[freesaxon]

History ....................

Can be a rich & diverse subject, very interesting & worthy.

So why the preoccupation with WW2 Hitler & the Nazis ?
Don't you lads & lasses taking the subject ever question why its so narrow these days ? After all up to 55 Million people died under Bolshevik communism, don't they count ?

The stock reply goes along the lines " well there are such valuable lessons to be learnt , in tolerance, equality, diversity, & racism."

Really
All there IS to life these days, bit boring

Might there be a very POLITICAL agenda to all this

Of course there is, at a time that White British & European people face a slow genocide, nay a wiping off the map it seems very coincidental don't you think ?
If you don't think its important, why worry if we loose 6 species of invertebrates a year ?

[C_G]

Because history teachers pick the ****test periods to study. The reformation, the enlightenment, napoleonic wars, thirty years war, english civil war, norman conquests. All of these are actuall courses I could have studied. In the end my teacher went with Britan 1906-51 and the Vietnam War.

[mevidek]

(Original post by C_G)
Because history teachers pick the ****test periods to study. The reformation, the enlightenment, napoleonic wars, thirty years war, english civil war, norman conquests. All of these are actuall courses I could have studied. In the end my teacher went with Britan 1906-51 and the Vietnam War.

Hardly the "****test periods to study"

[Giant]

I think it's a matter of perspective. Of course, we can all fantasise how great studying the Romans or Greek conquests would be, or maybe even the Mongol Empire. But I'm sure if we actually studied them, and I mean proper in-depth study, we would find them just as "boring" as WW2, Germany, British History etc.

In short, being required to do something and forced to study an era in depth can make it a lot duller

[JollyGreenAtheist]

Nazi Germany is a thoroughly interesting period to study, and there is a hell of a lot to learn. I don't think the period itself can be criticised for this.

I do agree that there is an overly heavy emphasis placed on this at GCSE and A-level, probably to attract more students because it's such a well known period.

The fact remains that history is such a vibrant, fascinating subject, and it's impossible to cover the most interesting parts in 4 years because it's all interesting. The suggestion that it's a political move is ridiculous; the A-level spec in particular is quite broad. It's up to the school to decide what they study. At AS, I studied the Russian Revolution and Lenin's consolidation of power. That doesn't paint the left in a good light.

[chickenonsteroids]

I do the IB but it's more focussed on Europe than anything. We're doing Germany in the 1800s, Stalin, Chairman Mao, Lenin and a bunch of other stuff. Yes we do WWI + WWII but it's a lot of fun. There's too much to cover in only a year and a half.

But I'd have loved it if we picked the route that involved the Middle East.

[ForeverFitzwilliam]

(Original post by freesaxon)
History ....................

Can be a rich & diverse subject, very interesting & worthy.

So why the preoccupation with WW2 Hitler & the Nazis ?
Don't you lads & lasses taking the subject ever question why its so narrow these days ? After all up to 55 Million people died under Bolshevik communism, don't they count ?

The stock reply goes along the lines " well there are such valuable lessons to be learnt , in tolerance, equality, diversity, & racism."

Really
All there IS to life these days, bit boring

Might there be a very POLITICAL agenda to all this

Of course there is, at a time that White British & European people face a slow genocide, nay a wiping off the map it seems very coincidental don't you think ?
If you don't think its important, why worry if we loose 6 species of invertebrates a year ?

I think personally they've chosen to rely on Nazis and WW2, because we already know quite a bit about that, and therefore a lot of students won't be so daunted at learning something completely new! Also, the Nazis were very interesting, and it does attract a lot of pupils to do history as a subject.

I did the Bolsheviks as a coursework piece for GCSE, as did my sisters who's just finished her GCSEs, so I wouldn't they that they've left that out.

But I do agree that we get a tad repetitive with our History courses. A lot of people i know were doing practical the same course for A level as they did GCSE. Thats why I chose Early Modern History, resulting in a wide range of different History topics over the years.

GCSE and A level combined I did:

Nazi Germany
Weimar Germany
The Women's Suffrage
The Liberal Reforms
The Bolsheviks and Communist Russia
The Cold War
League of Nations & Treaty of Versailles
The Church and State of Tudor England
Cromwell's England
The German Reformation
The Catholic Reformation
The English Civil War

Quite a bit of breadth there really when you consider it was only 4 years.

[C_G]

(Original post by mevidek)
Hardly the "****test periods to study"

Matter of opinion.

[mevidek]

(Original post by C_G)
Matter of opinion.

Sure, but they are fascinating periods. Like all history.

[puella_optima]

Throughout GCSE and A-Level history, we didn't do a significant study on the Nazi's. We did however cover the Third Reich- I guess pretty significant. But over the 4 years, we covered:

The Cold War, International Relations 1943-1991
The USA: 1919-1941
British Society: 1931-1951
The Vietnam War
Civil Rights Movement: 1960s
Stalin's Russia
British Political History 1945-2004
The Weimar Republic and Third Reich
Crisis of Manchuria, Japan in China and the Communist Revolution

So, covered a lot really.... and we did cover the USSR and didn't 'just' study the Nazis, so, for me, history was not at all boring, and I'm going on to read History at University.

[XxKingSniprxX]

I'm currently finishing my GCSE History and we have covered:
Unit1: WW1+WW2+Cold War
Unit2: USA - The Great Depression
Unit3: A Divided union 1945-70 (Communism - Mccarthyism, Black civil rights, Student n Women movement)
Unit4: Britain 1900-1914.

However how much more demanding is History In comparison to GCSE Level both qualitatively and quantitatively?

My Sixthform college A Level Topics are:

"AS
Units 1 and 2 – Options currently taught in the department:

· Britain, 1603-1642 (Unit 1 course)
· Britain, 1906-1951 (Unit 1)
· France in Revolution, 1774-1815 (Unit 1)

· Britain, 1902-1918: The Impact of New Liberalism (Unit 2)
· A New Roman Empire? Mussolini’s Italy, 1922-1945 (Unit 2)
· Life in Nazi Germany, 1933-1945 (Unit 2)

A2
Unit 3 – All A2 students will study:

· Aspects of International Relations, 1945-2004

Unit 4

Historical Enquiry. This unit requires students to produce a coursework essay which tests understanding of change and continuity over 100 years. Students are required to choose a question and undertake research into it, demonstrating some awareness of historiography. A range of sources will be consulted and evaluated. Students will receive about six weeks of lessons on their 100-year period. They will then choose an area of enquiry linked to a particular theme or topic from that 100-year period. The two periods currently being taught to our A2 students are Russia 1855 – 1956 and the USA 1865 – c1980. "

What options Should I Select to study for both AS (unit1+unit2) and A2(Unit3+4)?
Personally, I'm not fond of Britain/Germany and am more of a Fan of USA and enjoy studying Civil Rights Vietnam War and Communism. Am I enslaved to study the topics above or can I select any other options...AS(Unit1+2) Im apparently forced to study the topics however in A2 can I chose anything I would like "The two periods currently being taught to our A2 students are Russia 1855 – 1956 and the USA 1865 – c1980." Hence I can pick the USA 1865-1980 option in UNIT4?

[C_G]

(Original post by mevidek)
Sure, but they are fascinating periods. Like all history.

Vietnam is relatively interesting, agreed, because I find it simply amazing that America was so ignorant of the people they were fighting. The British course, however, is completely boring. Everything is about Bills, Acts, governments, and elections. The 1930s topic was mind-numbingly boring, it can be summed by Conservatives over-playing Labour's connection with communism, continuous government government changes and the even more continuous failures of these governments.

[mevidek]

(Original post by C_G)
Vietnam is relatively interesting, agreed, because I find it simply amazing that America was so ignorant of the people they were fighting. The British course, however, is completely boring. Everything is about Bills, Acts, governments, and elections. The 1930s topic was mind-numbingly boring, it can be summed by Conservatives over-playing Labour's connection with communism, continuous government government changes and the even more continuous failures of these governments.

British history isn't all about the government...

[C_G]

(Original post by mevidek)
British history isn't all about the government...

I know, but the unit we studied was heavily focused on governments throughout the time.

[AdvanceAndVanquish]

it's an interesting question why certain subjects (in my experience, nazi germany and russian revolution) are massively popular among teachers, but the op has brought in all the conspiracy nonsense

[mevidek]

(Original post by C_G)
I know, but the unit we studied was heavily focused on governments throughout the time.

Well then the unit you studied was, to you, boring. You can hardly say that all British history is boring based solely on one topic you didn't like.

[chapman.]

I'm sick of it honestly, I hate history in school. I'm tired of learning about the 20th Century, it's all we covered from year 7.

The only reason I've taken it is to go to university and study ancient civilisations.

I just want diversity!

[generaljonny]

I'm doing History at university and I barely studied the Nazi's only touching on it in GCSE. On the course I am doing now Fascism is only one topic out of 22 that we have looked at.

[Dalek1099]

(Original post by chapman.)
I'm sick of it honestly, I hate history in school. I'm tired of learning about the 20th Century, it's all we covered from year 7.

The only reason I've taken it is to go to university and study ancient civilisations.

I just want diversity!

exactly why I didn't pick history for GCSE,all the topics are boring.I generally find that the further back you go in History,the more interesting it gets and I am sick of learning about the Nazis because recent history is closer to our society,than the past,making it less interesting.

[C_G]

(Original post by mevidek)
Well then the unit you studied was, to you, boring. You can hardly say that all British history is boring based solely on one topic you didn't like.

If you read back you will discover I said no such thing...