GCSE History

GCSE History Course Overview

The study of history is about much more than kings and queens and remembering the dates of battles. You’ll gain an insight into the past, taking in areas such as sociology and economics – and of course, politics. Featuring topics like the role of women, this course brings the past to life.

Pre-requisites

None

Qualification

GCSE in History

Specification

4047 - AQA GCSE History B

Benefits

• Flexible terms times
• Stepped learning approach
• Access to a dedicated tutor and student advisors to guide you through your studies
• Access to the ICS online Student Community, allowing you to interact with other students and browse our resource library
  

GCSE History Course Code

G45

ICS Support Period

You will receive support from ICS and our tutors until your assessment dates. We do not advise students to enrol on a GCSE less than 6 months prior to the assessments.

Key Topics

• Unit 1: International Relations: Conflict and Peace in the 20th Century
• Unit 2: 20th Century Depth Studies
• Unit 3: Historical Enquiry British History

Unit 1: International Relations: Conflict and Peace in the 20th Century

This unit provides an outline study of the main events of the 20th Century. The ICS course covers all six of the following topics but for the exam students will be required to answer questions on any THREE areas.

The key issues are not the questions that will be asked in the exam, these are the areas that will be studied within each topic.

1: The Origins of the First World War

• Key issue: Why were there two armed camps in Europe in 1914?
• Key Issue: Why did war break out in 1914?

2: Peacemaking 1918–1919 and the League of Nations

• Key issue: How did the Treaty of Versailles establish peace?
• Key issue: Why did the League of Nations fail in its aim to keep peace?

3: Hitler’s foreign policy and the origins of the Second World War

• Key issue: How did Hitler challenge and exploit the Treaty of Versailles 1933–March 1938?
• Key issue: Why did Chamberlain’s policy of appeasement fail to prevent the outbreak of war in 1939?

4: The Origins of the Cold War 1945–1955

• Key issue: Why did the USA and USSR become rivals in the years 1945–1949?
• Key issue: How did the Cold War develop in the years 1949–1955?

5: Crises of the Cold War 1955–1970

• Key issue: How peaceful was Peaceful Co-existence?
• Key issue: How close to war was the world in the 1960s?

6: Failure of Détente and the collapse of communism 1970–1991

• Key issue: Why did Détente collapse in the 1970s and 1980s?
• Key issue: Why did communism collapse in Central and Eastern Europe?

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Unit 2: Twentieth Century Depth Studies

This unit offers Depth Studies of national or regional issues and developments. There are two sections, A and B. Students will be required to answer ONE question from section A and TWO questions from section B. Depth Study topics are as follows:

The key issues are not the questions that will be asked in the exam, these are the areas that will be studied within each topic.

Section A

Students will have to answer ONE question.

1. From Tsardom to Communism: Russia, 1914–1924

• Key issue: Why did the rule of the Tsar collapse in February/March 1917?
• Key issue: Why were the Bolsheviks able to seize power in October/November 1917?
• Key issue: How successful was Lenin in creating a new society in Russia?

2. Weimar Germany, 1919–1929

• Key issue: How far do the early problems of the Weimar Republic suggest that it was doomed from the start?
• Key issue: How far did the Weimar Republic recover under Stresemann?
• Key issue: How far did the Nazi Party develop its ideas and organisation up to 1929?

3. The Roaring 20s: USA, 1918–1929

• Key issue: How and why did the USA achieve prosperity in the 1920s?
• Key issue: How far was the USA a divided society in the 1920s?
• Key issue: Why did the US Stock Exchange collapse in 1929?

Section B

Students will have to answer TWO questions.

4. Stalin’s Dictatorship: USSR, 1924–1941

• Key issue: To what extent had Stalin become a personal dictator in Communist Russia by the end of the 1920s?
• Key issue: How did Stalin reinforce his dictatorship in the 1930s?
• Key issue: To what extent did Stalin make the USSR a great economic power?

5. Hitler’s Germany, 1929–1939

• Key issue: How and why was Hitler able to become Chancellor in January 1933?
• Key issue: How did Hitler change Germany from a democracy to a Nazi dictatorship, 1933–1934, and then reinforce this?
• Key issue: To what extent did Germans benefit from Nazi rule in the 1930s?

6. Depression and the New Deal: The USA, 1929–1941

• Key issue: How serious were the effects of the Depression on the American people?
• Key issue: How did Roosevelt deal with the Depression?
• Key issue: How far was the New Deal successful in ending the Depression in the USA?

7. Race Relations in the USA 1955–1968

• Key issue: To what extent did racial inequality exist in the USA in the 1950s?
• Key issue: How effective were the methods used by members of the Civil Rights Movement between 1961–1968?
• Key issue: How important was Martin Luther King in the fight for Civil Rights in the USA?

8. The USA and Vietnam: Failure Abroad and at Home, 1964–1975

• Key issue: How effective were guerrilla tactics during the Vietnam War?
• Key issue: How did the coverage of the Vietnam War in the USA lead to demands for peace?
• Key issue: Why were the US actions to end the Vietnam War unsuccessful?

9. Britain: The Challenge in Northern Ireland, 1960–1986

• Key issue: How far did political and economic inequalities lead to the Troubles in the 1960s and 1970s?
• Key issue: Why was it difficult to find a solution to the Troubles in the 1960s and 1970s?
• Key Issue: How far from peace was Ireland by the mid 1980s?

10. The Middle East: 1956 –1979

• Key issue: How far did the events of the years 1956 to 1967 show how difficult it was to find a solution to the problems in the Middle East?
• Key issue: How close to victory were the Arabs in the 1970s?
• Key issue: How close was the Middle East to peace by the end of the 1970s

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Unit 3: Historical Enquiry British History

Tasks will be set by the AQA. Each year a two-part Historical Enquiry will be set on each of the topics in this unit. The task will be published each year. Historical Enquiries will be replaced on an annual basis and will only be available for one assessment opportunity. The topics are as follows:

• The British People in War
• Britain at War
• Britain and the Aftermath of War
• The Changing Role and Status of Women since 1900

Students will be required to produce a response to the two Historical Enquiry questions of about 2000 words in a period of approximately four hours.

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Exams

There are three assessments for this GCSE.

1. Unit 1 - Written Paper – 1hour 45 mins
2. Unit 2 - Written Paper – 1hour 45 mins
3. Unit 3 – Coursework

Availability of Certification

Examination Fee and Registration

Students will have to pay an examination fee as well as a centre fee which will vary depending on exam centre. For further information on examinations, please see the Assessment tab.

Please note students are responsible for making their own exam arrangements.

Students should contact AQA as soon as possible to find out the deadlines for applying to sit the examinations. At this time students should also request the Entry Form for Private Candidates and also a list of centres and details of Open Centres for Private Candidates.

Find out more information about arranging your AQA examination.