Year 9 HASS – Term 3 (WA Curriculum): Democracy, Justice and Global Citizenship

What this unit covers

In Term 3, Year 9 HASS in the WA Curriculum centres on the unit “Democracy, Justice and Global Citizenship”.

Students explore how democracy functions in Australia, examine the justice system, understand economic interdependence, and develop skills as informed global citizens.

Lesson sequence (30 lessons)

The unit breaks down into the following lesson-by-lesson sequence — each title below is a teachable lesson, in order:

1. Introduction to Democratic Participation and Civic Responsibility
2. Understanding Australia's Electoral System and Voting Process
3. How Opinion Polls Shape Political Campaigns and Voter Behaviour
4. Analysing Political Party Strategies During Election Campaigns
5. The Power of Social Media in Modern Political Communication
6. How Algorithms and Data Harvesting Influence Political Views
7. Identifying Confirmation Bias in Political Information
8. Media Representation of Different Groups in Australian Society
9. Young Australians Making a Difference: Case Study Analysis
10. Becoming a Global Citizen: Rights and Responsibilities
11. Youth Participation in Community and Cultural Groups
12. Volunteering and Civic Engagement Opportunities for Young People
13. Introduction to Australia's Court System and Legal Hierarchy
14. Understanding Court Jurisdictions and Legal Precedent
15. How Courts Operate: From Filing to Final Judgment
16. Principles of Justice in the Australian Legal System
17. When Justice Fails: Corruption and Coercion in the Legal System
18. Trial by Media: The Lindy Chamberlain Case Study
19. Wrongful Convictions: The John Button Case Analysis
20. Barriers to Equal Access to Justice in Australia
21. Introduction to Australia's Five-Sector Circular Flow Model
22. The Role of Households and Businesses in the Economy
23. Government Sector: Taxation and Public Spending
24. Financial Sector: Banking, Savings and Investment
25. Overseas Sector: International Trade and Economic Relations
26. Collecting and Evaluating Information from Multiple Sources
27. Identifying Primary and Secondary Sources in Civic Research
28. Analysing Different Perspectives in Political Information
29. Making Informed Judgments Using Evidence and Data
30. Reflecting on Civic Knowledge and Democratic Participation

Curriculum codes in this unit

Content codes:

Skills codes:

Reading the codes: WA codes (the ones starting with WA) pack the year level, learning area, strand and content number into one string, while the national Australian Curriculum v9 uses a different anatomy that starts with AC9 — same content family, different labels. Our complete WA Curriculum guide decodes both, character by character.

Planning notes for Term 3

WA terms run roughly 9–11 weeks, and in 2026 Term 3 runs from Monday 20 July to Friday 25 September — 10 weeks for WA public schools. With 30 lessons in this unit, that leaves breathing room for assessment, moderation and the weeks that disappear to carnivals, camps and public holidays — plan the assessable work to land two to three weeks before the end of term rather than in the final week.