GCSE History (2026 exam) – Term 6 (EP)

Course Overview

This is a two-year course and does not require any prior knowledge although some aspects are likely to be more challenging to those who have not studied KS3 History.

This course covers the following options of the Edexcel GCSE History specification:

Year 1

• Medicine in Britain through time, c.1250 to the present including the British Sector on the Western Front, 1914-18: injuries, treatments and the trenches.
• Early Elizabethan England.

Year 2

• Superpower Relations and the Cold War, 1941-1991.
• One of the following, depending on the preference of the group: Russia and the Soviet Union, 1917-41 OR Weimar and Nazi Germany, 1918-39 OR Mao’s China, 1945-76 OR The USA, 1954-75; conflict at home and abroad.

Course Method

Classes involve discussions on issues related to the content covered the previous week and an introduction to the part of the specification to be covered in homework during the following week, directed particularly at developing key conceptual understandings.

The aim is to create a relaxed but purposeful atmosphere in which students feel free to ask questions and to share ideas with each other. Guidance is given on note-making, and templates are provided for students to use in structuring their own notes.

Students can either use Edexcel GCSE History textbooks or online resources to complete homework tasks. The textbooks for Year 1 are as follows:

• Medicine through Time, c1250 – present (ISBN 9781292127378).
• Early Elizabethan England, 1558-1588 (ISBN 9781292127262).

The textbooks for Year 2 are as follows:

• Superpower Relations and the Cold War (ISBN 9781292127378).
• Weimar and Nazi Germany, 1918-1939 (ISBN 9781292127347).

Tests of exam-style questions are set twice each term and marked by the teacher. A bank of questions is also provided for students who wish to do extra practice, and answers to these can also be submitted to the teacher for marking.

If notice is given in advance of a lesson that a student will not be able to attend, a video recording will be made (with only the teacher visible), to be temporarily available after the lesson.

Course Details

Term 6 is devoted to revision and exam preparation. It comprises 4 weekly lessons. Each lesson lasts 60 minutes.

The exact times and dates of this PX Classroom are still TBC but it is due to start in April 2026.