History

History is offered at both Standard and Higher Level as part of the IB Diploma. The Standard Level course provides further exploration of the Cold War, as well as a source based enquiry into the move to global war, looking closely at the foreign policies of Japan, Italy and Germany in the 1930s. The remainder of the course is devoted to a thematic study of 20^th century single party states and authoritarian regimes, such as Stalin’s Russia and Castro’s Cuba.

The Higher Level course comprises medieval, early modern and modern history ranging from military leaders Richard the Lionheart and Genghis Khan in the 12^th and 13^th centuries, to Portuguese and Spanish exploration in the 15^th and 16^th centuries, to late tsarist Russia and the 1917 Revolution. The Cold War and single party states in the 20^th century are also studied. Pupils at both Levels also undertake an independent assignment on a historical topic, event or personality of their choice.

Field trips are run to the Black Country Museum, Kenilworth Castle, the Bosworth battlefield site and the National Cold War Museum. There are also visits to the battlefields of the First World War in France and Belgium and to cities of historic interest, such as Berlin, Istanbul and St Petersburg.

The History Society is run by pupils in the Sixth Form. It organises lectures from guest speakers and allows boys to present to their peers about research they have undertaken for their Extended Essay, or any other historical topics they are interested in. The Society also supports boys who wish to read History at Oxford and Cambridge.