History

At Key Stage 3, students are introduced to history at secondary level with a unit on ‘Why History?’ looking at the importance of history in understanding our world and ourselves. We study the main features of Britain in the Roman period, medieval period, the 16th and 17th centuries, the Industrial Revolution and the 20th century world, as well as some local history and some world history.  
 
A wide range of teaching strategies are used including role-plays, group work, and the use of ICT and film. Assessments are designed to record all students’ ability in both the skills and the knowledge they have acquired through various tasks, which enable all students to achieve. For each year group the opportunity is provided to experience learning outside the classroom at either a museum or similar venue. Trips regularly depart for London Dungeons, the Battlefields of WW1 in France and Belgium, even to the Nazi Death Camps in Poland. Our teaching is focused on the principals of enjoyment and progress and consequently we are one of the most oversubscribed option subjects in the school.
 
At Key Stage 4, the course takes us across 1,500 years of history with the History of Medicine. It also looks in depth at British history when we examine Elizabeth I. We also examine Germany from 1929- 2000 and complete a unit on the USA 1910 – 1929. The course is very challenging and academic however pupils are supported by the strongest History department in Southampton with some of the highest value-added scores in the county.