Introducing South Asian Heritage Month

Thanks to Sharon Aninakwa, member of HA Secondary Committee and Head of History at St Claudine’s Catholic School for Girls, for this blogpost inviting us to to engage with South Asian Heritage month next term. Sharon provides context, reasons why we should engage, and practical support to do so. In the history teaching community we are blessed to be able to bridge the gap between … Continue reading Introducing South Asian Heritage Month

Literacy and Oracy in History – a new HA CPD guide

As we near the end of the long autumn term, subject leaders may be starting to think about preparation for INSET time at the start of January. The HA is here to help with a range of CPD guides that SLs can use to structure learning together as a department. You can find the currently available guides here. The most recent guide focuses on literacy … Continue reading Literacy and Oracy in History – a new HA CPD guide

New Podcast Series: Confronting Controversial History

Thanks to Jason Todd, Oxford University and HA Trustee, for this blogpost. Jason worked with Natasha Robinson and a team of contributers to create the podcast series ‘Confronting Controversial History’. Here, Jason explains the context to these podcasts and that they are intended to enable teachers to confidently engage with the topics and with further conversations about controversial histories. In October 2019 we organised a … Continue reading New Podcast Series: Confronting Controversial History

Planning help from back issues of Teaching History

Thanks to Anne Hooper, member of HA Secondary Committee, for modelling how her department has trawled the back issues of Teaching History for curriculum planning support. The ‘vague recollection’ she talks abouts is not there in the minds of new members, but there are always people to ask. For example, a call out on Twitter for ‘anyone know a TH article that can help with…’ … Continue reading Planning help from back issues of Teaching History

Football Makes History: Using Football in Teaching History and Cultural Heritage in High School

The European Football stories of the project Football Makes History, starting with your local neighbourhood club, can not only excite the football and history fans but in particular create a space where those that are marginalised in European societies are included, feel belonging so that everybody can seek active citizenship. Sport – and particularly football – appeals to millions of Europeans, regardless of their sexual … Continue reading Football Makes History: Using Football in Teaching History and Cultural Heritage in High School

Poles in Britain: new, free teaching resources!

This blogpost from Helen Snelson (@Snelsonh), PGCE History Curriculum Area Leader at the University of York and Chair of HA Secondary Committee, introduces some new, free resources to support teaching about Poland and Poles in Britain in history lessons and beyond. I know it is really tough to find space and time for yet another topic, but stay with me while I introduce some new, … Continue reading Poles in Britain: new, free teaching resources!

Decolonisation in the history classroom: wider perspectives and more critical questions

Thank you to Sarah Jackson, Head of Department at Sawston Village College in Cambridgeshire for this blogpost. Sarah has been imbibing the wealth of CPD on offer to history teachers. Here she explains how this has shaped her thinking, her experience of trying out ideas to reveal the constructed nature of the curriculum with her own pupils, and her current thinking about best ways forward … Continue reading Decolonisation in the history classroom: wider perspectives and more critical questions

Decolonising the curriculum one step at a time: lessons on race in the early British Empire

In this blogpost, Jen Thornton (@jen_a_thornton), Head of History at Loreto Grammar School, shares her recent work to improve the history curriculum. Jen started by listening to students, she has gone back to the scholarship to gain the knowledge she needs, she has consulted and worked with colleagues, and she is clear that this is work in progress. Her description of this work and her … Continue reading Decolonising the curriculum one step at a time: lessons on race in the early British Empire

Dealing with the issues from lockdown in the history classroom. Thoughts and perspectives from the HA secondary committee.

This post accompanies the webinar that took place on Friday 5th March 2021. Members of the HA’s Secondary Committee addressed issues from lockdown in the history classroom. This post summarises their ideas, provides the links they referred to and picks up the main themes that emerged in the Q&A. The terms ‘catch up, ‘recovery’ and ‘lost learning’ are negative and don’t capture everything. There are … Continue reading Dealing with the issues from lockdown in the history classroom. Thoughts and perspectives from the HA secondary committee.

Empowering ourselves to create an anti-racist curriculum: picking off the obstacles one book and one conversation at a time

Thank you to Kate Smee, Head of Humanities at Fairfield School in Bristol for this blogpost. Kate encourages us to keep on thinking and planning and doing what we need to do to teach better history, despite Covid-19. Her twitter handle is on the end of her blogpost.  I am going to start by saying this is not a blog with a definitive road map, … Continue reading Empowering ourselves to create an anti-racist curriculum: picking off the obstacles one book and one conversation at a time