the humble broad bean. It is one sold to salmon farms) and exported to
we necessarily feel confident that we of the oldest cultivated crops in the the Middle East (where they, thankfully,
know anything about it. So what is this United Kingdom, where people have remained faithful to the fava bean and
new curriculum tangent that VCE Food been eating it as far back as the Iron other pulses).
Studies Unit 1 is taking us on? Age (Saltmarsh 2013); that is, way
This lack of regard for what is right
The short answer is that interest in before the arrival of the Romans and
on our doorstep is a familiar tale for
food history and culture is flourishing Christianity.
Australians. Sometimes we need a bit
and growing throughout the world – But hang on a minute. According to Tim of help in appreciating what we have.
including in universities – so shouldn’t Lambert (2015) ‘Broad beans are native However, this attitude has also fuelled
be ignored in a senior secondary food to the Middle East and South Asia. They human exploration and discovery
curriculum. were known to the ancient Greeks and throughout the ages, including into new
A better answer is: it’s so great! Putting they have been eaten in Europe ever frontiers of food.
‘sex’ in the subheading wasn’t just a trick since’.
It truly is a rich, fascinating and
to get you to read on. After twenty-five Not so humble, then? In fact, a delicious journey to discover more
years working in the field of food history, treasured elder with a cosmopolitan about what people eat (and don’t eat)
Ivan Day was asked (at the 2015 launch and intriguing pedigree. Broad beans, and where foods (and the ideas around
of the British Museum of Food) whether also known as fava beans, sure have a them) have come from. Looking at
he had seen increasing awareness story to tell. the past can help us to understand
among curators and in the community the present. Knowing that food has
that ‘food can tell good social, political And yet it is still true to say that as far
an evolving history – and that the
and historical stories’. as the broad bean’s existence in the
fundamentals of enjoyment and
UK is concerned, this delicious and
‘Absolutely,’ he said. ‘At first there was nourishment don’t really change –
protein-packed pulse has indeed been
a degree of resistance, just as there can help our food decisions today.
humble. According to Nick Saltmarsh,
has been in universities and history who has spearheaded a push to revive
departments. But now suddenly the the fortunes of the fava bean (see Unpack the basics
history of food is the new sex’ (BBC https://hodmedods.co.uk for a great and then cut your
Radio 4, 2015). case study in food marketing and
entrepreneurship): ‘It was a crucial
students loose
So! The purpose of this article is to
invite teachers to be excited by the part of the British diet for centuries, There is so much rich material to be
possibilities presented by the Unit 1 but in more recent times it became found around this area of study that
curriculum. The focus here will be on stigmatised as a food of the poor, and it will be important for teachers to
the key knowledge and key skills of fell out of fashion’ (2013). impose some boundaries, at least in
Area of Study 1 Food around the world. the beginning. Try to unpack the key
Ah, food fads. They have never made
This article aims to unpack and simplify knowledge and provide students with an
a lot of sense. But if you’re looking for
Unit 1 AoS 1 content, and to reassure overview. Distil it and repackage it (or
‘factors’ influencing what we eat, you
teachers that this curriculum is all about ask your students to try to do this).
can already see quite an array in just
finding and sharing interesting food one thread of the epic global tale of One approach is to boil key knowledge
stories, unfamiliar tastes and new skills. food: agriculture, exploration, trade, down (pun intended) to several
The emphasis is not on teachers having geography, economics, social status. questions. Here’s one example of what
to carry out research or acquire new Unit 1 AoS 1 means:
British farmers kept growing broad
expertise but on encouraging students beans, as they knew that (like all pulses) • Why do we eat what we eat?
to get out there (like hunter-gatherers) they had the priceless ability to draw in
and use their food knowledge to
Page 8 Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016• How and why did we (generally) turn natural elements such as the sun, or • the ‘Fertile Crescent’ of southwestern
to agriculture, and what were the to the harvest). Asia (which today includes parts of
consequences? Various segues into other key Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and
• Take a look at all the choices at the knowledge points are already obvious Israel)
supermarket and in restaurants today. from the above points, for example the • the Far East – including the Yellow
Answer the question your ancestors rise of agriculture in places that had a River and Yangtze River valleys in
might ask: what happened? natural bounty of plants and animals China
Alternatively, try to summarise the suitable for cultivation/domestication • Mesoamerica – which may essentially
major focus and intent of the key (and it follows that such places would be considered to be Mexico
knowledge. Unit 1 AoS 1 can be also – in times of surplus and assuming
• Eastern North America (parts of
summarised as follows: how do we feed transport/technology allowed it – be
Canada and the US)
ourselves, and why has this differed likely to engage in food trade).
• the South American highlands (the
across time and across the globe? I
coast of Ecuador and the Peruvian
would argue that it’s all about foodways. ‘One selected region other
mountains)
I don’t introduce this term to cause than Australia’
• the New Guinea highlands
confusion – it can be a handy descriptor.
To continue the discussion of content • West Africa.
To quote Wikipedia, foodways
in a linear and sequential way (which is
are: ‘cultural, social and economic
practices relating to the production
never, by the way, encouraged by the Caution: Agriculture was not a
VCAA): the key knowledge then delves panacea for humanity
and consumption of food’. This is a
into the development of foodways in
very familiar term to those who look at Next in the key knowledge is an
different ‘regions’. There is no mandated
food through the social science lens examination of how and why agricultural
interpretation of ‘regions’ here, and
(although it’s not specifically used in the food systems arose and a comparison
certainly when students are selecting
VCAA study design). with hunter-gatherer approaches. A note
a ‘region’ to focus on, they should be
encouraged to follow their interests, of caution here: take care not to present
The emergence of different and/or to be piqued by what is timely a linear history of hunter-gathering
foodways and topical (for example, the Olympic inevitably followed by the ‘progress’
games in Brazil or Japan, both of which of agriculture. Students should be
The first question raised by the key
have fascinating, unique cuisines, richly aware that these two systems often
knowledge is about ‘factors influencing
influenced by their history). co-existed for many generations within
the emergence’ of different foodways
a region, even for thousands of years,
around the world. There need not be a ‘Region’ need not be one of the early and the advancement of agriculture
deep dive into these factors here; an agricultural centres of the world. It throughout the world was gradual. Both
introductory brainstorm would uncover could be a country, it could even be systems had benefits and problems
many that we can still see at work today. a city, as long as there are ‘historical for their communities. The giving up of
These historical considerations could developments’ to be examined and a hunter-gathering in the early agricultural
include (but need not be limited to) ‘distinctive cuisine’ to be discovered. regions exacted a high price for
factors that are: However, if this inquiry is to lead humanity – for example in susceptibility
• geographical (climate, water, soil, into agriculture – widely seen as the to bad seasons, overcrowded living
topography, latitude and isolation i.e. historical catalyst for many human conditions, the advent of animal-borne
access to the rest of the world) endeavours including global exploration diseases and epidemics and the loss
and trade (not to mention warfare and of diversity in the everyday foods that
• biological (naturally occurring local
domination) – it may suit teachers to were eaten – a loss of diversity that
species of plants and animals)
facilitate an overview of the early rise continues today. The social costs
• economic (national wealth, levels
of agricultural food production and from were also high for groups that had
of engagement in global travel and
there look at ‘patterns in the global previously enjoyed the autonomy and
trade)
spread of food production and the self-sufficiency of providing themselves
• political (role in world patterns of growth in trade of food commodities’. with food, but then found themselves
colonisation, warfare and immigration) The earliest agricultural food production cast low in urban social hierarchy. Again,
• religious (patterns of taboo and regions could be described as: these social issues are with us still.
reverence relating to particular foods,
food-related gods e.g. relating to
Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016 Page 9Unit 1: Food origins
(in other words, why do
we eat what we eat?)
Lessons for today: being in control
of your daily food supply can mean
There is a seemingly infinite number
of great resources (books, blogs,
Some different
greater freedom and much better podcasts, documentaries, everything!) approaches to inquiry
health. However, putting someone to be found on the histories of the This is year 11. Please don’t be daunted,
else in charge can mean more time commodities mentioned in the study and please have fun. Treat the key
for education and to explore the design: grains, tea, coffee, chocolate, knowledge and skills as a nourishing
world (ask any farmer; and we could salt, spices and sugar. Often these meal, not as an obstacle course. As
bring feminism into that equation accounts intersect and overlap. For with food, half the fun of history is
too). On the fundamentals of the so- example, the rise in desire for sugar in in discovering something new, so do
called Agricultural Revolution I highly Europe after the arrival of tea (China), encourage your students to fall down
recommend the Crash Course World coffee (Yemen or Ethiopia, depending those rabbit holes of inquiry, and to bite
History episode produced by PBS where you look) and chocolate (Mexico) off big chunks of the course at a time if
LearningMedia (available on YouTube: is said to have led to the establishment they want to.
see reference section). It’s lots of of the African slave trade (Edible 2008).
information in just 11 minutes and John Sugar cane had been sourced from the It’s possible to explore this curriculum
and Hank Green may not be everybody’s south Pacific, and was subsequently content through different lenses,
cup of tea. But they actually do a great grown in the Caribbean by slavers. for example through ingredients, or
job of summarising the prevailing This sorry trade, of course, changed cooking techniques. If I chose to
research. everything, perhaps most notably the conduct a serious inquiry into the (not
course of US history. so humble) broad bean, for example,
Global food production and it could take me to many places – as
Please note that the key knowledge shown at the beginning of this article.
trade point about food trade is a ‘such Once, in its original habitat, it was
In other words, the last two dot points. as’ scenario, meaning that these gathered as a wild plant (can you tell
Seriously, let your students do all the commodities are ‘serving suggestions me about that?). Then it was cultivated
work here. Perhaps provide a couple of only’ for research and inquiry. The world (why, how, when?). Many people
choice vignettes such as Christopher is your oyster, so to speak. admired it and it was taken to a. b. and
Columbus setting out to find a quicker The rise of technology and its effects on c. (who, where?). It fell out of favour in
route to the Spice Islands (Indonesia) food and eating is not a prescriptive list Britain because … but is still loved in
to help Spain in its quest for greater of items and events, and is therefore the Middle East because … Now it’s
wealth – and accidentally finding relatively straightforward to chart. trendy in Britain again (thanks, Yotam
America. Now that was a nice find (for For an Australian perspective (from Ottolenghi). This story of multicultural
some). 1788), I highly recommend the website deliciousness easily transitions to the
Australian food history timeline (linked practical class, where different culinary
Or find a choice quote to set the
in the reference section), a spin-off discoveries and ideas can be trialled
scene, such as (this again refers to
from Jan O’Connell’s food memoir Me and shared. It also makes several leaps
the discovery of America): ‘Although
and my big mouth: it’s an interesting, into other units: food industry trends,
initially overlooked by the Spanish, the
fun and dynamic site. There are many opportunities and marketing (Unit 2);
greatest reward this New World had to
other similar resources online. So many how food values and information can be
offer was food, not precious metals. In
technological changes have occurred shaped by the world around us (Unit 3);
their relentless quest for metals, these
even within the lifetimes of students it even incidentally gives us insight into
foreign conquerors discovered much
and their parents and grandparents: sustainable crop rotation (Unit 4).
about the agriculture of the areas they
invaded, and began sending specimens this might be a good opportunity Similarly, I could trace the history of
back to Europe and to the countless for constructing a timeline as a an age-old cooking or preservation
other regions of the world where their class – thereby bringing in individual technique such as fermentation. This
trading ships docked’ (Edible 2008, p. experiences and ‘food voices’ – and for one would probably take me on an
31). For a while, chocolate was a top- reflecting on the subsequent changes in even more rollicking journey than the
secret status symbol in the royal courts the way we prepare and share food. broad bean. I would come across the
of Spain. Once the commoners found serious contention (cited in Pollan
out about it there was no turning back … 2013) that people first started to
although at the time it was a quite bitter cultivate grain not to sustainably feed
(but very novel) beverage, not the themselves but to ensure that they
chocolate we know and love today. always had enough grain for brewing
Page 10 Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016grog. (As an Australian, I do believe of these foods came to be shared with Saltmarsh, Nick 2013, ‘British fava
this one. Didn’t we once use rum as the rest of the world. Do these foods beans are making a comeback’
currency?) I’m not suggesting setting still exist today? If they do, what are (interview by Bibi van der Zee),
up a class brewery but the possibilities some of the typical dishes, recipes, and The Guardian online, retrieved
for incorporating fermentation into your preparation techniques? from www.theguardian.com/
program are endless: cheese, yoghurt, lifeandstyle/2013/feb/02/fava-beans-
Being Unit 1, your assessment is
sourdough bread, not to mention kimchi, nick-saltmarsh
internal, and you can take the key
sauerkraut and kombucha.
knowledge exactly the distance that Saladino, Dan & Dillon, Sheila
If students are encouraged to pursue you wish to. This is above all about 2016, ‘Raising the pulse’, BBC Food
their own version of the food history food, and the journey it’s been on to get Programme podcast, 1 August,
narrative (including the food production to our Australian table today. Let the www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07m4glv
planning), there will be such rich students do the legwork, and together
VCAA 2016, VCE Food Studies
pickings for shared enjoyment. It you will assemble a body of knowledge
Study Design 2017–2021, Victorian
creates a solid resource for you to build (and deliciousness) that – no matter
Curriculum and Assessment Authority,
on as a teacher. what – will be interesting, worthwhile
Melbourne.
and useful. The idea is to encounter
Conclusion new ingredients, experiment with them, VCAA 2016, VCE Food Studies Advice
and connect to the origins of our food for Teachers (online ePub, in production)
Around the world and here in Australia, through inquiry and imagination.
interest and research into food has
extended beyond culinary, sensory and Above all, enjoy. Bon appetite! Author biography
health dimensions and into questions Jo Scanlan is a writer, editor and former
about culture, connection and identity. References home economics teacher. She was the
In many ways, our progress as a appointed writer for the recent VCAA
The Agricultural Revolution – Crash
species and our interactions with the VCE Food Studies review, working in
Course World History #1 (11 mins), PBS
land and with each other have always collaboration with the expert panel and
LearningMedia www.pbslearningmedia.
been about food. The human quest over curriculum manager. Jo runs a small
org/collection/crash-course OR Crash
many millennia to sustain life and health, publishing business specialising in food
Course YouTube channel www.youtube.
to experience the new and the novel, and health education.
com/watch?v=Yocja_N5s1I
to accumulate knowledge, status and
scanlan_jo@hotmail.com
wealth, and to live with pleasure and Edible: The illustrated guide to the
comfort: all of these aspects of human world’s food plants 2008, Global Book
endeavour have epic food stories to tell. Publishing NSW (consultants Barbara
Santich & Geoff Bryant; contributors
Australian food historian Charmain
Josephine Bacon, Claire Clifton & 11
O’Brien (2011) has said ‘I know so
others).
much about the world because of food’.
Here’s the thing: this is an exciting and Lambert, Tim 2015 (updated), A brief
illuminating door that is open to all of history of vegetables, retrieved from
us, even if we resist the idea of ‘history’ www.localhistories.org/vegetables.html
in the academic sense. Look at the
O’Brien, Charmaine 2011, interview
word: over 70 per cent story! Just a
by Ian Kath, Your Story podcast Ep
small amount of research and inquiry
65 yourstorypodcast.com/2011/10/
uncovers much that is fascinating and
charmaine-food-history-writing-indian-
surprising.
food
Keep the focus on the exploration,
O’Connell, Jan, Australian food history
preparation and enjoyment of food.
timeline (and the book Me and my big
As your students discover different
mouth), australianfoodtimeline.com.au
foods eaten by different people in
different times and places, keep Pollan, Michael 2013, Cooked: A natural
asking questions: about how they were history of transformation, Penguin
produced, the best ways to prepare Group, New York.
and eat them, and how the pleasures
Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016 Page 11Social struggle,
tall tales and
stereotypes:
A closer look at food
Charmain O’Brien in colonial Australia
Abstract
Writers of Australian history typically chose to present the same negative
stereotypes of colonial eating habits with little attempt at holistically examining and
explaining the context and circumstances informing food choices in the period. Nor
has there been much challenge to these unsavoury representations. This article aims
to show how challenging these stereotypes to gain a more complex understanding
of our food history might have benefits for our food present and future.
The feted colonial ‘caterers’ Spiers and Pond: hipster forefathers! (Image courtesy of
the State Library of Victoria, Picture Collection)
Page 12 Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016Colonial celebrity chefs? Sticking to our stereotypes
After working up an appetite promenading the thousands of Imagine the gush of praise the media would shower on an
exhibits of the 1867 Paris Exposition visitors could choose Australian cook today if they won such Gallic acclaim: a
to satiate themselves with a diversity of international food book and television show deal would surely be forthcoming.
and drink. There was the novelty – for the time – of tea In 1868 the colonial press found the news of one of their
served with lemon slices in it at the Russian concession and own winning the ‘rapturous approval’ of the French for their
iced brandy cocktails at the American bar; the exotica of cookery inexplicable: the South Australian Advertiser declared
Iberian drinks or coffee in a ‘real Algerian café’; the native it ‘strange indeed’ that someone from the ‘land of mutton and
sophistication of French dishes as well as Swiss, Prussian, damper’ had been able to gain the approbation of the very
Viennese and Bavarian offerings (Argus, 16 July 1867, race that held ‘the international stereotype for … culinary
pp. 5–6). Yet it was the joints of roast beef served up by a superiority’ (Bannerman 2001, p. 218; Mennell 1985). In my
‘caterer from the wilds of Australia’ that ‘carried off the palm experience contemporary Australians raised on the prevailing
[took the prize] for gastronomic achievements in the presence historical precept that the colonial diet consisted of little
of all the cooks of the capitals and courts of Europe’ and more than gargantuan serves of badly cooked greasy meat
showed ‘Frenchmen what they ought to eat’ (South Australian (mutton), bread (damper), overly sweet stewed tea and stodgy
Advertiser,13 November 1868, p. 12; O’Brien 2014). The puddings usually find it equally perplexing to believe that their
‘caterer’ in question was actually a duo, Felix Spiers and Anglo forefathers might have been capable of cooking meals
Christopher Pond, and they had run the upmarket Café de that they, and global others, found satisfying and enjoyable.
Paris in the apparent ‘wilderness’ of booming gold rush
Melbourne.
Colonial mutton (Image courtesy of the State Library of
Victoria, Picture Collection)
Admittedly the ‘elegant gastronomy’ (South Australian
Advertiser 1868) of Spiers and Pond represents a singular
example of historical culinary excellence; however, I often
use it in my work to open the way to question if the food of
colonial Australians was as universally abysmal as has been
popularly accepted. My method in this is to use historical
material, my lived experience of food and cookery and my
imagination to go much further into the kitchens and dining
The Café de Paris, which opened in Melbourne around 1859 rooms of early Australia than the accepted stereotypes take
(Image courtesy of the State Library of Victoria, Picture us – indeed these serve to halt us on the threshold. In deeply
Collection) exploring people’s cookery pots you inevitably encounter
their hearts and minds – and in this case we find a society
as complex, as challenged by technological change, as
diversified, and as interesting as we find ourselves today. My
aim in doing this is to use food as a vehicle for pushing further
Victorian Journal of Home Economics Volume 55 Number 2 2016 Page 13You can also read
