• Home
• About Us
• Parents
• Pupils
• Past Pupils
• Heritage
• Contact Us

• Admissions Criteria
• Prospectus
• Curriculum
• Calendar
• Links
• Photo Gallery
• Location

"Promoting Personal Excellence"

                                                History

History is designed to allow pupils not only to study the past and understand how it has formed the future but also to encourage pupils to develop their own opinions and beliefs based on understanding and knowledge of different events. It is also studied to allow students to understand why people behave in a particular way and to reflect upon viewpoints that may be different from their own. Pupils learn that history is a process of enquiry where they have to examine all kinds of information and form supported conclusions. It is fun and a great emphasis is placed on a variety of learning activities which range from comprehension/source work to role play, brain teasers, quiz work, drawing and historical enquiries. Students study work on the Normans, Rivalry and Conflict in Europe, Local History of the O Cahans, to the Rise of Republicanism and the First and Second World Wars in KS3.

At GCSE our students follow the OCR syllabus this includes the study of: Medicine Through Time, The American West and course work on a Local Study Unit and the Troubles in Northern Ireland. All students are entered for GCSE with a few students being offered the Certificate option which requires them to complete a portfolio of work. The GCSE results over the past three years have demonstrated a high level of attainment with 100% of students achieving a grade G or above. The % for A* -C has also been very high ranging from 49%to 72%.

 

A-level History is also available. Students follow the Edexcel syllabus. This includes two exam options on Russian and German history in the first half of the 20th century and an option on British History.

 

All students have an opportunity each year to visit a historical site; these have included: Carrickfergus Castle, The Old Priory at Dungiven, Doagh Famine Village, The Ulster American Folk Park, Stormount, and the Ulster Transport Museum. These days have proved invaluable in raising interest and enthusiasm about the past.