Board: EDEXCEL
Syllabus: AS Level (8264), A Level (9264)
About the subject
Apart from being interesting, History is useful. Employers who see that you have a qualification in history immediately know certain things about you. They will know that you have certain skills which, learnt through history, can be applied to all sorts of situations. They know that: you understand how people tick, what motivates them, what they think and feel; you are able to gather and read different kinds of information; you’re able to analyse information; you can read images and charts; you are able to communicate clearly and have learned to express yourself verbally and on paper.
The course at Collyer’s aims to deepen your knowledge and understanding of topics you may have studied in the past, as well as help you learn about new issues and periods. The concepts of continuity and change and similarity and difference run through the entire course, and help you to analyse major threads in British, European and world history, such as political extremism.
Learning styles
We want you to enjoy History and, because people learn in different ways, we offer a variety of approaches to learning: discussion, group work, debate, note taking, independent research etc. In addition, each year we offer students the chance to study in different settings, such as conferences, museums and residential trips abroad. For example, in 2010 many of our students visited Germany to see first hand some of the places they had studied in class. In 2011 we will be visiting Berlin and Auschwitz. Of course you are not required to study abroad, but we would hope that everyone at some stage gets involved in the activities on offer, whether it’s debating and listening to visiting speakers or analysing artefacts and going on local history tours.
Subject Combinations and Progression
In terms of skills, History prepares you for both university and the workplace. As such, students choose History to contrast as well as complement their other subjects; scientists and mathematicians are as likely to opt for the subject as social scientists and linguists.
History is a particularly good qualification for budding journalists, accountants, lawyers and media researchers, to name but a few careers.
Subject Modules and Assessment
We offer one course:-
AS Level
Module 1 Crises, Tensions and Political Divisions in China, 1900-1949 and Russia in Revolution, 1881-1924, From Autocracy to Dictatorship
Written exam (50% AS, 25% A2)
Module 2 The Experience of Warfare in Britain: Crimea, Boer and the First World War, 1854 - 1929
Written exam (Assessment 50% AS, 25% A2)
A2 Level
Module 3 From Kaiser to Fuhrer, Germany 1900-1945
Written exam (Assessment 60% A2)
Module 4 British Protest and Unrest: the challenge to authority
Coursework (Assessment 40% A2)
Entry requirements
C in English Language