Humanities

Head of Faculty

Miss K. White (kwhite@levenshulmehigh.co.uk)

Subjects

• Ethics, Philosophy and Religion (EPR)
• Geography
• History
• Sociology

Curriculum Overview

• Year 7 – 2 periods of Geography, 2 periods of History and EPR as part of the ‘Dream Day’ curriculum
• Year 8 – 2 periods of Geography, 2 periods of History and 1 period of EPR
• Year 9 – Students choose History OR Geography to begin to develop skills and knowledge for GCSE (3 periods) and 1 period of EPR

Options offered at the end of Year 9:

• GCSE Religious Studies (AQA)
• GCSE Geography (AQA)
• GCSE History (AQA)

Ethics, Philosophy and Religion (EPR)

EPR aims to give students an insight into moral and ethical questions. They are encouraged to look at things from different perspectives, including religious ones, so that they are able to form and express their own opinions.

GCSE Religious Studies AQA Specification A

Students continue studying the topics that will be examined at GCSE. These include religious beliefs and teachings in both Christianity and Islam, as well as thematic studies on Families, Peace and Conflict, Crime and Punishment and Human Rights. Assessment is by 2 examinations at the end of year 11, comprising of 105 minutes each, covering 100 marks per paper.

Unit 1: The study of religions

• Christianity: Beliefs and teachings
• Christianity: Practices
• Islam: Beliefs and teachings
• Islam: Practices

Unit 2: Religious, philosophical and ethical studies

• Relationships and families
• Religion, crime and punishment
• Religion, human rights and social justice

GCSE Sociology AQA New Specification

We are excited to introduce the new Sociology specification for AQA, for first examination in summer 2019. Learners cover a broad range of social structures and concepts, including families, education, crime and inequality. Sociology equips learners with critical thinking skills as well as the ability to analyse and evaluate arguments, theories, concepts and statistics.

Units studied in Year 10 – Paper 1: The sociology of families and education

• The sociology of families
• The sociology of education
• Sociological Research

Units studied in Year 11 – Paper 2: The sociology of crime and deviance and social stratification

• The sociology of crime and deviance
• The sociology of social stratification
• Sociological Theory
• Students will be expected to draw on knowledge and understanding of the entire course of study to show a deeper understanding of these topics

Geography

At Key Stage 3, Geography aims to give students a greater insight into the world around them. They will study a mixture of human and physical topics across the three years and develop essential geographical skills.

All topics will use relevant and up to date case studies to engage students and help them make connections to local, national and global events. All topics provide a base level of knowledge to allow students to progress onto GCSE Geography at Key Stage 4.

Year 7

• Introduction: What is Geography?
• Geography and Map skills
• Volcanoes and Earthquakes
• Energy
• Tsunamis
• Weather and climate

Year 8

Students begin to investigate geographical topics in more depth in year 8 through a mixture of human and physical topics with a continued focus on geographical skills. Topics include:

• Africa
• Ecosystems
• Rivers and Flooding
• Global Fashion
• Antarctica

Year 9

Students in Year 9 continue to develop their knowledge of the world around them and their geographical skills. Topics studied include:

• Tourism
• Extreme Weather
• Oceans and Plastic Pollution
• People Everywhere
• Glaciation

Year 10 and Year 11: GCSE Geography AQA Specification

Students will study 3 separate units that together make up the full GSCE course. These will offer students the opportunity to gain knowledge and understanding of a wide range of geographical themes and concepts. Throughout the course there is a specific emphasis on the application of knowledge to both familiar and unfamiliar contexts. Geographical skills will be assessed across all 3 units and build upon student’s literacy and numeracy skills.

Unit 1 Living with the Physical Environment

• Living World: Ecosystems, Tropical rainforests, Desert environment
• Natural Hazards: Hazards, Tectonic hazards, Weather hazards, Climate change
• Physical Landscapes: UK physical landscapes, River landscapes, Glacial landscapes, Coastal landscapes

Unit 2 Challenges in the Human Environment

• Urban issues + challenges: Urbanisation, Urban growth in LICs/NEEs, Urban Change in the UK, Sustainable urban living
• Changing economic world: Global variations, Development Gap, Economic development in LICs/NEEs, Economic growth in UK
• Challenge of resource management: Resource management, Resources in the UK, Water around the world

Unit 3 Geographical Applications

• Issue Evaluation (this will be a different theme each year and a pre-release booklet of resources will be available to students approximately 12 weeks before the final exam)
• Fieldwork based on 2 geographical enquiries. This will include a trip to a river in the Peak District in the summer of Year 10 and a visit to Salford Quays in the autumn of Year 11
• Geographical Skills: students will be expected to demonstrate a range of geographical skills, including cartographic, graphical, numerical and statistical skills

History

History covers British History from the Middle Ages to the present as well as looking at both non-European and world history. We also aim to develop key skills of analysis and evaluation of evidence.

Year 7

Topics include:

• Tollund Man
• Britain 1066-1500 – The Middle Ages
• Islamic Civilisations (550-1200)
• Tudor England

Year 8

Topics include:

• The Stuarts and the Civil War
• Britain 1750-1900 – the Industrial Age
• The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
• The First World War

Year 9

Topics include:

• The end of the First World War
• The fight for Women’s suffrage
• The Interwar Period
• The rise of fascism and communism
• The Second World War
• The Cold War and the Space Race

GCSE History New Specification for First Examination in 2018

Exam Board: AQA
No. of Exams: 2

Units studied in Year 10

• Unit 1: Health and the People. This is a study in development which looks at the changes made in medicine from the Middle Ages to the Present
• Unit 3: The Normans 1066-1100
• Unit 3: America 1840-95 (Expansion and Consolidation)

Units studied in Year 11

• Unit 3: America 1840-95 (Expansion and Consolidation) (Not to be studied by current Year 11s due to changes to exam for Covid)
• Unit 4: Conflict and tension between East and West, 1945-72
• We then focus on revision and examination preparation

GCSE Ancient History New Specification for First Examination in 2019

Exam Board: OCR

No. of Exams: 2

Units studied in Year 10

• Unit 1: Foundations of Rome
• Unit 2: Cleopatra and Rome
• Unit 3: Persia

Units studied in Year 11

• Unit 3: Persia
• Unit 4: Alexander the Great (Not to be studied by current Year 11s due to changes to the exam for Covid)