Vision

We want to help students understand their local, national and global circumstances through rigorous analysis of how the past has brought us here.

Curriculum Overview

At KS5, the focus is on challenging narrative. This means we cover content which will be new to all students, and look at familiar content with a new perspective.  

Sequencing, Setting and Support

In Year 12, students cover African Kingdoms and the Early Tudors. African Kingdoms accounts for 15% of the A Level, which means students are also about to start work on their coursework and gain a chronological overview of the Russia Unit as well. Russia and Its Ruler and the NEA are taught in Year 13 as they are more challenging units and require a more mature approach to independent learning and historical analysis.  

Students are taught in mixed ability groups, which allows all students to access challenging content. 

Teachers know their students well and differentiate learning, so every student can succeed to the best of their ability. This included providing sentence starters, offering information which requires a lower reading age, and offering 1-1 targeted support in lessons.

Alive Themes in History

The Alive values are fed through our curriculum. We value justice and respect, and this is reflected in our choice of topics, which cover a diverse range of people and cultures and many of which focus on protest and the fight for equal rights. We also value trust and truth and strive to prevent misconceptions about the past through encouraging critical analysis of sources. We value diversity and our intent is that the curriculum reflects the needs and backgrounds of students in our school-specific context.  

Assessment in History

Students will complete practise exam questions regularly, with timed assessments completed for each unit. Some timed questions will be placed in line with school ‘controlled assessment’ weeks.  

Homework and how Parents/Carers Support Learning

All homework is set on Bromcom which is an app and website available to students and parents/carers. Further information is available on our Bromcom parents and carers support page.

These are the principles which underpin our homework.

In Year 12, teachers will set a variety of activities based on the needs of each class. In Year 13, there is a more structured programme of homework with students being expected to complete flipped learning for elements of their Russia unit and complete a wide range of reading in independent study for their coursework. Students may also be set exam practise for homework, but where possible, this will be completed in timed conditions in classes.  

Useful History Resources

All resources to support learning and revision can be found on the relevant Moodle page. This included access to lesson resources, textbooks and revision and exam support. Extra reading is also signposted and resourced here.