Summary

This course is designed to enable you to explore and extend your interest and enthusiasm for history and to acquire an understanding of its intrinsic value and significance. It will help you to improve as an independent learner via the application of a critical analysis of historical sources. A study of history at A-level will not only teach you about significant periods in time such as the English Reformation and the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany, but will also develop your skills of enquiry and analysis.

The course is split into two components, which will both be studied over the course of the two years.

Year 1:

Component 1 – Breadth Study: The Tudors, England 1485–1603

Unit 1 – Henry VII, 1485–1509

• Henry Tudor’s consolidation of power
• Government
• Relations with foreign powers
• Society
• Economic development
• Religion

Unit 2 – Henry VIII, 1509–1547

• Henry VIII – character and aims
• Government
• Relations with foreign powers
• Society
• Economic development
• Religion

Component 2 – Depth Study: Democracy and Nazism, Germany, 1918–1945

Unit 1 – The establishment and early years of Weimar, 1918–1924

• The context for the establishment of the Weimar Constitution
• The peace settlement
• Economic and social issues
• Political instability and extremism

Unit 2 – The ‘Golden Age’ of the Weimar Republic, 1924–1928

• Economic developments
• Social developments
• Political developments and the workings of democracy
• Germany’s international position

Unit 3 – The collapse of democracy, 1928–1933

• The economic, social and political impact of the Depression
• The appeal of Nazism and Communism
• Hindenburg, Papen, Schleicher and the 'backstairs intrigue'
• Political developments

Year 2:

Component 1 – Breadth Study: The Tudors, England 1485–1603

Unit 3 – Instability and consolidation: 'The mid-Tudor crisis', 1547–1563

• Edward VI, Somerset and Northumberland
• The social impact of religious and economic changes under Edward VI
• Mary I and her ministers
• The social impact of religious and economic change under Mary I
• Elizabeth I – character and aims
• The impact of economic, social and religious developments in the early years of Elizabeth’s rule

Unit 4 – The triumph of Elizabeth, 1563–1603

• Elizabethan government
• Foreign affairs
• Society
• Economic development
• Religious developments, change and continuity
• The last years of Elizabeth

Component 2 – Depth Study: Democracy and Nazism, Germany, 1918–1945

Unit 4 – The Nazi dictatorship, 1933–1939

• Hitler’s consolidation of power
• The ‘Terror State’
• Economic policies and the degree of economic recovery
• Social policies

Unit 5 – The racial state, 1933–1941

• The radicalisation of the state
• Anti-Semitism – early policies
• Anti-Semitism – the further development of anti-Semitic policies and actions
• Anti-Semitism – early stages of the war

Unit 6 – The impact of war, 1939–1945

• Rationing, indoctrination, propaganda and morale
• The wartime economy and the work of Speer
• Policies towards the Jews and the ‘untermenschen’ during wartime
• Opposition and resistance in wartime
• An overview of the Nazi state by 1945

Component 3 – Black Civil Rights, Non-Exam Assessment

In addition to the examined components of the course, learners need to complete a non-examined assessment (NEA). The NEA is introduced to the students after the AS exams in the first year and consists of a 4500-word piece of work using sources and making interpretations on the topic of black civil rights in the USA, 1963–1968.

The background content is required to be researched independently and in depth over the summer break, and students are free to choose their own topic for investigation, as long as it fulfils certain criteria set by the exam board. The NEA is collected in and marked during February of the second year of study.

How will I know how I am doing?

AS (Year 1) exams:

• Held at the end of Year 1
• Consists of two separate 1.5-hour papers; students answer two essay questions per paper on topics studied this year; 50 minutes on Section A and 40 minutes on Section B
• Continuation to the second year is dependent on achieving a good result in these exams.

A-level (Year 2) exams:

• Held at the end of Year 2
• Consists of two separate 2.5-hour papers; students answer three essay questions per paper; 60 minutes on Section A and 45 minutes on each of the two questions in Section B
• The A-level exam is on content taught in the first and second year of the course

Exam structure for both AS and A-level exams:

Component 1:

• Section A – historical interpretations
• Section B – essays

Component 2:

• Section A – historical sources
• Section B – essays

What do I need to join?

To study this course, you will need five GCSEs at grade 4–9, including English and Maths. You must also have a grade 5 or above in History.

How will I learn?

This A Level course is based at our Filton campus, located in South Gloucestershire which is easily accessible from the city of Bristol by train (Bristol Parkway / Bristol Abbey Wood) and bus.

Work Experience

You will be required to do a minimum of 36 hours of work experience. This is usually completed in a week during your first year in term time, where you will have the opportunity to explore a career field which takes your interest. In the lead-up to this week, you will be asked to create an exciting CV during a group tutorial period. The aim of this activity is to give you an idea of what full-time employment is like and to help you think about which career you would like to follow.

What can I do next?

A-Level History is commonly studied further at university due to its large quantity of sub-study. Students go on to study a particular era/time in history. As a result, students become experts in topics like WW1/2, Ancient Egypt, the Roman Empire, etc. Students have the opportunity to succeed in an illustrious career and become a museum curator, anthropologist, archaeologist or archivist. The nature of A-level History is such that employers value the sheer amount of knowledge one has to gain to achieve in this subject. This skill is transferable in that the student shows the ability to learn a vast quantity of knowledge and reproduce that knowledge excellently.