Course Level: GCSE
Exam Board: Edexcel
Specification link: Click to View
Entry requirements: No specific requirements
Course Description
History at LDE is a three year course that covers the GCSE and fundamental historical issues explored at KS3. This includes the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, and World War Two the Holocaust. History is primarily about the skills as well as the content taught. These skills include:
Cognitive skills
- Non-routine problem solving – expert thinking, metacognition, creativity.
- Systems thinking – decision making and reasoning.
- Critical thinking – definitions of critical thinking are broad and usually involve general cognitive skills such as analysing, synthesising and reasoning skills.
- ICT literacy – access, manage, integrate, evaluate, construct and communicate. [3]
Interpersonal skills
- Communication – active listening, oral communication, written communication, assertive communication and non-verbal communication.
- Relationship-building skills – teamwork, trust, intercultural sensitivity, service orientation, self-presentation, social influence, conflict resolution and negotiation.
- Collaborative problem solving – establishing and maintaining shared understanding, taking appropriate action, establishing and maintaining team organisation.
Intrapersonal skills
- Adaptability – ability and willingness to cope with the uncertain, handling work stress, adapting to different personalities, communication styles and cultures, and physical adaptability to various indoor and outdoor work environments.
- Self-management and self-development – ability to work remotely in virtual teams, work autonomously, be self-motivating and self-monitoring, willing and able to acquire new information and skills related to work.
The periods of study are:
Paper 1: Thematic study and historic environment- Crime and Punishment with Whitechapel
Paper 2a and b: Period study and British depth study- Superpower relations 1941-91 and Early Elizabethan England 1558-88 with the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade
Paper 3: Modern Depth Study- Weimar and Nazi Germany 1939-45 with WWII and the Holocaust
Career Pathways
History GCSE supports organising and enterprising subjects. It promotes problem solving and critical thinking. This links to almost every single GCSE subject taught. History GCSE is a strong academic subject that leads to the uptake of A levels.
Job Opportunities
Transferable skills enable young people to face the demands of further and higher education, as well as the demands of the workplace, and are important in the teaching and learning of this qualification.
Employers value the research, analytical, teamwork and communication skills that history students develop throughout their course of study.