Secondary History Discussion

Please use this forum to discuss any aspect of History teaching or the History curriculum at 11 - 16. Anyone with website access may create topics, we encourage discussion, please remember to be polite and respect the views of others even if you don't agree with them

Topics
	Web Debates10 Responses | Last response: 10th September 2009, 3:55 pm by Emily Thomas We're currently planning a series of web debates to begin in September 2008. Are there any areas that members would find particularly useful?
	A Levels and International Baccalaureate2 Responses | Last response: 10th January 2009, 8:33 pm by Jennifer (Jenni) Hyde I'm a student at an International Baccalaureate (IB) school in Kent. Although history is part of the curriculum, the syllabus is completely different. Instead of the usual period of history that A Levels encompass - Tudors etc - the course that I study concentrates solely on the modern era, namely WW1 to the Cold War. I wondered what teachers, students and others thought about this - should the syllabus be restricted in this way, or is it better to concentrate fully on a short period of time and really comprehend it fully?
	Calderdale history on the radio1 Response | Last response: 6th October 2008, 9:09 pm by Dan Moorhouse Anyone - school pupil or not - who wishes to contribute features on local history to Phoenix FM, the community radio station for Calderdale in Yorkshire - will be warmly welcomed and given all the technical help necessary. Please contact Sara Hinchliffe on 01422 365923 or e-mail sara@phoenixfm.co.uk if you are interested.
	Teaching Stuart History in Secondary Schools3 Responses | Last response: 3rd February 2009, 12:56 pm by Janet Pick I am writing a dissertation looking at how museums can provide education programmes reaching the new national curriculum objectives for secondary schools, by focussing on Stuart history. I would really appreciate some input from teachers as to the main barriers to teaching Stuart history at key stage 3. This would greatly help me gain an understanding of what museums can do to provide education facilities in this subject area. Barriers may be in terms of location, organisation, teachers' personal subject knowledge, or school policy for example. I will be very grateful for any advice or opinions on the matter. Thank You.
	GCSE History results11 Responses | Last response: 28th August 2009, 10:11 am by Mark Hone After yet another disappointing set of results for AQA GCSE Modern World History I am wondering what more we can do, and whether anyone else has the same experience? Some excellent and hardworking students have got at least a grade lower than they should have, and overall I would estimate our results are half a grade down. This year we have tried to revise in a really structured way - to no avail, the results are as usual. What experience do others have of the different boards? We also had a small group for the OCR pilot GCSE who had excellent results, but feel this is not suitable for all our cohort (120+ students, the largest option group in the school, so the kids like the subject!) We need to have confidence in whatever board we start teaching in September 2009, but also to do our best by the two remaining AQA cohorts. Comments/advice please!
	Teaching "The Growth of Democracy in Britain" to A level1 Response | Last response: 26th March 2010, 2:47 pm by Historical Association Can anyone help? I am teaching "The Growth of Democracy in Britain 1830-1931" as an A2 unit. I am hoping to lay my hands on 2 Historical Association pamphlets which I am told are out of print. They are "The Reformed Electoral System in Great Britain 1832-1914" by H Hanham (HA 1969) and "The Evolution of the British Electoral System 1832-1987" by M Pugh (HA 1988). I will buy or borrow. Thanks.
	Farnce 1814-70I am teaching this year at AS level the OCR module on France and am looking for copies of the Access series, 'Monarchy, Republic and Empire' by Keith Randell which is now out of print. Can anyone help? Has anyone got unused copies lurking at the back of their stock cupboard? would be most grateful to hear from you. Thanks.
	Promoting Community Cohension2 Responses | Last response: 6th October 2008, 9:13 pm by Dan Moorhouse Having survived an OFSTED inspection last week which included an interview with an inspector regarding Community Cohesion I am looking to improve our students' understanding of the diversity within our country. I teach in a large East London comprehensive with a very diverse ethnic make-up of students, many of whom have been no further than central London and do not know that there is anything other then city life in existence. I am looking to set up links with a school that would differ greatly from ours to try and increase our students' outlook. The aim is to eventually organise either video conferencing or a visit to another school(s) to try and open up the students' eyes and to give htem the chance to communicate with different types of students.
	Looking for GSCE British History ScriptwritersWe are looking for History teachers (current teachers or those with recent GCSE teaching experience) to write some audiobooks for the website www.gcsepod.co.uk. You’ll be asked to write scripts of around 5 minutes on curriculum topics. The work is paid and can be done from home in your own time. The scripts need to be engaging, lively and informative. We particularly need writers in the area of: British History. If you’re potentially interested please send me an email at jane.parks@soundbitelearning.co.uk. Please include your CV and your areas of specialism within British History. We look forward to hearing from you.
	AS Causes of the American Civil WarCalling all A level History departments. I am looking to make contact with anyone responsible for providing the course above, especially if you teach the OCR specification. Dave Grimshaw The Wensleydale School
	Akbar the Great2 Responses | Last response: 16th April 2009, 7:30 am by Christopher Vernon I've been to a local History Network meeting today led by Michael Riley. As a result I'm quite keen to have a go at the QCA unit comparing Akbar and Elizabeth I but I can't seem to find much in the way of resources. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions? Thanks
	Students dropping history in Year Eight?6 Responses | Last response: 27th February 2009, 3:03 pm by Ros Docker Our school is considering a two year Key Stage Three. This means students would recieve 1/3rd less teaching in history and if they do not take it as an option for GCSE will not study history beyond year eight. Am I over-reacting or is this a serious issue?
	Mid-Tudor Crisis - Edexcel Unit 6Does anyone have any past papers for this Unit - we've only just changed and although we purchased 2007, 06 and 05 from the exam board, I'm struggling to find any more. I'm aware the style changed not so long back, but more than anything it's the sources that are used in the paper that I'm desperate for. Many thanks!
	England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales unit for Key Stage 33 Responses | Last response: 12th February 2009, 4:31 pm by Historical Association I am looking for the actual scheme of work produced by Steve Illingworth on this unit. I have accessed his rational and resources stuff on this site but his SOW does not appear to be there. Can anyone provide me with a link or a copy?
	British Battlefield Visits - a neglected resources??1 Response | Last response: 28th February 2009, 9:38 am by Dan Moorhouse There are many companies out there that offer us trips to visit the great battlefields of WW1 & WW2 but are we neglecting our own battlefield heritage? Bosworth, Hastings, Edgehill, Naesby, Marston Moor, Culloden and more are all covered by our syllabuses and yet how many of us ever use them to enhance our teaching? Admittedly some of them are not as well kept as those in France, but sites such as Hastings and Bosworth offer great ooportunities to learn. I'd love to hear other teacher's views on this. Thanks
	Researching World War One1 Response | Last response: 28th February 2009, 9:28 am by Dan Moorhouse I am currently teaching at an International school in Houston, and have students from Britain, Africa, Russia and Malaysia. I would like them to do some research into how WW1 affected the place they come from e.g. amount of casualties their country or even town suffered, I have looked at CWGC site, but you can only search by name, making it difficult to narrow it down to areas. Has anyone done any enquiries like this or have any advice on the bes way to approach this?
	Edexcel GCE ResourcesJust a quick query to anyone teaching Edexcel GCE History Unit 1, Options F3 anf F7. What textbooks do you use? I know Edexcel had planned to publish some textbooks of their own on this, but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. What books do you recommend? We have the SHP and Access to History books already and are looking for something a bit different.
	Brit QuizCan you help us? We are a small company which designs and manufactures Educational Games for use by schools and families. We are in the final stages of creating a card based quiz game about Britain called Brit Quiz. The game has 400 individual cards, presented in a box; each card contains four questions at varying levels. Q1 is aimed at eight year olds (getting about 50% correct), Q2 aimed at 12 year olds, Q3 aimed as easier-adult, Q4 harder-adult. All questions are educational and specific to Britain covering History, Geography, famous people, recent events, significant dates, statistics and general knowledge. The question and answer contain extra information where possible (within space constraints). The game is aimed to be an educational family game with the various levels enabling families to all play together, regardless of age, as well as being extremely useful as an educational resource in schools. The concept has proven very successful in New Zealand with a similar game "Kiwi Quiz". A large proportion of NZ schools and teachers are using it as a teaching aid and it is now in its sixth print run in 3 years. Do You Know Someone Who Can Help Us? As part of the final editing process we need the help of suitable teachers or people with good history & general knowledge, who might be willing to check a few pages of questions and answers, to ensure that they are accurate and are pitched to the various age levels correctly. These Questions and Answers would be sent to you by email in PDF format and you would need to check and provide a brief comment on them. You’ll Receive Free Games for your help In return for your help we would send you one free game for every page of 36 questions reviewed (these shouldn’t take very long for someone who has a good knowledge of Britain). These games can then be used personally, or as a school resource or for whatever you choose. Brit Quiz will be launched in UK this autumn. Your help would be much appreciated. We have a deadline for editing of June 30th so would need comments back to us in this time frame. Thanks David Allis
	World History Video - Advice?3 Responses | Last response: 22nd April 2010, 2:22 pm by Rachel Crerar A few years ago I watched a short video of 20th century images backed by a contemporary pop song. It was used as an introduction to a debate on the good and bad features of the 20th Century. Has anybody seen it/got a copy?
	London based secondary teacher wanted for Medicine Through Time projectI am looking for a London based teacher to work with me on some new resources for Medicine Through Time. These would be based upon the extensive collections of the BDA Dental Museum. This will be an opportunity to create unique resources using material not previously available to secondary teachers and covering an aspect of medical history poorly represented by current resources. The project will be supported by a grant and will involve 3 days in the museum. For more details about the grant scheme please see http://www.mla.gov.uk/what/programmes/commissioning/Learning_Links_2009-11 If you are interested in being considered for this exciting project please email Melanie Parker, Education Officer at m.parker@bda.org. Thank you.
	Advice for History PGCEApologies if this is the wrong type of post for this forum. I'm currently aplying for a PGCE in secondary school history and would really appreciate any feedback or ideas on what I can do whilst my application is being processed to make me stand out in the interview. Are there any journals,forums, debates that anyone can recomend that can help me stand out as a canditate or does anyone have any advice? Anything appreciated! Thanks Gareth S Brown
	New OCR A2 Coursework 1 Response | Last response: 25th January 2010, 4:21 pm by Stela Barquinha I just attended an INSET run by OCR for their new F965 A2 coursework unit. It was breathtaking. We were instructed that, where students have to comment on a series of historians' views, they should completely disregard the historians themselves, and all the historiographical context. They should instead use 'hard facts' to assess the validity of the views that baldly appear in the short passages selected. When I reported back to my A level set they shrieked in horror and laughter at the idea of 'hard facts' in history and at once protested loudly that this was no kind of preparation for university. Just as unscholarly was the session on the longer investigation where we were solemnly informed that it was unacceptable to use 'secondary' sources to assess 'primary' material. It was only acceptable vice versa. Now even my year 7s would by this stage of term quibble at the use of 'primary' and 'secondary', let alone the nonsense about what is allowable with them. Has anyone else had this kind of experience?
	Survey on how you teach the British Empire. £20 John Lewis voucher to be won.As part of a CPD project, I am looking at how history teachers approach the British Empire at KS3. I have created an online survey, which only has 10 questions. It can be found at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=07Rw5HyhXAr96x1_2bIzFf_2fQ_3d_3d I would very much value your participation. Many thanks
	Skills based curriculum3 Responses | Last response: 8th January 2010, 10:31 am by Dan Moorhouse Our school is thinking about introducing a skills based curriculum to year 7 through the opening minds programme. This would obviously impact on history quite significantly. Has anyone had any experience of this programme or approach? I know it is becoming popular and I would like any feedback from people that have experienced it, positive or negative! Thanks
	Crisis! All Advice Welcome!2 Responses | Last response: 8th December 2009, 12:29 pm by Richard J. Harris Please could any interested parties submit advice! At my secondary school our GCSE results have been dire for years. We have changed from AQA to OCE for SHP Medicine Through Time with Germany, after years of targeting certain groups, extra revision sessions, revision conferences.Please be constructive... we are desperate. We have been told that if this cohort doesn't do better, our school will stop delivering GCSE History. On average, we get about 30% A-C when we should be getting about 45% The grades achieved tend to be at least one below what theya re predicted.
	Community for History StudentsHello everyone. Just wanted to let you all know that the My History Network (http://myhistorynetwork.ning.com/) is ready to go for 2010! This project where high school history students from around the world can come together and discuss their studies has had some early success and we'd like to build on what we've already achieved. We've already got several classes involved and early feedback has been positive from the students. This can be a really exciting and engaging opportunity for students to make contact with other history students from around the world so if you're a history teacher I recommend you take a look and think about getting involved. It won't involve much effort on behalf of teachers and the benefits will be enormous to your students and yourself. When you apply to join just make sure you mention that you're a history teacher and provide some evidence of where you work. We have to be quite strict in making sure that only history teachers join and ensure student safety. If you have any concerns in that regard please let me know and we can find ways to make sure your concerns are addressed. I hope to see you and your students there! My students would love to meet them...
	Why was the Republican Party so successful in Presidential elections in the years 1968-88?I have to produce an A level lesson for interview on Weds 5 May. Any teaching tips from anybody who has taught Edexcel A level, Option B, Conflict. Or steer me towards useful resources Cath
	Why was the Republican Party so successful in Presidential elections in the years 1968-88?Does anybody have past papers for Edexcel A level History, Option B, Conflict..........I would be most grateful asap for use for interview lesson on 5 May! Cath Tranter
	Inspiration needed!1 Response | Last response: 19th June 2010, 9:34 pm by andy Dear colleagues, I am a young enthusiastic history teacher in Argentina. I teach Year 7 & 8 and our programme is a combination of British history and International affairs (which is what students usually study before getting into American & Argentine history). You can imagine that it is quite challenging for students to learn history in an other language, leave aside apprehending key skills. I have a Year 8 group (boys) which is particularly underachieving in general, but especially in subjects taught in English. My problem is that I am correcting their term exams and they were a mess, a REAL mess. I am feeling physical pain because I feel I failed. Thus, I am asking you, history teachers, to inspire me with engaging ideas you think might work. Thank you very much! Angie