A2 AQA Unit 3: The Making of Modern Britain, 1951–2007 (HIS3M)
Personalised Learning Checklist
Use this PLC to RAG rate (green, amber, red) your confidence levels on each area of
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The Post-War Consensus? 1951–1964
I can debate the idea that this was an era of political consensus by
referring to:
 The ‘Attlee legacy’ and the so-called post-war consensus;
 The reasons for Conservative political dominance from 1951
 The role of key personalities, including Eden, Butler and Macmillan
 Internal divisions in the Labour Party
 The reasons for Conservative defeat in 1964
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that this was an era when Britain ‘never had it
so good’ by referring to:
 The growth of the economy and rising living standards
 problems of the balance of payments and ‘stop-go’ policies
 economic motives behind the application for membership of the EEC
in 1961
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that this was an era of increased social tension
by referring to:
 Social tension: 1950s unrest; race riots, violence, criminality and
hooliganism
 selection and the divisive nature of secondary education
 changes in attitudes to class
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that Britain’s world power status was in question
after World War II by referring to:
 Britain’s declining imperial role
 the Suez crisis of 1956
 the ‘wind of change’ in Africa
 the reasons why Britain did not join the EEC between 1955 and 1963
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
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The End of Consensus, 1964–1975
I can debate the idea that this was an era of political impotence by
referring to:
 The role of key personalities: Wilson, Heath and their cabinets
 the reasons for Labour’s defeat in 1970
 the Conservative defeat in 1974
 the emergence of Thatcher as Conservative leader
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that this was an era of economic crisis by
referring to:
 The impact on the economy of government interventions, 1964–1973
 the oil-price crisis of 1973
 the end of the ‘long post-war boom’
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that this was an era dominated by antiestablishment social trends, by referring to:
 The impact on communities of industrial disputes
 the significance of the Miners’ strike, 1973
 the birth of environmentalism
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the accuracy of the idea that Britain was ‘the poor man
of Europe’ by referring to:
 Withdrawal from commitments and bases ‘east of Suez’, 1967–1971
 the problem of Rhodesia
 Britain’s entry into the EEC in 1973
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
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The ‘Thatcher Revolution’, 1975–1990
I can debate the idea that the Thatcher era was a turning point in
political history, by referring to:
 The Labour governments under Wilson and Callaghan and the reasons
for the Conservative election victory of 1979
 the role of key personalities: Thatcher and her ministers
 internal divisions in the Labour Party and the formation of the SDP
 the reasons for the fall of Thatcher in 1990
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that this was an era of economic ‘revolution’ by
referring to:
 Monetarist policies and their impact on the economy
 the extent to which the economy had been transformed by 1990
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that this was an era turmoil in society, by
referring to:
 The social impact of Thatcherism, including privatisations and the
sale of council houses
 the significance of the Miners’ strike, 1984–1985, on industrial
relations
 the emergence of extra-parliamentary opposition
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the accuracy of the idea that this was an era of renewal
for Britain abroad, by referring to:
 The Falklands War
 Britain’s relations with Europe
 the European Referendum of 1975 and its significance for the main
political parties
 Mrs Thatcher’s ‘special relationship’ with the United States
 Britain’s role in ending the Cold War
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
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Conservative Decline and the Rise of ‘New Labour’, 1990–2007
I can debate the idea that this was an era of political decline for the
Conservatives, by referring to:
 The leadership of Major and growing internal divisions in the
Conservative Party after 1992
 the revival of Labour under Kinnock, Smith and Blair
 the reasons for Labour’s victory in 1997 and the subsequent
victories, 2001 and 2005
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that Brown’s policies marked ‘the end of boom
and bust’, by referring to:
 Black Wednesday’ and its impact on the economy and public opinion
 the role of economic issues in weakening support for the
Conservatives
 Labour’s economic policies and their impact, 1997–2007
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate the idea that the 1990s marked the triumph of
multiculturalism in Britain, by referring to:
 Social issues and population change
 the extent to which Britain had become an integrated and
multicultural society by 2007
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
I can debate that Blair’s leadership marked a new chapter in British
foreign policy, by referring to:
 Britain’s position in the European Union under Major and Blair
 Britain’s role in NATO and interventions in the Balkans
 1995–1999
 Britain’s ‘special relationship’ with the United States and its impact
on Britain’s position in the world by 2007
 At least two different interpretations from historians or
contemporaries
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