Image: Year 12 students sitting their exams last year. Facebook.
Flagstone State Community College (FSCC) is one of nine schools caught in a curriculum mix-up where year 12 ancient history students were taught the wrong topic in preparation for their final exam.
Yesterday afternoon, FSCC realised their year 12 ancient history cohort had been taught and assessed on Emperor Augustus instead of Julius Caesar.
The Ancient History Senior External Examination (SEE), in which students will be tested on Julius Caesar, is scheduled to take place this afternoon and is worth 25% of their final grade.
There are 140 students statewide who now have a better appreciation of Caesar’s teenage heir than they do of Julius himself.
FSCC offered ancient history students an emergency study session to cram information on Julius Caesar from 9am this morning.
Queensland Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek has said an investigation into how the mistake occurred will take place to prevent curriculum mix-ups in the future.
“I want to reassure these students and their parents and the teachers affected that we’ll be making every investigation into how this happened,” Ms Langbroek said.
“I’m very unhappy about the situation developing as it has, for the stress, of course, for everyone, the communications that have not been carried out appropriately.
“For all of us, as parents or students, who have been through situations like this, it would be extremely traumatic.”
The Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) said it would lodge a “whole-cohort” special considerations request for ancient history students, to ensure students receive a fair mark.
Mr Langbroek said at a media conference this morning that he did not expect students to sit an exam on a topic they had two days or less to prepare for.
“We’re not going to ask them to do an exam for which they have not been prepared,” Mr Langbroek said.
“I don’t think they’ll be sitting an exam for something which they haven’t prepared.”
It is unclear whether affected students will sit the exam at all.
Mr Langbroek said the 75% students had already been assessed in the form of exams and assessments delivered by their schools, which would be scaled up to determine their final grade and compensate for the exam worth 25%, which he suggested they would not be sitting.
Brisbane State High School was the first to realise the mistake on the morning of Tuesday, 18 October, just one day before the final Ancient History examination would take place.
Seven other schools, nine in total, including Meridan State College, Redcliffe State High School, Yeronga State High School, St Teresa’s Catholic College, West Moreton Anglican College, James Nash State High School, and Kuranda District State College, have also been impacted.
Emperor Augustus was taught and assessed in the year 12 ancient history course between 2020 and 2024, but was changed to Julius Caesar for the first time this year, 2025, according to reports from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
No changes were made to subject curricula other than ancient history this year.
The QCAA and the Department of Education notified schools in August 2023 and April 2024 that the curriculum topic would change, according to the ABC.
Acting chief executive officer of QCAA, Claude Jones, said the association was committed to implementing more strategies to ensure this does not occur again.
“This includes making the exam topic more prominent on the QCAA and myQCE websites, listing it in the exam timetable published in May, and seeking confirmation that schools are teaching the correct topic,” Mr Jones said.
“The QCAA regrets the impact this situation has had on students. We are committed to ensuring every student receives fair and accurate results.”
