Global Awareness

Head of Faculty

Mr L Beckensall (lbeckensall@wrhs1118.co.uk)

Faculty Subjects

Geography, History, Religious Education

Religious Education

Key Stage 3 (Years 7 and 8)

RE is currently taught through Project Day in Year 7

Key Stage 3 comprises of a variety of topics that are approached from a number of different viewpoints. The aim of Key Stage RE is to cover each of the main World Religions and Humanism to equip the students with the necessary skills in order to succeed at GCSE.

Year 7:

YR 7 Project Day RE

Year 7 are taught RE through Project Day- a day designed to help students transition from primary school and give them whole- day experiences of different RE based projects. We aim to instil a love of learning about the religious/cultural life of others in our community, in our city and beyond. Our lessons aim to build confidence in students in expressing their own views on a variety of moral / ethical issues. We focus on students being able to interact with others who have different views in a respectful way and without judgement.

• My Self
• My City
• My World
• My Future
• My Journey

Year 8:

In Year 8 we ultimately want the learning of all of our students needs to be fun, be creative, instill curiosity and have value and relevance. There should be an emphasis on our British Values and the way in which we interact with others, regardless of their faith, respectfully and without judgement. The younger we can embed these attitudes the better. For many of our students the KS3 RE curriculum (and associated statutory 2020 PSHE curriculum) really is “A Window to the World”.

• Term 1: A Window to the World Part 1 (Why do we need our subject more than ever)
• Term 2: A Window to the World Part 2 (Why do we need our subject more than ever)
• Term 3: A Window to the World Part 3 (A Mighty Girl: World Issues)

Key Stage 4 (Years 9, 10 and 11)

Year 9-11 complete a Three Year GCSE designed to prepare students on a range of real life religious and ethical issues in our modern and diverse world. They study AQA Religious Studies A which is comprised of two separate areas.

Students have just one lesson in Yrs 9-11 and almost all the students are entered for a Full Course GCSE.

In Years 9 to 11, as part of the GCSE course it is our intent to reflect on how meaningful and relevant GCSE RE is in understanding the modern world. The course seeks to draw a detailed picture of religion and atheism in our society and in our wider world, and aims to be vibrant and interesting and instil a sense of healthy debate in issues affecting our world. As students develop they should have the opportunity to hone a range of employability and academic skills such as analysis, critical thinking and problem solving as well as developing a whole host of emotional intelligence skills.

• Paper 1a: The Study of Religion: Christianity (Not Catholic Christianity) and Islam
• Paper 2a Thematic Studies which has 4 components:
  1. Theme A: Relationships and Families
  2. Theme D: Peace and Conflict
  3. Theme E: Crime and Punishment
  4. Theme F: Human Rights and Social Justice

One lesson in Year 10 and one lesson in Year 11.

Almost all the students are entered for a Full Course GCSE.

History

Key Stage 3

Year 7:

In Year 7 we aim to engage students with the discipline, embedding key concepts of chronology, evidence, and interpretations, as well as cause and consequence and change. There should be an opportunity to study local history, which allows student to develop identify in their community, and to take ownership of the knowledge of their city. Studying predominantly how political power was wielded in the medieval England, this should give students the contextual knowledge of what was going on (especially concerning political and religious change) in the United Kingdom up to 1603.

• What is History?
• Migration to Manchester
• Medieval Civilisations
• The Battle of Hastings
• Norman Control
• Henry VIII
• Edward VI and Mary I
• Curating a Museum
• The Age of Exploration

Year 8:
In Year 8 there should be further opportunities to engage with key turning points in British history, understanding the consequences and impact these events still have on today. In this year we will introduce the idea of looking for similarities and differences when comparing events and the individuals that shaped them. Students should increasingly be able to place themselves in the world they live in today, particularly when studying social and economic change. There should also be some opportunity to study the importance of diversity (such as learning about the British Empire), and to gain knowledge of protest movements of the 19th and 20th Century.

• Elizabeth I and Society
• James I and the Gunpowder Plot
• Witchcraft
• The English Civil War
• Britain and the Slave Trade
• Rise of the Machines – An Industrial Britain

Year 9:
In Year 9 we focus on the last 60 years of the 20th Century, looking at how the two world wars shaped our world. We will look at how dictatorships have grown, and the impact that these have had on international relations. Students should understand the role that Britain has played on the world stage both in times of peace, but also during war times. Year 9 should allow students to learn about the atrocities of war including a detailed study of the Holocaust. Key stage 3 should then end with some key events that have changed the world since 1945, giving students real cultural capital about key concepts including Communism, Capitalism and nuclear armament.

• Rise of the Machines – Industrial Britain
• Protest in the Twentieth Century
• The Horrors of the First World
• Hitler and the Second World War
• The Holocaust
• The world after 1945

Key Stage 4 (Year 9 from May, Year 10 and 11) AQA History

The GCSE course should give students just over two years in which to cover the required content on the topics of Conflict and Tension 1918 – 39, America 1840 – 95, Health and the people and Elizabethan England. It should also give students the required examination skills to achieve their full potential.

• Conflict and Tension 1918 – 1939
• America 1840 – 1895
• Health and the People
• Elizabethan England

Geography

The Key Stage 3 Geography curriculum is designed to develop students’ knowledge and understanding of the earth’s human and physical process. Overall we aim to enable all students to understand the challenge of being sustainable global citizens and developing the skills to critically analyse the world around them.

Year 7

In Year 7 we try to ensure that we are providing our students with the skills to take on challenges and analyse the human impact on our world. This allow all to apply their knowledge in different contexts.

• Geography Skills
• China
• Weather and Climate
• Biomes
• Tourism
• Wasteful World

Year 8

In Year 8: we want all students to understand the varied interactions between the human and physical environments, gaining an insight in the causes and impacts of these events, as well as how people have reacted to these.

• Antarctica
• Population
• Rivers
• Volcanoes and Earthquakes
• World Resources
• Development and Conflict
• Africa

Year 9

In Year 9 we focus on the understanding of extreme conditions and the connections between the wider world.

• Global Fashion
• Extreme Weather
• Urban Jungle
• Extreme Global Impacts
• Living World

Year 10 and Year 11

AQA Geography

At GCSE we aim to ensure that all students understand how geographical processes impact on different scales, cultures and environments, equipping students with the skills required to do this.

• Unit 1 – Living with the Physical Environment
  • Tectonic and Weather Hazards
  • Living World
  • UK environments – Rivers and Glaciers
• Unit 2 – Challenges in the Human Environment
  • Changing Economic World
  • Urban issues and Challenges
  • Resource Management
• Unit 3 – Geographical Applications
  • Geographical Skills
  • Fieldwork Skills
  • Issue evaluation