We aim to give students a broad, chronological introduction to British history in Years 7 to 9. Beginning with the conquest of Saxon England in 1066, the course covers aspects of Medieval, Early Modern and Modern history up to the end of the Second World War. Foreign case studies of North American Indians and the French Revolution provide opportunities to make comparisons with contemporary developments in Britain.
Students are encouraged to think for themselves, to find out what happened and why, and are introduced to the idea of different historical interpretations of the past. Year 7 visit Dover Castle and Canterbury Cathedral; Year 8 go to Hampton Court, and Year 9 travel to the battlefields of the First World War.
At GCSE level, we follow the OCR examination course on Modern World History. It comprises a Core Curriculum: International Relations 1919-c1989, followed by units on the USA, 1919-1941, Liberal Britain, 1906-1918 and coursework on the Battle of the Somme.
At A/S level, the first year of the sixth form, students return to Tudor history and, by way of contrast, look back to a topic touched upon at GCSE, the rise and fall of Fascist Italy.
Mid-Tudor Crises 1536–69
Democracy and Dictatorship: Italy 1896–1943
At A2, in the second year of the course, students are given the opportunity to widen and broaden their historical studies. The coursework is a 3,000-word essay on a topic of the student’s choosing. The two other taught modules are:
Gladstone and Disraeli
Civil Rights in the United States of America, 1865 - 1980
The History and Politics Society has invited a number of distinguished speakers to Kent College and takes a group to visit the Palace of Westminster each year. It also produces an online journal of students' work, edited by the pupils themselves. The Debating Society, which meets weekly, is enthusiastically supported by sixth formers and staff.
Whatever their chosen path after school, students will have developed and practised a variety of analytical skills, hugely beneficial to their future lives and careers.
