Entries must be received by the due date, Friday 13 September 2024. Entries are to be submitted online in PDF and to competitions@qhta.com.au (a student entry form must also be attached for each entry)
Students in years 7-12 in Queensland and Northern Territory are invited to submit an essay or other historical writing (eg. a report, diary entry, newspaper article, feature article) based on research or an independent source investigation (Years 11 and 12 only) that fits the following categories, conditions and criteria.
QHTA Historical Writing Competition 2023 details
The Conditions
- The word lengths include quotations. Longer entries will not be read.
- Schools may submit no more than three entries in each category. In instances where more than three entries are submitted, the first three received will be used.
- Independent Source Investigation entries should adhere to the specifications required by the QCAA, for the assessment instrument of the same name.
- A student may not submit more than one entry per category.
- The submission must NOT include any teacher corrections or comments.
- The judges may decide NOT to award prizes in any given category.
- All decisions of the judging panel are final and no correspondence will be entered into.
Criteria
Relevance
The entry must address the stated question or hypothesis and be historical – in that it addresses issues concerned with causes or consequences and/or change and continuity in human affairs over an identified time period.
Content
The entry must deal with appropriate historical facts, concepts and opinions. It should be free from factual errors and unsupported assertions.
Research
There should be considerable evidence of the student’s own substantial reading about the topic from an appropriately comprehensive range of sources. In Years 11 and 12, this should include both primary and secondary sources. The manner of referencing and the format of the bibliography must be consistent, accurate and appropriate to the genre and must follow the conventions of the chosen style. The student must demonstrate an understanding of the purpose and relevance of referencing.
Critical use of sources
The student must use evidence in a manner that displays her/his ability to critically and effectively analyse, interpret, evaluate and synthesise sources in the process of addressing the stated question/hypothesis.
Communication
The entry should be a logical, cohesive and fluently developed response which follows the widely accepted conventions of the chosen genre. The language used must reflect an appropriate level of sophistication and be free from mechanical errors.
Entries Close: Friday, 13 September 2024
Sponsored by: Independent Education Union Qld – Queensland and Northern Territory; and the Queensland Council for Civil Liberties