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Humanities
We are a team of
11 with specialist skills in the teaching of Geography, History, Religious
Education and Sociology and Psychology. However, the subject that brings us
together is broader than these traditional subject disciplines. ‘Humanities’
concerns the story, the nature, and the impact of humankind. It is concerned
with the perspectives of Time, Place, the Environment and Society on a local,
national and global scale. |
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In
Years 7 to 9 the Humanities faculty teaches History, Geography and
Religious Education to all students.
Humanities subjects are very popular in Years 10 and 11. GCSE
History, Geography and Religious Studies are offered to all
students. In Key Stage Four there are six GCSE groups for Geography
and four for History. All students follow an RE course leading to a
half GCSE.
History and Geography are also popular at AS and A2 level. In
the Sixth Form students can also choose to study other Humanities
subjects, including Religious Studies, Sociology, Psychology and
Government and Politics (for more information, please view the
Link
Sixth Form pages).
The Humanities Faculty has a proven track record for academic
success. Not only do a large proportion of students gain good
grades, but students of all abilities also succeed. Almost all our
students achieve a grade in GCSE and AS and A2 level examinations.
We believe that the humanities should be taught in as active and
exciting a way as possible using a variety of media types. Through
the development of discursive and analytical thinking and
communication skills students will feel confident in explaining and
evaluating interpretations. They will also be able to advance
arguments that demonstrate independence, sophistication and
sensitivity. It is vital that students are encouraged and given the
necessary tools to become active and successful learners. The
humanities faculty benefits from having its own ICT room.
Geography
Geographers love asking questions about
the world in which we live…
…and then finding the answers!
- as international links become closer, easier and faster, we need
more than ever to understand the geography of the world.
- to help protect the environment – both at home and abroad – we
need to understand geographical influences, and the geographical
relationships linking people and their surroundings.
- to make the most of our multicultural society we need to
understand and appreciate the cultures and backgrounds of people
from all over the world.
Geography is learning from the real world, about the real world, in
the real world.
What do you do in geography?
Geography lessons are diverse. We ask questions about the world in
which we live and we try to find the answers whilst having fun. In
Geography, you will learn a variety of skills including map drawing,
discussion, team work, problem solving and analysis.
Choosing Geography after Key Stage 3
All students must study geography until the age of fourteen, as it
is a foundation subject in the National Curriculum. After the age
of fourteen, students can choose to continue studying geography to
GCSE level and beyond.
Geography is a popular choice at GCSE, AS and A2 level.
Understanding geography can also help students do better in many
General National Vocational Qualification (GNVQ) and National
Vocational Qualification (NVQ) courses, because it helps them to
develop both core skills and specific areas of knowledge – such as
those required for Leisure and Tourism and Business.
- develops awareness and understanding of the world and the
importance of safeguarding the environment
- helps students develop a range of transferable skills such as
decision-making, research, use of primary and secondary data,
analysis and evaluation and report writing
- helps develop skills in information technology in a range of
challenging
- contexts, such as CD-Rom, Geographic Information Systems and the
Internet
- involves practical fieldwork investigations in varied
environmental contexts
- bridges the arts and the sciences, giving flexibility for higher
education courses
- has links across the curriculum, for example, with economic
understanding, environmental education and citizenship
- has status as an AS/A2 level subject welcomed by universities and
achieves good examination results nationally
- offers a range of career opportunities
Field
work
We help our students to get real experience of geography and the
environment by taking them out of school to do field work. Schools
take the issue of students’ safety very seriously, and have
introduced tight controls to ensure that field work is safe.
Field work takes students out into the real world, and gives them
the opportunity to find out the answers to geographical questions
for themselves.
History
Wait a moment …
What's the most varied and interesting thing in the world - PEOPLE?
This is what History is about – what people in the past did, why
they did these things and how this has made the world we live in
now.
How will this help me when I am older?
Employers like to have people with a broad range on interests and
knowledge.
It is not only knowledge that you can get through History there are
life skills:
What makes people tick
How to get information from a variety of sources
How to tell if the information is reliable
How to read maps, graphs and diagrams
How to spot propaganda
How to communicate ideas
Clearly these skills are needed in the modern world.
How will I learn in History at Chipping Sodbury?
As a historian at Chipping Sodbury School you will be involved in
the business of asking and answering good questions: Who? What?
When? Why? Where? And How?
You will use information from many sources including newspapers,
newsreel footage, propaganda posters, letters, CD ROMS, videos and
the internet to explore issues that have affected our world today.
You will be encouraged to form your own opinions about these issues
and discuss them in class working individually and in groups.
History is about doing and visits to places of historical importance
are an important part of your learning.
Why Choose History?
It is needed in many jobs and some less obvious ones such as:
TV Research
Journalism
Tourism
The Police Force
Banking
The Law
Civil Service
Secretarial work
Accountants
Building restoration
History today
In the modern world science is making great progress. It never takes
place in isolation. In the area of genetic engineering the
government is asking people for their views on what should be done.
An understanding of changes that have happened in the past will
influence how we come to a decision about what should be done today,
e.g. what do we think should happen with human cloning.
Reasons why History is important in your life!
The laws are written by the dead.
What is acceptable and what we think is wrong has largely been
decided by the dead.
How can you understand the world you live in if you do not
understand the things that have helped to make it what it is?
How can you hope to change the world unless you have some
understanding of how others in the past have made changes?
How can you participate in the world unless you know how it works?
How can you find out what your values are until you have some idea
of what other people have believed?
History is using the past to understand the present and prepare for
the future.
Put all this together and what do you get?
It’s a great idea for you to study History
at KS3, GCSE, AS, A2 and beyond . . .
Religious Education
Religion is still a very important influence on the lives of many
people in the world today.
All around us we find religious buildings reflecting the cultures
and communities that live nearby. If we travel abroad, we
experience whole countries that have been shaped by religion.
Religious belief has been with humanity since the very beginning,
attempting to explain those things for which we do not otherwise
have an answer: Why are we born? Why do we suffer? What happens
when we die? Religion also strongly influences what we call our
conscience.
In Religious Education we look at the ways the major world religions
continue to influence people’s lives and their thinking.
In learning about religions, students are also encouraged to think
about their own lives and, thereby, learn from the religion.
Religious
Education is about developing important life skills:
The ability to evaluate, based on knowledge and evidence.
The ability to reflect – on meaning, purpose, what it is to be
human.
The ability to empathise – to appreciate the motivations, feelings,
experiences and beliefs of
others.
Religious Education is all about variety
…..
Group discussion
Debates
Presentations
Role play
Drama
Video
Visits to places of worship
Visitors from faith communities
IT
Personal research
Surveys
Topics explored include ….
Investigating the birth and life of Jesus
How and why people worship
Celebrating Islam and Judaism
The Buddhist life
Faith in action
Religion and the Environment
Religion in Our Community
Is it right to eat animals?
Designing a Church for all Christians.
Religious Education continues in Key Stage 4
In Years 10 and 11 all students follow a course which leads to a
half GCSE. Students examine many of the important and topical
religious and moral issues of today which affect a multi-cultural
society.
Students are
encouraged to think through some of the big questions of life in a
safe and questioning environment so that they can become sure of
their own view and able to discuss them openly with others. The
course helps prepare students to work and deal with people of
different cultures and beliefs, broadening their understanding of
the world and its people.
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