Nature of the Subject

A Level History focuses on these key concepts                                                        Cause and consequence The events, circumstances, actions and beliefs that have a direct causal connection to consequential events and developments, circumstances, actions or beliefs. Causes can be both human and non-human. 

Change and continuity The patterns, processes and interplay of change and continuity within a given time frame. 

Similarity and difference The patterns of similarity and difference that exist between people, lived experiences, events and situations in the past. 

Significance The importance attached to an event, individual or entity in the past, whether at the time or subsequent to it. Historical significance is a constructed label that is dependent upon the perspective (context, values, interests and concerns) of the person ascribing significance and is therefore changeable. 

Interpreting how the past has been subsequently reconstructed and presented by historians.

Syllabus & Content

Topics covered for paper 1 and 2 Topics within each of the AS options rotate year-on-year so that one topic is assessed via Paper 1 and the remaining three via Paper 2.       

     American option: The history of the USA, 1820–1941,  The origins of the Civil War, 1820–61 , Civil War and Reconstruction, 1861–77, The Gilded Age and Progressive Era, 1870s to 1920 , The Great Crash, The Great Depression and the New Deal policies, 1920–41           

Paper 3 option is from a choice of 3 (student get to choose);                   Topic 1: The origins of the First World War , Topic 2: The Holocaust , Topic 3: The origins and development of the Cold War                                                           

Paper 4 is also the American Option for the Depth Study and is broken down into these units  The USA, 1944–92 – Theme 1: The late 1940s and 1950s – Theme 2: The 1960s and the 1970s – Theme 3: The 1980s and early 1990s – Theme 4: Foreign policy, 1944–92

Assessment

AS Level 

Paper 1 is Document based and makes up 40% AS Level            

Paper 2 is Content based and makes up 60% of the AS Level                                                                                           A Level 

Paper 3 is an Interpretations paper which is 20% of the A Level                                                                                     Paper 4 is a Depth Study paper which makes up 30% of the A Level. 

Teacher Introduction

The aims are to enable students to develop:                                                    

An interest in the past and an appreciation of human endeavour                    

A greater knowledge and understanding of historical periods or themes  

A greater awareness of historical concepts such as cause and consequence, change and continuity, similarity and difference, significance and interpretations 

An exploration of a variety of approaches to different aspects of history and different interpretations of particular historical issues  

A firm foundation for further study of History.