History

History is a wide-ranging and diverse subject which helps students to understand the present by interrogating the past.

Key Stage 3

At KS3 great emphasis is placed on helping students to learn the fundamentals of history with a real emphasis on core skills such as source analysis and introducing students to new concepts such as interpretations and significance.

The KS3 curriculum moves chronologically from the Middle Ages to the end of the Cold War and looks at a combination of both depth studies of individual periods but also analyses topics with greater breadth so that patterns of change and continuity can be assessed thematically across a larger span of history. Our blending of more unusual topics with the more modern world and traditional topics, ensures our students have a well-developed sense of understanding the world they find themselves in and how our history relates to current affairs. 

You can read more about our Key Stage 3 curriculum here: Key Stage 3 History Curriculum

Key Stage 4 (GCSE)

At KS4 students build on the technical skills they have developed at KS3 and begin to embrace both depth and breadth topics helping students to see the past both in its immediate context and it’s long-term historical place.  We cover depth and period studies that focus on Elizabethan England, Russia and The Cold War. This diversity in subject allows students to develop their understanding of British, modern and global history, whilst simultaneously marking the changes and continuity over a period of 2000 years of history. We teach students the need to look at evidence critically, to challenge differing interpretations and apply their knowledge and understanding, to become well-rounded historians. GCSE History is a popular option that achieves highly and many of our students continue onto A-Level.  

Extended learning and extra curriculuar

Students benefit from a range of materials made available by the History Department and the Librarian to ensure they are able to extend their learning beyond the confines of the classroom. Access to online journals and an expertly selected series of literature in the library help students to further their grasp of detail.

Our current History Society is spearheaded by our Year 10’s and ensures students are able to debate whatever they feel deserves to be debated while our History representative at Year 12 is currently tasked with ensuring History staff are well aware of students needs and expectations. This is perhaps most apparent with the arrangement of trips beyond the confines of the school.

Our study of Empire opens up a range of opportunities for us to explore the rich cultural traditions of London. With exhibitions at the Imperial War Museum and the British Museum allowing students to view at first hand some of the primary material through which of understanding of the past is based on. Trips to Berlin have been previously arranged and we are eager to ensure that the opportunity to explore far and wide is maintained.

Key Stage 5 (History A-Level)

You can read about our history A-Level course on the Sixth Form pages:  here  We also offer A-Level Politics.