“I believe that the more that you know about the past, the better you are prepared for the future”

Theodore Roosevelt.

Department Vision 

In humanities we design our curriculum to allow our students to flourish as compassionate world citizens. Our ambitious curriculum explores the challenges facing social justice both in the past and felt today by diverse populations.

We believe that our curriculum gives our students the skills to evaluate various interpretations and come to their own conclusions regarding events. We also focus on how, while we have the freedom to make choices, the consequence of these actions have varied impacts on the world we live in. Through the combination of history and geography we aim to garner a love for the wider world and their unique place within it.

Subject Information

History explains the past, illuminates the present and prepares us for the future. The history department endeavours to not only engage students in the narrative of history but also develop skills that prepare students to evaluate the world around them and draw their own conclusion.

A thematic approach has been developed for Key Stage 3 to support students to see the links between events and judge the similarities between their causes and consequences. This broad study of British history which predates 1066 and spans through to present day, allows students at Wolverley CE Secondary School to familiarise themselves with the key events which has helped shape their current society.

Traditional topics, such as the rise of Plantagenet England, Industrial Britain and of course the dynasty of Tudor monarchs explored as well as unique topics such as how accurate does film portray the past and how British dominance has had an impact on the global scale.

At Key stage 4, students will cover a range of topics from the Norman Age to Modern Medicine. The opportunity to visit Berlin is available to support our Cold War and Weimar and Nazi Germany studies as well as immense the students in European Culture.

New from September 2024 students at Wolverley have the opportunity to study Ancient History as a GCSE, students will delve into the ancient world of the Persian, Greeks, Romans and Egyptians.

Carpe diem!

KS5

“Those that forget history are doomed to repeat it”

George Santayana.

History at A Level is one of the most varied.  It is designed to tie in closely with the skills of GCSE, and this course helps to put you in charge of your own learning and investigate issues of interest to you. A Level history at Wolverley supports students making the transition from GCSE to A Level, the topics studied allow students to expand on knowledge from GCSE, exploring in greater depth and developing skills of analysis and evaluation. Topics studied are:

• The English Government and Church 1066-1216; A thematic study of the era from the Normans to the Plantagenets, covering monarchs such as William the Conqueror and Richard the Lionheart.  
• Early Tudors 1485-1558; covering Henry VII and Henry VIII’s reign in depth which is followed by a focus on the mid-Tudor crisis period of Edward VI and Mary I.
• Democracy and Dictatorships 1919-1963; an in-depth study of the problems of the Weimar republic leading to the rise of a Nazi dictatorship and an analysis of how the Second World War led to disputes between ‘East’ and ‘West’.
• Personal investigation of 3,000 to 4,000 words; the personal study is a chance to put into practice all the skills learned during the course, and to gain an in-depth understanding of a personal topic of interest. Students learn how to evaluate historical interpretations and sources.
   

Assessment

• All 4 units are externally assessed or moderated.  Students will take three written exams. An overall grade for the qualification is awarded to all learners who successfully complete all units. Grades awarded are A*-E grade.