Welcome to the History department at Wallington County Grammar School

History at KS3
Year 7
• The Roman World:
Topics Including:
• The Roman Republic
• The Rise of Julius Caesar
• The Roman Army
• Boudicca's Rebellion
• The Normans
Topics Including:
• The Battle of Hastings
• The Domesday Book
• Castle Building (Motte and Bailey)
• Medieval Realms
Topics Including:
• The Black Death
• The murder of Thomas Beckett
• The Peasants Revolt

Year 8
• Industrial Revolution
Topics Including:
• Inventers and Inventions
• Transport
• British Empire
Including:
• The Slave Trade
• The American Revolution
• The East India Company
• World War One
Topics Including:
• The origins of the War
• The weapons of the War
• The Somme
• Conscientious Objectors
• World War Two
Topics Including:
• Pearl Harbour
• D-Day
• The Atomic Bomb

Year 9
Specification: Edexcel History A – Modern World http://www.edexcel.com/migrationdocuments/GCSE%20New%20GCSE/GCSE-History-A-Spec-Issue-2-for-Web.pdf
There will be no external examinations in year 9, internal examinations will take place in the Summer Term.

There will be a practice controlled assessment (on the Holocaust) . This will be part of the end of year exam.

Topics studied:

Germany 1918-33: Weimar Republic
Rise of Hitler
Life in Nazi Germany
The Holocaust
Russian Revolution
Russia before 1917

YEAR 10
Specification: Edexcel History A – Modern World http://www.edexcel.com/migrationdocuments/GCSE%20New%20GCSE/GCSE-History-A-Spec-Issue-2-for-Web.pdf
GCSE examinations:

Option 2B: Russia 1917–39 – Essay paper
Option 3B: War and the transformation of British society c1931–51 Source Paper.

1. No controlled assessment – but we might add some more practice exercises when we start the 'real' topic in the summer term. We will take a view based on the level of work required in preparation for the GCSE modules.

2. Topics studied this year:

Bolshevik Russia 1917-24.
Stalin and the USSR 1924-39
Britain and the Second World War (1933-1951)
The Vietnam War (Controlled Assessment to take place in Y11).

YEAR 11
Exam board
Edexcel (History A)
Website http://www.edexcel.com/quals/gcse/gcse09/history/a/Pages/default.aspx
Units studied:

Controlled Assessment 5: Vietnam 1960–75
Controlled Assessment – in two parts (3 questions)
The reasons for US involvement in Vietnam.
The nature of the conflict and reasons for US defeat.
The impact of the war on civilians and the military, in the USA and in North and South Vietnam.
The growth of protest in the USA and the end of the conflict.

Unit 1: Peace and War: International Relations 1900-1991
1 hour 15 minute paper testing source analysis
How did the Cold War develop? 1943–56
Three Cold War crises: Berlin, Cuba and Czechoslovakia c1957–69
Why did the Cold War end? The invasion of Afghanistan (1979) to the collapse of the Soviet Union (1991).

History in the 6th Form

Edexcel Advanced Subsidiary: 8HI01
Edexcel Advanced Level: 9HI01

What is History at A Level?

History in the Sixth Form is available for those who may not have previously studied GCSE History and it focuses on events from 1740 to the present day. Students may study Classics in addition to one of the History courses.

The course will appeal to students who:
• Have an interest in the way the world has developed;
• Enjoy investigation and discovery;
• Enjoy debate and putting forward a well argued case;
• Want to improve their skills of analysis and expression;
• Want to study a subject that will prepare them for a wide range of careers.

What does the course involve?

AS Unit 1: Historical Themes in Breadth

Option C: The British Empire – Colonisation and Decolonisation

Assessment is in the form of an 80 minute written examination, answering two essay based questions on the following topics:
Relations with the American Colonies and the War of Independence, c.1740-89:
• Relations between America and the 'Mother Country' 1740-63;
• Rivalry with the French;
• Why did opposition to Britain increase in the American Colonies?;
• Why and how did America win its independence?

Britain and the Scramble for Africa 1875-1914:
• How did Africa become so much more important to Britain in the 19th Century?;
• How did Britain acquire 40% of Africa in just 20 years – when they were apparently reluctant to do so?;
• Conflict in Southern Africa – fighting Zulus and Boers;
• How did British people feel about their Empire?
AS Unit 2: British History Depth Studies

Option C: Conflict and Change in 19th and 20th Century Britain

Assessment is in the form of an 80 minute written examination, answering two source based questions on the following topic:
The Experience of Warfare in Britain: Crimea, Boer and the First World War, 1854 -1929:
• How did the media become involved in reporting war and forming opinions at home?;
• The effect of the Boer War on attitudes towards the British Empire;
• New developments in weaponry, tactics, strategy and medicine in the 3 major conflicts studied;
• Assessment of generals and military leadership;
• The effects of World War I on Britain: recruitment and retention, propaganda, work, the beginning of total war.

A2 Unit 3: Depth Studies and Associated Historical Controversies

Students will have a choice of study the option below. Assessment is in the form of a 120 minute written examination, answering two questions on the chosen topic. One question is an essay and the second is a source based question.

Option D: The Challenge of Fascism

From Kaiser to Führer: Germany 1900-45:
• The Second Reich: the Kaiser, his government and the effects of the First World War;
• The democratic experiment: why did Weimar fail?;
• How did Hitler become Chancellor – and then Führer – of Germany?;
• Germany during World War II – total war;
• The Final Solution – why and how?

A2 Unit 4: Historical Enquiry

Assessment is in the form of 2 coursework essays totalling 4000 words, with titles chosen to focus on the topics below:
Expansion, Conflict and Civil Rights in the USA, 1820-1981:
• The 'Wild West' – the great westward expansion in the 19th Century;
• Why did the USA descend into Civil War in the 1860s – and what were the consequences of this?;
• Emancipation: the end of slavery – but with the KKK, Sharecropping and Segregation did life get any better for African Americans?;
• Immigration in the 20th Century, social tensions and paranoia about the 'Red threat'.
• The Impact of WWI and WWII on race relations;
• The path to Civil Rights 1945-81: the roles of Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson.

Why study History?

History is regarded as good preparation for a number of courses at degree level including, in particular, History, History of Art, Archaeology, Anthropology and Classics, plus more specific courses such as American Studies and Modern Studies. Additionally, the skills and content will be useful for degrees in International Relations, Politics, Economics, Social Science, Law, Journalism, English Literature and Philosophy, to name but a few.

Many courses will have a historical content, or will require you to use skills developed in History, particularly the analysis and interpretation of a wide range of source materials. Scientists will find that AS or A2 History will provide excellent evidence of breadth in their ability.