ECOLINT-HISTORY

Curriculum Guide

CURRICULUM GUIDE
La Grande Boissière
Secondary School
2007-2008
HISTORY

1. Introduction:

a. General Course Description
Human beings seek to understand their historical roots and to locate themselves in time. Such understanding involves knowing what things were like in the
past and how things change and develop, allowing us to achieve a historical perspective and ask – and perhaps answer - important questions about our current condition.
The History Programme taught in Years 9 to 13 aims to provide an understanding of how and why where are different accounts of the past and the criteria upon which they may be judges. The overall programme is progressively chronological but it may also adopt a more thematic approach. It is based on an international view of World History and tries to avoid overemphasis on any one national/cultural centre. It is hoped that students will enjoy History and will realise the relevance of studying and valuing the past for its own sake.
In Years 9 and 10, classes follow History for half a year, with four periods a week, either in the first half of the second half (with Geography and Global Awareness in the other half.).

b. Aims
Students enrolled in History are expected to master the core objectives for the course. It is expected that all students will be challenged to achieve their intellectual potential.
Major emphasis will be given to reading and writing skills, within the content area.
Materials will be used to develop critical reading skills.
In addition, students will increasingly be expected to compose essays within each topic. This type of writing allows the teacher to observe the thought processes of the student.
Vocabulary development is an integral part of every topic.

2. Objectives:

a. General
To acquire and understand historical knowledge in breadth and in depth and across different cultures.
To develop and appreciation and an understanding of History as a discipline.
To foster international awareness and understanding by presenting the achievements of different cultures in the past and thereby promoting empathy with and understanding of other societies.
To foster a better understanding of the present through an understanding of the past.
To develop an ability to use and communicate historical knowledge and understanding.
To enable students to present clear, concise, relevant and well substantiated arguments.
To enable students to evaluate, interpret and use source material critically, as historical evidence.
To enable students to identify and evaluate different approaches to, and different interpretations of historical events and topics.

b. For the International Baccalaureate
Candidates will be expected to:-
Comprehend, analyse, evaluate and integrate source material critically as historical evidence.
Demonstrate historical understanding of 20th century World History through the acquisition, selection, effective use and synthesis of knowledge.
Explain different approaches to, and interpretations, of, historical events and topics.
Place events in their historical context.
Explain the causes and effects of historical continuity and change.
Present arguments that are clear, coherent, relevant and well substantiated.
Present historical explanations from an international perspective.
Plan, organize and present an individual historical investigation.

3. Assessment:

a. Year 9. Assessment is criterion based. The final grade is based on written and oral work done (75%) and a final written examination (25%). Written work primarily takes the form of paragraphs in response to an analytical-style question, dealing for example with cause and effect, but there are also periodic short answer tests to assess progress and understanding to date. The examination generally has three types of assessment: multiply choice, completing sentences that have blank spaces, and paragraph-style answers.

b. Year 10. This takes the same overall form as for Year 9. However, the emphasis is on the preparation for historical essay writing.

c. Year 11. This, a pre-IB course, is based on a simplified version of the IB Assessment Model, for which, see below, Years 12 and 13. The final grade is based on written and oral work done (75%) and a written examination (25%); the examination requires essays in response to analytical questions and is criterion referenced.

d. Years 12 and 13. Assessment for Paper 1 is based on critical analysis of documentary extracts and sources. Assessment for Papers 2 and 3 is based on analytical essay-writing skills and is criterion referenced. There are also the internal examinations, which are similar to real IB papers. The format and assessment of the Historical Investigation (see below) are prescribed by the International Baccalaureate Office.