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Year 9 Options - History

WHY STUDY HISTORY?

History teaches us who we are, where we’ve come from and helps us understand the world we live in today.

GCSE History is highly regarded amongst employers, colleges and universities.  The topics covered are fascinating and help to develop many skills.  You will be much more critical of what you read or hear on the news and it will develop your abilities to reason and argue your point of view with supporting information.  You will enjoy History at GCSE if you are interested in learning fascinating knowledge.  You will enjoy History if you want to know why, and how things were different.  If you have enjoyed History in your first years at Westfield Academy, and want to work hard you will love it at GCSE level.

WHAT WILL I STUDY?

The syllabus we follow is OCR History B (Schools History Project).  Below are details of what we cover.

Students will study:

  • The People’s Health c.1250 - present.  This thematic study investigates living conditions, epidemics and attempts to improve public health since Medieval times.
  • The Elizabethans, 1580-1603. This depth study investigates how Queen Elizabeth governed the country, the importance of religion, the daily lives of Elizabethans, popular culture (including the persecution of witches) and the wider world during this period. There is also an emphasis is on how life in Elizabethan England has been interpreted by historians, TV and film-makers.
  • Living Under Nazi Rule, 1933-45 is a depth study of life in Nazi Germany. The unit covers dictatorship, control, opposition, the lives of people in Nazi Germany, Germany at War and the occupation of Europe.
  • History Around Us.  This involves fieldwork as we visit Glastonbury Abbey for our site study. This site allows us to focus on some interesting local history, and investigate the development of the Abbey and its rise and decline in importance.
  • The Making of America, 1789-1900. An investigation into America’s ‘birth’ and expansion, studying the impact of Slavery, the groups who moved west, the American Civil War and life for the different groups of people who make up the Melting Pot of America.  We see how many of the problems in the USA today such as race relations are a result of their History.

HOW WILL I BE ASSESSED?

There will be three exam papers making up 100% of the marks.  These exam papers are all taken at the end of the course.