History and Politics
Course and unit descriptions
Key Stage 3
Broadly speaking the department follows the National Curriculum for History at Key Stage 3. Students are taught the five essential key skills of History: Knowledge and Understanding, Chronology, Interpretation, Enquiry and Communication through a wide range of activities. They are encouraged to question, discuss and explore ideas and to present their arguments coherently.
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Year
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Subjects studied
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First Form (Y7)
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Medieval Realms: The Norman Conquest and consolidation of power, the Medieval Church and Crusades, monarchy and government, Black Death, the Peasants’ Revolt, castles and warfare, daily life and social change.
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Second Form (Y8)
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The Making of the United Kingdom and Empire: Tudor England including the Reformation, the Armada and exploration. Stuart England including the Gunpowder Plot and the English Civil War. The expansion of the British Empire and the Industrial Revolution.
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Third Form (Y9)
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Peace and War: Political and social change in Britain, international relations, World Wars and their effects, the Cold War.
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Key Stage 4
The department follows the OCR Modern World (B) syllabus for GCSE. This allows students to build on their knowledge from the third form in much greater depth and to begin to look at key events in a much broader context.
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Assessment
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Content
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Paper 1
Core Content & Russia Depth Study.
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45%
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Paper One tests knowledge and communication.
International relations from 1919-39, the League of Nations and the road to World War Two. It is also possible to spend some time looking at the Cold War in more detail.
Depth Study on Russia from 1905-1941.
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Paper 2
British Depth Study
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30%
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Paper Two combines knowledge and source handling skills.
Liberal Government Reforms 1906-1914
Women’s Suffrage 1906-1918
The Home Front 1914-1918
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Coursework
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25%
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Boom and Bust in the USA.
Two pieces of coursework looking at the 1920s and the 1930s in America.
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AS & A Level History
From September 2008 the department will be offering an AQA A Level course focusing on “the making and breaking of nation states”. Students study 2 modules at AS level; both examined in the summer of the Lower Sixth. They can then carry on if they choose to 2 modules at A2 Level to complete a full A Level. Teaching is in small classes, allowing everyone to share their views and join in with discussions and debates.
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AS
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Unit 1: Change and Consolidation
Britain 1483-1529: How effectively did the early Tudors establish and consolidate their monarchy?
This unit provides an overview of developments in England between 1483 and 1529, taking as its major focus the growth of political stability, from the instability of the reign of Richard III to the establishment of secure government by Henry VII and the development of Tudor rule under Henry VIII, to the fall of Wolsey in 1529.
50% of AS course
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Unit 2: Historical Issues: Periods of Change
A New Roman Empire? Mussolini’s Italy, 1922-1945.
This unit provides an opportunity to investigate the impact of Mussolini’s Fascist regime on the Italian State and people. Students will need to gain a sound understanding of the context and chronology of Fascist Italy, but the main emphasis will be on an analysis and assessment of Mussolini’s aims, actions and influence.
50% of AS course
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A2
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Unit 3: The State and the People, Change and Continuity.
Triumph and Collapse: Russia and the USSR 1941-1991.
This unit promotes and understanding of change and continuity in the USSR from the start of the Great Patriotic War in 1941 to the break-up of the USSR in 1991. Through the study of key events in depth, students will be able to demonstrate the interrelationship of key individuals such as Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev and Gorbachev, with ideas on the development of socialism, conservatism and reform.
30% of A Level Course
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Unit 4: Historical Enquiry
A personal study of the student’s choice based on the study of 100 years.
Part of the attraction of this course is the freedom for students to engage in independent study on a topic that is of interest to them personally. This is also a unit which requires the research and investigative skills students will use at university level and beyond including an understanding of historiography and the use and evaluation of a range of sources. It is an exciting challenge for the History student.
The enquiry is presented as a piece of continuous prose of around 3500 words with a supporting bibliography of around 500 words.
20% of A Level Course
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Exam Results
The History and Politics department had some notable successes in the year 2006/7. Results were strong overall and represent a good level of added value for our students.
GCSE History: 60% of all GCSE students achieved A*/A grades in History, 96% achieved A*-C grades. This is substantially higher than grades predicted by CAT and MidYis assessments and is comparable with the positive trend of the last 6 years.
AS History: 53% of candidates achieved A/B grades, a slight increase on last years performance. 8 students (nearly half) achieved higher grades than those predicted by ALIS testing at the start of the year.
A2 History: No student achieved a result below a D grade and nearly a third of students achieved a higher result than that predicted by ALIS testing in the Lower Sixth.
AS Government and Politics: The 5 candidates amassed 3 As and 2 Bs, each student performing a whole grade better than originally predicted. The group far exceeded the predictions of the ALIS testing.
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