About the Course

History is a broad subject that covers a variety of skills and knowledge areas. This course will suit you if you:

• have an interest in the world around you, the society you live in and how it has developed
• enjoy learning about people in a different time and place, how they interacted and what motivated them
• enjoy analysing evidence and debating what it shows

Personal Study Time

You will experience a mix of learning activities in class and will be given a variety of tasks and assignments to be completed in your own time. Over the course of an academic year you should reckon on spending about as much time studying history outside the classroom as you do in it. This will mainly be on assignments set by your teachers but you will also be encouraged to take personal responsibility for your learning through self-assigned tasks such as extended research and note making.

Key Units

The History A Level course focuses on British and European history in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Throughout the course we aim to stimulate your interest in the past and your appreciation of the importance of history in the contemporary world. We also aim to develop your understanding of the controversial nature of history and your skills of historical enquiry.

Year 1

You will study the transformation of Europe in the 20th century through the creation of two new states – Italy and Germany.

German history from 1918 to 1989. This includes:

• The impact of the First World War on German society and politics
• The Weimar Republic
• The rise of Hitler and the Nazis
• The impact of the Second World War, followed by the social and political development of the German Federal Republic between 1945 to 1990

Italian history from 1911 to 1946. This includes:

• The struggles faced by the liberal state, c1911–18
• The rise of Mussolini and the creation of a fascist dictatorship, 1919–26
• The governance of the fascist state, 1925–40
• The challenges to, and the fall of the fascist state, c1935–46

Year 2

Your second year shall be an in depth study of the British experience of warfare from  1790 to 1918.
In this unit you will study the following:

• French Wars (1793-1815)
• Crimean War (1854-56)
• Second Boer War (1899-1902)
• First World War (1914-18)

Your second year will also include the undertaking of coursework which focuses on the development of representation and democracy in Britain over the period 1830-1930 with a particular emphasis on the causes of change over the 100-year period.

Entry Requirements

To study 3 A Levels

5+ GCSEs grades 9-4 in different subjects, including English Language and Maths at a minimum of grade 4.

Additional Requirements

GCSE grade 9-4 in History (if taken)

The Sheffield Sixth Form welcomes students who have studied vocational qualifications. However, the minimum entry requirements for the A Level programme, as shown above, must be GCSEs.
 

Where does this lead

A Level History is a highly regarded qualification. We have close ties with the history departments at both universities in Sheffield but past students have also gone on to study history either as a single subject or in combination with others at a wide range of universities throughout the country.

Future opportunities

The historians skills are also highly valued in a variety of careers including:

• Law
• Journalism
• Theatre production
• Teaching
• Business
• Public service