This course started in Year 9. All pupils will sit one examination at the end of Year 10 and the other at the end of Year 11.

This course involves a thematic study of some central questions and issues in human life and experience and explores the relevance of religious beliefs, values and traditions to these questions and issues.

This course will enable pupils to:

• Acquire knowledge and develop understanding of the beliefs, values and traditions of one or more religions, Christianity and Judaism.
• Consider religious responses to moral issues.
• Consider the influence of the beliefs, values and traditions associated with one or more religions.
• Identify, investigate and respond to fundamental questions of life raised by religious and human experience, including questions about the meaning and purpose of life.
• Develop skills relevant to the study of religion.

Topics studied

Issues of war, violence, peace, medical ethics, the sanctity of life, faith, law and order, suffering and evil, love, marriage, divorce, justice, equality, God, life and death, choice, personal and corporate identity and creation.

Pupils will study 10 units of work through a personal, Christian, Jewish and Islamic perspective.

Assessment

Option A - Religion and Life Experiences 50% Taken in Year 10
Exam 1 hour 50 minutes

Option B - Religion and Human Experience 50% Taken in Year 11
Exam 1 hour 50 minutes

There is no coursework requirement for this subject, assessment is entirely by the final examinations.

The aims and assessment objectives of the WJEC course Religious Studies are in line with the requirements of the LBWF Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education.

This course also provides opportunities for candidates to make effective use of ICT.

Progression

GEOGRAPHY

Introduction

Geography is everywhere. In order to make sense of the world we live in and to be able to place ourselves in the wider setting, a knowledge of Geography is vital.

The GCSE Geography course involves the study of how people fit in with their environment and how the natural world affects us. To do this, new skills and techniques must be learned as well as new information discovered. Photographs, statistics, videos and, of course, maps are all an integral part of the work. Fieldwork is also an important part of the course and leads to a written report which amounts to 25% of the examination. To gain the most from the study of Geography pupils should demonstrate a keen understanding and enthusiasm for the subject.

Topics Studied

At Chingford we follow the AQA Geography A specification. This provides pupils with the opportunity to investigate many of the major issues that face today’s citizens and that are likely to affect the pupils as citizens of the future.

Pupils are examined in two papers. One based on geographical skills and physical geography, and the second based on human geography.

Paper 1 (40%)

• Tectonic Activity
• Rocks and Landscapes
• River Landscapes
• Glacial Landscapes
• Weather and Climate
• Ecosystems
• Coastal Landscapes

One from

• Population
• Settlement

One from

• Agriculture
• Industry

• Managing Resources
• Development

Coursework (25%)

The coursework consists of a report based upon a fieldwork investigation, done on a small scale locally, currently at High Beach, Epping Forest.

Progression

The study of Geography provides pupils with a broad educational base from which they can continue into further education or enter the world of work. Geography is an interesting and contemporary subject that is well respected by Sixth Forms and employers.

History

Introduction and Topics Studied

• One Enquiry in Depth: The American West 1840-1895
• One Study in Development: Medicine through Time

The American West - This enquiry examines the way in which the American West was settled and developed by various groups of people between 1840 and 1895 and the impact this had on the Native American People. We will examine the reasons for the westward movement of the frontier and the conflicts that resulted from the clash of different cultures and lifestyles.

Topics covered are:

• Inhabitants and early settlers
• The settlement of the Great Plains
• Conflict on the Plains

Medicine through Time - This study investigates developments in medicine over a long period of time. Pupils will compare developments in different periods and look at the influence of individuals and governments, science, technology and war.

Some of the areas covered will be:

• Medicine in the Ancient World
• The Black Death
• The History of Surgery
• The role of individuals
• The fight against disease e.g. vaccination
• The discovery of the structure of DNA

• Exam: Paper 1 - 45% Subjects are ‘Medicine through Time’ and ‘The American West’
• Exam: Paper 2 - 30% Nominated topic.

• Depth Study: Law and Order in the American West – using sources.
• A Modern World Study: Northern Ireland. A study of the roots of the Northern Ireland
  situation up to 1968, the outbreak of conflict in 1968 and the
  reasons why the British Army was brought into Ulster.

History GCSE can lead on to further study at AS and A2 level and is regarded as a quality subject by all Universities. It is particularly suitable for anyone who hopes to study History, the Law or Journalism.