History GCSE subject content
April 2014
• from three eras: Medieval (500-1500), Early Modern (1450-1750) and
Modern (1700-present day)
• on three time scales: short (depth study), medium (period study – at
least 50 years) and long (thematic study)
• on three geographical contexts: a locality (the historic environment –
1 particular site in context); British; and European and / or wider
world settings
British history must form a minimum of 40% of the assessed content
over the full course.
History GCSE subject content
cont…
Students should study:
• At least one British depth study.
• At least one European or wider world depth study.
• A period study from at least one of the defined historical eras.
• A particular site in its historical context.
• One thematic study across all the three eras.
The depth studies must not be from the same era of history.
The period study does not have to be British and can be of the same era as
one of the depth studies.
The thematic study must differ significantly in focus from the depth and
period studies.
And we also know…
• A new grading structure of 9-1 will replace A*-G.
• There will be no controlled assessment.
• All exams will be sat at the end of the course.
• There will be a minimum of 3.5 hours of exams.
• The British history component must be 40% (up from 25%).
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
Pearson and AQA – 1 course of the most popular parts of Modern World
and SHP
OCR – 2 course choice: SHP and Explaining the Modern World
Pearson and OCR – GCSEs consist of 3 papers
AQA – GCSE is 2 papers of 1 hour 45 mins each
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
AQA – Understanding the modern world and shaping the nation
Paper 1 – 1 hour and 45 mins – 50% of GCSE
• Choose 1 from 4 period studies (6 questions)
• Choose 1 from 5 wider world depth studies (4 questions)
Paper 2 – 1 hour and 45 mins – 50%of GCSE
• Choose 1 from 3 thematic studies (5 questions)
• Choose 1 from 4 British depth studies which incorporate the study of the
historic environment (5 questions)
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
AQA Paper 1
Period studies
AQA Paper 1
Wider world depth studies
• USA 1840-1895: expansion and
consolidation
• Germany 1890-1945: democracy
and dictatorship
• Russia 1894-1945: Tsardom and
communism
• America 1920-1973: opportunity
and inequality
• Conflict and tension: 1894-1918
• Conflict and tension: 1918-1939
• Conflict and tension between
east and west: 1945-72
• Conflict and tension in Asia:
1950-75
• Conflict and tension: 1990-2009
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
AQA Paper 2
Thematic studies
AQA Paper 2
British depth studies + historic environment
• Britain: health and the people
• Britain: power and the people
• Britain and the world: migration,
empires and the people
• Norman England
• Medieval England – the reign of
Edward I
• Elizabethan England
• Restoration England
Sites will be nominated each year.
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
OCR GCSE History A: Explaining the Modern World
Paper 1
• International Relations 1918-2011
• One non-British depth study
Paper 2
• Thematic study (Migration Through Time OR Power: monarchy and
democracy 1066-2007 OR War and British Society c.790 to c.2010)
Paper 3
• One British depth study
• A study of the historic environment
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
OCR A: Non-British Depth Study
OCR A: British Depth Study
• China 1950-1981
• Germany 1925-1955
• Poland 1956-1990
• Russia 1928-1964
• South Africa 1960-1994
• The USA 1919-1945
• The USA 1945-1974
• Empire and Migration c.16881730
• The Making of England
• Personal Rule to Restoration
1629-1660
The British depth study has to
match the thematic study chosen.
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
GCSE OCR History B: The Schools History Project (the only official SHP
spec.)
Paper 1
• Thematic study (The People’s Health OR Crime and Punishment OR
Migrants to Britain)
• British depth study
Paper 2
• A study of the historic environment
Paper 3
• Period study (Viking Age OR Mughal Empire OR Making of America)
• Non-British depth study
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
OCR B: British depth study options
OCR B: Non-British depth study options
(must be from a different era)
• The Norman Conquest 10651087
• The Elizabethans 1580-1603
• Britain in Peace and War 19001918
• The First Crusade c.1070-1100
• The Aztec Empire and the
Spanish Conquest 1500-1521
• Living under Nazi Rule 19331945
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
Pearson British thematic study is linked with historic environment:
• Medicine in Britain, c1000–present with The British sector of the
Western Front, 1914–18: surgery and treatment
• Crime and punishment in Britain, c1000–present with Whitechapel,
c1870–c1900: crime and policing
• Warfare and British Society, c1250–present with London and the
Second World War, 1939–45
Choose 1 of these = 30%
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
Pearson: British Depth Study (20%)
Pearson: Period Study (20%)
• Anglo-Saxon and Norman
England, c1060–88
• The reigns of King Richard I and
King John, 1189–1216
• Henry VIII and his ministers,
1509–40
• Early Elizabethan England,
1558–88
• Spain and the ‘New World’,
c1490–c1555
• British America, 1713–83:
empire and revolution
• The American West, c1835–
c1895
• Superpower Relations and the
Cold War, 1941–91
• Conflict in the Middle East,
c1945–95
Choose 1 of each – no prohibited
combinations.
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
Paper 3 Pearson: Modern Depth Study – 30%
Choose one option from the following list. There are no prohibited
combinations.
• Russia and the Soviet Union, 1924–41
• Weimar and Nazi Germany, 1918–39
• Mao’s China, 1945–76
• The USA, 1954–75: conflict at home and abroad
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
Comparison of thematic studies
AQA
OCR A (EMW)
OCR B (SHP)
• Britain: health
• War and British • The People’s
and the people
Society c.790 to
Health
c.2010
• Britain: power
• Crime and
and the people • Power: monarchy
Punishment
and
democracy
• Britain and the
• Migrants to
world: migration, 1066-2007
Britain
empires and the • Migration
people
Part of paper 1
Through Time
Half of paper 2 – 25% of
whole GCSE
All of paper 2
Pearson
• Medicine in
Britain, c1000–
present
• Crime and
punishment in
Britain, c1000–
present
• Warfare and
British Society,
c1250–present
Paper 1 – linked to a specific
historic environment so 30% of
whole GCSE
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
Comparison of period studies
AQA
OCR A (EMW)
• USA 1840-1895:
• International
expansion and
Relations 1918consolidation
2011
• Germany 18901945: democracy Part of paper 1
and dictatorship
• Russia 1894-1945:
Tsardom and
communism
• America 19201973: opportunity
and inequality
60% of paper 1
OCR B (SHP)
• Viking Age
• Mughal Empire
• Making of
America
Part of paper 3
•
•
•
•
•
Pearson
Spain and the ‘New
World’, c1490–
c1555
British America,
1713–83: empire
and revolution
The American West,
c1835–c1895
Superpower
Relations and the
Cold War, 1941–91
Conflict in the
Middle East, c1945–
95
Paper 2 – half of paper - 20% of
GCSE
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
Comparison of British depth studies
AQA
• Norman England
• Medieval England
– the reign of
Edward I
• Elizabethan
England
• Restoration
England
OCR A (EMW)
OCR B (SHP)
Pearson
• Anglo-Saxon and
• Empire and
• The Norman
Norman England,
Migration
Conquest 1065c1060–88
c.1688-1730
1087
• The reigns of King
• The Making of
• The Elizabethans Richard I and King
England
John, 1189–1216
1580-1603
• Personal Rule to
• Henry VIII and his
•
Britain
in
Peace
Restoration
ministers, 1509–
and War 19001629-1660
40
1918
Must match thematic
50% of paper 2 and
study - part of paper 3
includes the historic
environment – sites not yet
named.
Part of paper 1
• Early Elizabethan
England, 1558–88
Paper 2 – half of paper 20% of GCSE
* Subject to accreditation by Ofqual
Comparison of wider-world depth studies
•
•
•
•
•
AQA
Conflict and tension:
1894-1918
Conflict and tension:
1918-1939
Conflict and tension
between east and
west: 1945-72
Conflict and tension
in Asia: 1950-75
Conflict and tension:
1990-2009
40% of paper 1
OCR A (EMW)
OCR B (SHP)
• The First Crusade
• China 1950-1981
c.1070-1100
• Germany 1925-1955
• The Aztec Empire
• Poland 1956-1990
and the Spanish
• Russia 1928-1964
Conquest 15001521
• South Africa 19601994
• Living under Nazi
• The USA 1919-1945 Rule 1933-1945
of paper 3 – choice
• The USA 1945-1974 Part
must be from different era
Part of paper 1
than British depth study
Pearson
• Russia and the
Soviet Union,
1924–41
• Weimar and Nazi
Germany, 1918–39
• Mao’s China,
1945–76
• The USA, 1954–75:
conflict at home
and abroad
Paper 3 – 30% of GCSE
Things to consider
• The history that your students will study from Year 7 (earlier?) until
Year 13 – is the programme of study coherent, relevant, engaging…?
• May be a choice between GCSE being 2 or 3 exam papers.
• Where do you want to do the historic environment (a separate paper
(OCR SHP), tied to thematic study (Pearson), tied to British depth
study (AQA), part of a paper and not otherwise tied (OCR EMW)?