History
1. Lower School (Years 7 - 9) Curriculum Outline
All pupils study History in their form in years 7-9 before it becomes an option in Years 10 and 11. The Department realises that pupils when they arrive at Eltham College will have varying experiences of the subject so we try to offer the pupil a reasonably broad based History curriculum. An effort has been made to frame a course of study covering British, European and World history as well as exposing them to different types of history (e.g. political, cultural, military, social and economic.) Pupils have three lessons a week of History and one homework. Homework will test a wide range of historical skills including note taking, essays, project work, preparation for role plays or debates and historical evidence and source work.
The structure of the course is broadly chronological through the first three years at the school. Below is a brief list of the periods of history covered in each year:-
Year 7 Medieval Realms 1066-1500
The Crusades
Castles (including day trip to Bodiam Castle)
Year 8 England 1485-1689
Individual research project on any historical topic
The French Revolution
Year 9 Britain 1700-1900
The Origins and Course of the Great War in Europe 1900-1918, (Including trip to WW1 Battlefields either Ypres or the Somme).
2. GCSE course outline for years 10 and 11
History is an option from Year 10 onwards (although students have to do at least one Humanity at this stage). In fact, many students do both History and Geography. There is a good take up for History and the Department runs three sets in both years 10 and 11.
Since September 2009 the History Department has been following a new syllabus - the ED Excel course, History A, the Making of the Modern World. All the topics chosen are from the 20th Century. There are four units to the new exam, and each unit carries 25% of the final overall mark. Units 2 and 3 are done in Year 10 and Units 1 and 4 in Year 11.
Unit 1, Outline Study: Peace and War: International Relations 1900 -1991
Our focus here will be on the period from 1945-1990 on the causes and development of the Cold war. This unit tests knowledge and understanding and is examined by short answer questions and structured essays.
Unit 2, Depth Study: Germany 1918-39
Germany between the two world wars will be our focus here, looking at the circumstances leading to Hitler's rise to power in Germany in 1933 and then the nature of the Nazi regime in Germany in the 1930s before the Second World War. This unit is again examined by a written examination with some stimulus questions and structured mini essays.
Unit 3, Modern World Source Enquiry: War/the transformation of British Society, c1931-51.
The focus here is on British History, before, during and after the Second World War. This unit is examined by sources or documents questions in a written examination.
Unit 4, Representations of History on the Vietnam war
This is the new controlled assessment tasks part of the course and will replace conventional coursework. We will be following set tasks on the Vietnam War.
3. AS Level and A level course outlines
The History Department has been following the new OCR A level Syllabus since September 2008 (History A course). This requires candidates to study 4 modules, two units in the lower sixth and two units in the Upper sixth.
AS in the Lower Sixth
Unit F 962 European and World History Period Studies.
Democracy and Dictatorship in Italy 1896-1943
UnitF963 British History Enquiries
The Condition of England 1815-1853
A level in the Upper Sixth
F965 Historical Interpretations and Investigations
Russian Revolutions 1894-1924
F966 Historical themes
Britain and Ireland 1798-1921
4. Field Trips
