In History we take the pupils on an exciting journey from the Norman Conquest (Year 7) to the Collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe in 1991 (Yr 13). Blundellians experience a hugely varied, comprehensive, academic and enjoyable time in the department achieving fantastic results. In the Cambridge IGCSE course, pupils explore Germany between the Wars and the collapse of international peace for Paper One. For the second paper the pupils examine the Origins of the Cold War. There is a coursework element where the pupils examine the significance of Gustav Stresemann on Weimar Germany.
We follow the AQA course at A - Level with examinations at the end of year 13. We deliver two courses: The Tudors 1485 – 1603 and the Cold War 1945 – 1991. There is a coursework element to the course. The course offers breadth and diversity and the opportunity to examine significant British and global history. The Government and Politics department is hugely popular and this is a reflection of the ever changing political landscape that we are experiencing. The course offers the opportunity to examine both the British and American political systems and alongside this, it is a course that embeds a comparison of both the American and British political systems.
The department offers the Edexcel A - Level in Government and Politics. During the first year we focus on the British element of the course. This includes Democracy and participation in the UK, the role of parties, the Prime Minister and the work of Parliament and the Judiciary. This is rounded off with an investigation into Political Ideologies such as Anarchism, Conservatism, Socialism and Liberalism.
In the Upper Sixth we mirror the British element of the course by looking at the United States and how their structures and ideas operate. This is then drawn together in a synoptic paper that demands a thorough comparison between politics in the UK and the USA. There is no coursework.