This year’s Year 10, 11 and 12 students have been thrown a Christmas Holiday challenge - one that could earn them $500.
They have been asked to discover and describe what it was like being a teenager 50 years ago, and to compare the life that Baby Boomer teenagers had back then with those that a teenager experiences today.
The challenge has been issued by South Coast History Society.
Years 10, 11 and 12 students in 2018 are invited to submit essays of up to 2,000 words about ‘Growing Up in the 1950s and 1960s’ to have a chance of winning one of six prizes.
“This should prove to be a real eye-opener for today’s students, and should be enormous fun for them,” South Coast History Society’s President Peter Lacey suggests.
“So much has changed in 50 years!”
“And I’m predicting those who decide to enter this competition will be absolutely astounded by what they discover.”
“We’re suggesting that those participating in this competition simply talk to one or two Baby Boomers over the long Christmas vacation, record their findings and then send their conclusions to us.”
“The best seven entries will each receive prizes, with the winning entrant receiving a cash prize of $500,” Mr Lacey said.
“We’ve contacted several groups of Baby Boomers and found that they will be absolutely delighted to talk to today’s young people for this project about their experiences of being a teenager in the ‘swinging sixties’ – an era that was different in so many ways to today. So getting interesting, and perhaps revealing information to write the essay should be dead easy,” Peter suggests.
This essay competition is open to anyone who was a student in Years 10, 11 or 12 this year and who either attended a school or lives in the Bega Valley or Eurobodalla Shire. Entries will close on 14th February 2019.
“We’ve deliberately chosen 14th February to be the competition closing date to enable students to show a draft of their Christmas vacation efforts to their favourite history teacher once school resumes in 2019, and because 14th February is a date that Baby Boomers will well-remember!” Mr Lacey said.
Further information about the competition can be obtained by: Emailing southcoasthistory@yahoo.com or phoning 0448 160 852. High schools in the Bega Valley and Eurobodalla have also been provided with full information about the competition and how students can enter it.
South Coast History Society plans to share some of the winning entries with a wider audience by publishing them in a future edition of ‘Recollections’, the South Coast’s free history magazine that is produced every second month.
Above: A Beatles Concert, 1965 Photo supplied
