Subject Co-ordinator, Duncan Ferguson

Key Stage 3/GCSE as of September 2010

The Humanities programme at the Sylvia Young Theatre School covers a broad spectrum. It is made up of three main components: History, Geography and Religious Studies.

The History component covers the period from 1000 to 1945, from the medieval period until the end of World War II and the origins of the modern world. The chief focus is on the history of Britain, but European and world history are also covered. Important topics look at political, social, economic, religious and scientific developments as well as the traditional coverage of kings, queens and battles.

The Geography component covers human and physical geography, the structure of the Earth, how environments have shaped human life and how humans have shaped environments. Students focus on particular countries in order to understand different aspects of the subject, and the human and physical forces at work in the world. Recent special topics have included flooding control in Bangladesh, economic development in Kenya, the Three Gorges Dam in China, water and desert management in the USA, and tropical rainforests in Ghana and Brazil. Attention is also paid to the cultures of the different societies studied: for example when looking at urban development in Hong Kong students will learn some Chinese.

The Religious Studies component focuses on different types of belief and the ways in which beliefs affect cultures and ethics. Students look at the great world religions beginning with the three main monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and then will proceed to study one of these in greater depth as well as Hinduism and Buddhism. Awareness of different cultures and the connections between religions and cultures are important factors in the Religious Studies programme. Students learn about art, architecture and language during the Religious Studies course. For example, the Arabic script is introduced in the Islam topic and Sanskrit while studying Hinduism and Buddhism.

Students find the Humanities course rewarding, for the subject encourages an awareness of what it is to be human.