History Department

History at Latifa School is based on the British National Curriculum.  It is a mixture of skills and content.  We have taken the essence of the curriculum and used it to create a course which we believe gives our students a good balance of local, European and world history.  We aim to develop qualities of scepticism, empathy, tolerance and historical imagination.  Students are encouraged  to formulate, explain and support their own beliefs and conclusions but also to accept that there is no 'right' answer as all historical conclusions are liable to reassessment in the light of new or reinterpreted evidence.

All pupils study History in mixed ability groups from year 7 to year 11.  We try to use the local environment whenever possible and arrange visits to historical sites.  We are fortunate to have the use of the Local Studies Room which allows our students to handle primary evidence.  The English language is an important part of our studies and we work hard to help pupils improve their linguistic skills.  We want students to be able to confidently and accurately use language (oral and written) to convey their ideas clearly and concisely.  Pupils work on their own and collaboratively in groups using a variety of resources, including video and ICT.  

In Year 7 we study the following

• An introductory module "What is History?"  This module introduces the key elements of detective work: evidence, motivation and chronology and ensures that all our students have a common foundation.  It uses a study of local history as its core content.
• We also discuss how historians gather their evidence; we look at archaeological evidence in particular for the Gulf region in Ancient Times.
• We investigate the civilizations of Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley - both of which had contact with this area in the past - by looking at the evidence historians and archaeologists have gathered.  We also look at an ancient European civilization: the Romans

In Year 8 we focus on the social and cultural aspects of history.  We investigate the causes and consequences of historical events.  We adopt a problem solving approach and again we start from a local context.

• We investigate the flowering of the Arab culture in Baghdad under the Abbassids by using original sources, both written and pictorial.
• We make a point of examining the contacts between the Islamic culture and the rest of the world during this period by focusing on Islamic Spain and the beginnings of the Ottoman Empire.
• We study the Renaissance in Europe in the 15th century.
• We also look at the Mughal Empire in India in the 16th and 17th centuries and the arrival of the Europeans.

In Year 9 the focus of our studies widens further to include more economic and political history and, using Dubai and the U.A.E. as a starting point, we look in greater depth at other areas that have undergone momentous changes.

• Britain in the 19th century - the period known as the Industrial Revolution.  We look at how and why things changed so dramatically in these years.
• The 20th century world - we investigate both the causes and consequences of the two World Wars and the Cold War that followed.  This involves us in a study of bias in sources and we learn to be aware of the need to test the reliability of our evidence.  History is really the study of different interpretations of the past.

In Years 10 and 11 pupils may opt to continue their study of History and most of these girls will embark on the AQA School's History Project GCSE.  This involves them studying a topic in breadth: "Medicine & Public Health Through Time", a local historical site:  "Hili - a prehistoric site and its context", a topic in depth: "The American West 1840-95" and a Modern World Study: "Northern Ireland".  We are well resourced, our students are usually motivated and our results have been consistently excellent.

In Years 12 and 13 we teach the EdExcel AS/A History syllabus.  Currently the topics studied for the AS qualification are "Votes for Women 1880-1918", "Civil Rights in the USA 1945-68" and "Life in the Soviet Union 1928-41". For the A level we offer "From Peace to Appeasement: British Foreign Policy between the Wars", "The State and the Poor in Britain 1830-1939" and "From Cold War to Detente 1945-90".

We look closely at the nature of historical evidence and the methods used by historians to analyse and evaluate it.  We also focus on developing an understanding of how the past has been interpreted and represented.  The emphasis is on investigation and discovery so students who choose to study history must be interested in the subject.  They will practise analysis and learn how to put forward a well argued case supported by a careful use of evidence.

History A level is a useful qualification for a wide range of higher education and career choices as it shows that students can think logically and analytically as well as demonstrate an ability to handle confidently large quantities of information.  We also help students to gather evidence for their Key Skills qualifications, particularly communication.