What can we learn about contemporary issues of fear and security from Australia’s reaction to the threat of communism in the 1950s?

Using online resources, including primary documents from the 1954 Royal Commission on Espionage, you will investigate the Petrov Affair from the perspectives of the major characters involved.

Following a classroom Royal Commission, you will evaluate the impact of the Petrov Affair and make recommendations relating to individual and national responses to fear.

You will:

• research the Petrov Affair using primary and secondary sources;
• work collaboratively in teams;
• role play a Royal Commission;
• evaluate and analyse historic events; and
• make connections between the past and present.