Faculty of Humanities

Geography has made us neighbours. History has made us friends. Those whom God has so joined together, let no man put asunder.
John F Kennedy

The Humanities subjects deal with the fundamentals of human life; how we interact with the world around us, how the past shapes our future and the big questions of who we are and why we’re here.

The Humanities Faculty is built around a strong team of dedicated and experienced staff who share an on-going commitment to quality teaching and the improvement of standards.  Our policies and practices are student-focused and our core purpose is to enable all students to fulfil their potential.  The Faculty is proud of its progressive teaching methods and its examination success at GCSE and 'A' level.

The Faculty of Humanities brings together three principal subjects:  Geography, History and Philosophy, Religion and Ethics (PRE).  In addition, we are also responsible for a substantial part of the Life Studies programme taught in Years 10 and 11. The subjects share a common approach to teaching and learning whilst retaining their distinctive characters.  The Faculty is based in Edale teaching block.

At Key Stage 3 students study each of the core Humanities subjects for one hour per week.  At the end of Key Stage 3 the three subjects become part of the GCSE option structure.  At GCSE, students study Humanities subjects for three hours a week in Year Ten and two hours a week in Year Eleven.  In addition, all students are required to follow a non-exam Life Studies course at Key Stage 4 which contains a religious and spiritual dimension.  All school-developed Religious Education courses are based on the Derbyshire Agreed Syllabus.  At the present time all students in Key Stage 3 are taught in mixed ability groups.