The 2024 History Project: essay of up to 2500 words, footnotes or endnotes, bibliography and process log (New in the 2024 History Extension syllabus)
“History project: communicate through an essay of no more than 2500 words, use consistently formatted footnotes or endnotes, create a bibliography, and maintain a process log”
The 2024 History Project is an essay of up to 2500 words with footnotes or endnotes and a bibliography, plus a monitored process log and a signed declaration. NESA's 2024 page does not mention the 2017 proposal or annotated sources; check with your teacher. Date your log entries and keep referencing consistent.
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What this dot point is asking
The History Project is your individual investigation. In the 2024 syllabus, the Year 12 content says you communicate through an essay of no more than 2500 words that analyses historiographical perspectives and argues a position. You use consistently formatted footnotes or endnotes to acknowledge the source of statements, create a consistently formatted bibliography, and keep a process log. You also sign a statement, witnessed by your supervising teacher, that the work is your own.
Think of the project as an argument about how historians and other producers disagree, written clearly and referenced carefully, with a diary of how you built it. In 2017 you also produced a proposal and annotated sources as separate pieces. NESA's 2024 page does not mention them, so check with your teacher what your school will assess.
The answer
2024 History Project: essay up to 2500 words, footnotes or endnotes, a bibliography, a process log, and a signed declaration. NESA's 2024 page does not mention a proposal or annotated sources; check with your teacher.
What changed from 2017
The 2017 project had a Historical Process (proposal, process log, annotated sources) and an essay of up to 2500 words with a bibliography. The 2024 syllabus keeps the process log and the 2500 word limit, adds footnotes or endnotes, and does not mention the proposal or annotated sources. Your school may still ask for planning documents as part of its program, so check with your teacher and follow their instructions.
The process log
NESA describes a log containing the topic choice, specific question and research intentions, sequentially dated records, evidence of academic research, progressive dated drafts and ethical considerations where relevant. Teachers monitor it regularly. Treat it as evidence of your thinking: note a source you rejected and why, how your question narrowed, and what feedback changed in a draft.
The essay
Argue a position, do not summarise. Group producers by their interpretations and explain why they differ using context, evidence and method. Footnotes or endnotes should be formatted the same way throughout, and every source you cite should appear in the bibliography.
Planning backwards
- Fix a precise question in the first weeks.
- Date every log entry as you go.
- Draft early so the log shows progress.
- Reserve time to check every note against the bibliography.
- Writing the log at the end
- Entries must be sequentially dated records.
- Inconsistent referencing
- The syllabus asks for consistent formatting.
- Going over 2500 words
- That is a maximum.
Although the project is not an exam, the essay uses the same skill as Questions 1 and 2: judge between named producers and explain why they differ. Use your project reading to build case-study examples for the exam.
Practice questions
Original practice questions graded from foundation to exam level, each with a full worked solution. Try them before revealing the solution.
foundation3 marksState three things the 2024 syllabus says a process log records.Show worked solution →
Any three of: the topic choice, specific question and research intentions; sequentially dated records; evidence of academic research; progressive dated drafts; ethical considerations where relevant.
Marker's note: one mark each. Say "dated" where the syllabus does.
core4 marksExplain two differences between the 2017 and 2024 History Project requirements.Show worked solution →
Difference 1. The 2017 project included a Historical Process of proposal, process log and annotated sources. NESA's 2024 page lists a process log and does not mention a formal proposal or annotated sources; check with your teacher what your school will assess.
Difference 2. The 2024 essay must use consistently formatted footnotes or endnotes as well as a bibliography. The 2017 essay required a source bibliography.
Marker's note: two marks for each difference, one for each side of the contrast.