Ripon Grammar School

An engineering specialism within a grammar school

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History

“History moves with the times”

Aims of the department

To engender enthusiasm for and interest in the past.
To contribute to the individual learner’s sense of identity and their place in the school, wider local community, nation and world through topics studied and also awareness of the school’s history.
To contribute to the individual learner’s sense of where they are placed in a time continuum through study of change and development.
To contribute to the awareness that every individual matters and has an impact which he/she can control to some extent.
To contribute to an awareness of the cultural diversity of Britain and the role of cultures in shaping people’s ideas, values and beliefs.
To contribute to skills of communication, evaluation and critical thinking.

Students on a visit to Krakow, Poland, Easter 2006

Lower School or KS3

Course details and assessment
Year 7	Britain 1066-1900: Who had power and what affected the lives of ordinary people?
Year 8	Britain and the Wider World 1066-1500: Who are the British and how did they affect the wider world?
Year 9	Britain 1750-1900 and Twentieth Century History

Learners are assessed on work throughout the year as well as in an end of Year examination.

Upper School or KS4

Examination course details and assessment: Year 11: AQA History B (3042), Modern World History. Learners study International Relations 1900-1949, Britain and the First World War, and USA and Germany in the 1920s and 1930s.

Coursework on Britain in the Second World War and on American Civil Rights after 1945 accounts for 25% of the marks, and there are two 1 hour 45 minute examinations at the end of the course testing candidates’ knowledge, understanding and skills.

Year 10: AQA History B (4045), Modern World History. Learners study: International Relations: Conflict and Peace in the 20th Century 1900-1955; Twentieth Century Depth Studies on The Roaring Twenties: USA 1918-1929, Hitler’s Germany, 1929-1939 and Race Relations in the USA 1955-1968.

The area of study for the controlled assessment is Britain at War. This accounts for 25% of the marks, and there are two 1 hour 45 minute examinations, the first at the end of Year 10 and the second in Year 11.

Sixth Form or Post 16

Examination course details and assessment: OCR History B (AS: H108 and A level: H508).

AS units are Historical Explanation: Russia in Turmoil 1900-1921 and Using Historical Evidence: The Impact of War on British Society and Politics since 1900. Both units are equally weighted and are assessed in examinations of 1 hour 30 minutes.

A2 units are Historical Controversies: The Debate over Britain’s 17th Century Crises 1629-89 and Historical Significance: a coursework essay on a historically significant event, person or site of the learner’s choice. The former is weighted at 30% of the A level and is assessed in an open book examination lasting 3 hours in total. The latter is weighted at 20% of the A level assessed on the coursework essay of a maximum of 3000 words and a research record.

Career Opportunities

The skills learned in History lead naturally to a number of careers in areas such as journalism, the law, the heritage industry and archives and libraries. Besides this the skills can also be applied to a range of other professions requiring a clear analytical mind and the ability to present a convincing argument with appropriate supporting evidence.

Additional Information

At Easter 2006 the department organised a joint History/RE trip to Poland in conjunction with a partner school in Upper Silesia. Students visited Krakow, Auschwitz and Jasna Gora as well as contributing to English lessons and international relations with students from our partner school. At Easter 2008 the department organised a trip to St Petersburg Russia for students from Years 11-13 to support examination work at both GCSE and A level by visiting a range of sites associated with the Russian Revolutions of 1905 and 1917.

KS3 learners in Year 7 work on an Oral History project in conjunction with the School Library and ICT Department.