Statement of Intent

At St Gregory’s, students are nurtured and supported to study a diverse and aspirational history curriculum, broad in terms of chronological spread and national and international scope. This is achieved through the selection of exam syllabuses up to and including A Level which allow them to understand and analyse the crucial struggles and interactions of nations, groups and individuals which have shaped our society thus far, and the appropriate preparatory study for these in Years 7 to 9. Skilful application happens when students can use the details of the historical narrative to assess and explore the significance of key events and actions. They will extend this to critically evaluate source and interpretation material from the period of study, and reach substantiated judgements. Through our inclusive approach, all students are also able to develop the concept of what British values represent and how these can best be preserved in a world of challenge and change.

Purpose

The purpose of the History curriculum at St Gregory’s is to provide students with a chronological overview of the history of Britain and countries with whom we have interacted over the past millennium, in order to give context at Years 7-9  to the topics studied at GCSE and A-Level. Through increasing familiarity with the key themes of political, social, economic and cultural change as part of the broad and balanced Year 7-9 curriculum, students will be prepared to work independently to analyse key historical events at GCSE and beyond. Students will be provided with judiciously selected texts in order to enhance their vocabulary use and understanding of historical controversies to support them in meeting the challenges and demands of the curriculum to Year 13.

Cultural Capital

In History, we make use of sources and interpretations of historical events to enhance understanding of places and time periods from the past. This includes sources which shed light on the experiences people had at different points in time such as during the Black Death epidemic and how living in Tudor England was experienced by different groups in society.  We also explore different interpretations of historical events such as the Battle of the Somme and the Civil Rights movement both in the USA and in Britain.  We explore diversity in History through the experiences of different groups of people such as those gaining equal rights, particularly political rights, or those whose lives have been impacted by migration. We consider the changing lives of migrants in the UK and consider the positive impact of migration on Britain today.  We allow students the opportunity to consider moral and ethical issues of, for example, slavery and the building of empires. We explore the connections that History has with the present and discuss the importance of commemorating events such as Remembrance Day and Holocaust Memorial Day.  We look at economic problems around the globe and consider the impact these have had for example by looking at how the Wall Street Crash created the conditions in Germany which were exploited by Hitler to take power.  We look at historical conflict around the globe (from the Crusades to the Cold War) and relate this to current experiences.