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Academy
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Fraserburgh Academy |
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Why Study History? |
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Some of the many reasons why History is a useful subject for you are listed below. They have been divided up in a way which will hopefully show that rather than being a study of things which are dead and don’t matter, what you can learn in History matters very much to your life.
1) Job Prospects:
In an age when employers are often more interested
in what grades you obtain (as an indication of your ability and
skills) rather than the specific subject you study, History offers
interesting, stimulating, varied and educationally rich courses
throughout S1-S6. Furthermore, with the launch of our Higher Still
courses, beginning in June 1999, the History department is positioned
to offer a variety of post-Standard Grade courses which can lead
to meaningful qualifications and eventual access to College or
University level courses.
2) Personal skills:
Amongst the skills which you will have the opportunity to develop
while studying History are:
Your ability to communicate: both spoken and written.
The skills needed for working effectively with others and for
problem solving; skills which any future employer would want you
to have.
You will also face challenges which will improve your numerical
skills and your expertise at I.T.
Since many of the issues studied in History do not have clear
and easy explanations, while you are studying the topic you will
have the chance to become more skilled at reasoning, deduction,
and at organising and evaluating information.
Finally, as a result of having to defend your opinions and conclusions
in class discussion, you will find yourself with many chances
to develop your own self-confidence.
3) Knowledge
of the World:
Knowledge of the good and the bad that humanity is capable of,
an understanding of how the world we live in has developed in
the way that it has and the opportunity for each pupil to develop
informed attitudes on current and previous events and issues.
In the course of your studies of History at Fraserburgh Academy
you will learn a lot about the history of Fraserburgh, of Scotland,
of Great Britain, of Europe and of the wider world. When you study
the experiences of so many different peoples in so many areas,
over a period of 8,000 years, it helps to give you an understanding
of the world in which you live and also helps explain why many
aspects of your life are the way they are. Furthermore, the History
department aims to provide opportunities to study and thereby
appreciate different cultures and civilisations. It is hoped that
such lessons will better prepare pupils for the multi-cultural
society in which they will live.
You will learn a lot about the range of problems which human beings
have faced and overcome and of our potential for improvement.
Once you have learnt about the problems faced by other groups
in bygone years, it can often give confidence to face and defeat
your own problems and to understand what is, and what is not,
important in your life. It will also give you a better perspective
to judge events which are happening in your own life-time. Rather
than this being taught at any particular stage, the History department
seeks to encourage you to understand the problems of others (to
empathise) and to use the lessons of our ancestors lives to improve
our own. We can learn from the efforts, experiences and problems
of our ancestors- and we can only learn these valuable lessons
in History.
4) Interesting topics taught using a
range of sources and methods.
History offers a wide range of courses, including the following
topics:
In S1/S2
Cave people
Ancient Civilisations
Vikings
William Wallace
Children being forced to work in factories
Persecution of the Jews in Nazi Germany
Evacuations to Fraserburgh during World War 2
In S3/S4
(Standard Grade)
The development of Scotland and
Great Britain in the nineteenth and early twentieth century
How women won the vote
World War One: why it happened, what it was like to be involved
and, of course, what happened
Russia 1917-41: The birth, corruption and death of a Communist
state.
At S5/S6 (Higher, Intermediate 2, Intermediate
One)
The Union of Scotland and England
in 1707
The Slave trade and why Britain abolished it
The American Revolution
The events leading upto World War II
Great Britain 1850-1979.
The growth of German nationalism
These and other topics are taught through a mixture
of approaches. Pupils will use both primary and secondary sources
and should become skilled at extracting information from each
and assessing the reliability and value of any given source for
their work. Pupils will also have the opportunity to work independently
on long projects, to use prepared materials which emphasise the
important details, to engage in discussion, to draw as well as
write their findings and to produce oral and visual presentations
of their work. The principle behind each of these approaches is
that the subject and the methods used in the classroom should
be the best means to teach you information and skills which may
help you in later life.
On many levels, then, History is a rewarding study: informative
and interesting, it helps you to develop useful skills and is
taught in a variety of educational and interesting ways.
History at Fraserburgh Academy
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Fraserburgh Academy Wisdom is the Key to Life |
Creation date: April 22, 1999 Update date: May
06, 1999 Copyright © 1999 Fraserburgh Academy E-Mail: Fraserburgh Academy |