What History is Being Taught in Primary?

What History is Being Taught in Schools?

One of the commonly repeated, yet little evidenced, ideas is that little to no diverse history is taught in English schools. Many of these claims are based on individual experiences of the education system pre-National Curriculum and even when they are made based on the current curriculum, there is no verification of these claims.

Large scale research is required yet it is not an academic priority despite the fact that if the claims made by those critiquing the system were true, then the data could demonstrate it. 

What follows are the results of a small scale study of the history units taught in primary schools in five Local Education Authorities – Cumbria, Leicester, Lambeth, Lewisham and Redcar and Cleveland. This is based on the history curricula published on school websites. For the purposes of this study, schools that only had limited information were also included, especially if they had only published their Autumn Term curriculum maps as Black History Month falls in October in the UK. To exclude these schools would have resulted in skewed results in terms of the history that is taught. The main purpose of this research was to provide an evidence based snapshot of what history units are being taught in schools. This can enable analysis of  our education system that gets beyond assertions based on an ideological agenda. 

National Curriculum:

The Primary National History Curriculum is divided between Key Stage 1 (Years 1 and 2) and Key Stage 2 (Years 3-4). The KS1 curriculum is highly open with a focus on the four areas:

1. changes within living memory,
2. events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally,
3. the lives of significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievements,
4. significant historical events, people and places in their own locality.

There are non-statutory examples given for 2 and 3 but not 1 and 4. 

The KS2 curriculum is more specific in terms of the history units that are expected to be taught with non-statutory guidance relating to the specific content that could be taught. It covers the following areas:

British History:

• changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age
• the Roman Empire and its impact on Britain
• Britain’s settlement by Anglo-Saxons and Scots
• the Viking and Anglo-Saxon struggle for the Kingdom of England to the time of Edward the Confessor
• a study of an aspect or theme in British history that extends pupils’ chronological knowledge beyond 1066

Local History:

• a local history study

World History:

• the achievements of the earliest civilizations – an overview of where and when the first civilizations appeared and a depth study of one of the following: Ancient Sumer; The Indus Valley; Ancient Egypt; The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China  
• Ancient Greece – a study of Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world  
• a non-European society that provides contrasts with British history – one study chosen from: early Islamic civilization, including a study of Baghdad c. AD 900; Mayan civilization c. AD 900; Benin (West Africa) c. AD 900-1300.

The Key Stage 1 Curriculum

It is clear that in the absence of a more prescriptive national history curriculum, there is a real variance in the experience of what history is taught in primary schools in general and no where is this clearer than in KS1. 

Changes within Living Memory:

There is a continuity between the old and new curriculum – with old QCA units still being followed. Toys and Seaside are the two most commonly taught units still in KS1. Moreover there is a preference when selecting history units for Changes within Living Memory to teach about the history of ‘things’ as opposed to events or people. 

Changes within Living Memory						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Toys	45	37	30	47	41	39.9
Seaside	25	31	30	23	15	24.8
Transport	25	17	11	26	16	19.3
Home	8	12	5	19	11	11.1
All About Me	8	13	5	9	10	8.8
Grandparents	4	3	10	3	7	5.3
Family History		7	3	9	3	4.4
Holidays		2	8	2	3	3.0
Schools	2	2	5	3	2	2.8
Technology over time	6	1	3		3	2.5
Food/Farms	2	5			5	2.4
Communication		2	3	2	3	1.9
Clothes		1	3	3	2	1.7
Childhood		4	3	2		1.6
Changes within Living Memory		5		3		1.6
Timelines		1		5	2	1.5
Then and Now		3	3			1.2
1960s	2	1			2	0.9
Time Vocabulary			3			0.5
Buildings		1		2		0.5
Chronology		2				0.4
Victorian Children					2	0.3
Household Objects					2	0.3
Children’s Jobs		1				0.3
Comparing Old with New		1				0.1
Me, My Class, My School		1				0.1

 

Events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally:

The non-statutory guidance informs the most popular history units taught although there is cross-over between the Great Fire of London as an old QCA unit as well as being included in the non-statutory guidance. This is understandable as there is a greater range of resources available to teach these units. Without comparing old and new curricula in schools, it’s difficult to analyse the extent to which schools have changed their KS1 curriculum over time. Certainly the Gunpowder plot, Castles and Titanic were units taught pre-2014. 

Events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Great Fire of London	76	62	65	74	82	72.0
Space/Moon Landing	20	17	15	16	13	16.0
Gunpowder Plot/Bonfire Night	14	23	13	10	15	15.0
Castles	4	15	13	5	28	12.8
Remembrance Day		20	8		10	7.5
The Great Plague	6	5	3	3	2	3.6
First Flight	8	5	3		2	3.3
WW2		3	5	5	2	3.0
Titanic		6		2	5	2.6
WW1		5	3	2	2	2.1
Norman Conquest	4	1	3			1.6
Queen’s Coronation		2	3	2		1.2
Inventions	2	3				0.9
Railways		1	3			0.8
Events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally		2			2	0.7
Votes for Women			3			0.5
Developments in Medicine and Technology			3			0.5
Race for the South Pole		1			2	0.5
Romans		2				0.4
The Great Exhibition	2					0.4
The Rocket	2					0.4
Victorian School				2		0.3
Victorian Zoos				2		0.3
Victorian Christmas				2		0.3
Discovering the Indies					2	0.3
The Black Death					2	0.3
Victorian Jobs					2	0.3
Stone Age		1				0.3
London 2012		1				0.3
Iron Age		1				0.1
Spread of Christianity		1				0.1
Who was the first to cross the Atlantic Ocean?		1				0.1
Battle of Worcestershire		1				0.1
Civil War		1				0.1
Industrial Revolution		1				0.1
Invention of the Motor Car		1				0.1
Invention of Penicillin		1				0.1
History of Planes		1				0.1

 

There is evidence however, that there are other units that are taught which incorporate people and events that enable a more diverse history to be taught even if they don’t fit neatly into the National Curriculum categories. While Black History Month is clearly signposted in schools in Lambeth and Lewisham, it is not clear whether there is no teaching elsewhere or it has not been incorporated into the curriculum in the same way. Whether a diverse history is taught depends on individual teachers and schools making choices to incorporate these units. 

Other Units						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Dinosaurs	16	13	5	16	18	13.4
Black History Month	10			5		3.0
Ancient Egyptians		1		3		0.8
Christmas Traditions Across the World		1		2	2	0.8
Chinese History		1	3			0.8
Circus	2				2	0.7
Incredible India				3		0.7
London		1	3			0.6
History of Music		1			2	0.5
Civilisation and Destruction	2					0.4
Life 100 Years Ago				2		0.3
African History				2		0.3
Benin				2		0.3
Chinese Emperors				2		0.3
Black Sporting Achievements				2		0.3
Climate Change				2		0.3
Great Barrier Reef				2		0.3
History of World Religions				2		0.3
Invention of Radio and TV				2		0.3
Chocolate and Mayans					2	0.3
Pompeii and the Terracotta Army					2	0.3
History and evolution of Lakes Mountain Rescue		1				0.3
Olympics		1				0.3
Conflicts		1				0.1
Historical Buildings		1				0.1
Changes Over Time – Inuit Way of Life		1				0.1
Indus Valley		1				0.1
Different Countries		1				0.1
Festivals Around the World		1				0.1
Film		1				0.1
Windmills		1				0.1

 

The lives of significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievement:

Many schools choose to teach longer units within which they teach a range of significant individuals. However, this makes analysis difficult if they have not included the specific individuals taught. Certainly units such as ‘Nurturing Nurses’ do tend to include Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole when the individuals are specified. 

The lives of significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievement						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Explorers	10	22	18	19	13	16.3
Significant Figures	18	15	8	7	7	10.9
Kings and Queens	2	11	5	19	8	9.1
Pirates	6	9	3	9	16	8.6
Victorians	8	3	8	9	10	7.6
The Royal Family	12	3		3		3.7
Nurturing Nurses			3	5	7	2.8
Exploration	4		3			1.3
The lives of significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievement		2	3	2		1.2
Inventors	2			3		1.1
Changing Face of Britain				5		1.0
British Prime Ministers		1		3		0.8
Famous Britons	4					0.8
Arctic Explorers – change over time.	2				2	0.7
Significant People – Astronauts		1	3			0.6
Sporting Heroes			3			0.5
Queens		2				0.4
Superheros		2				0.4
The Suffragettes		2				0.4
Figures in History from diverse ethnicities	2					0.4
Changemakers (Years 1 and 2)	2					0.4
Great Women who Save the Planet	2					0.4
Time Travellers	2					0.4
Prime Ministers and World Leaders				2		0.3
Pioneering People				2		0.3
Black Scientists and Engineers				2		0.3
People that Help Us					2	0.3
Famous Olympians		1				0.3
Native Americans		1				0.1

 

The following analysis does not separate whether the individuals were taught as a unit in themselves or as part of one of the units outlined in the previous table. However, it does show the range of individuals taught. Florence Nightingale was a QCA unit and is still the most taught, alongside Mary Seacole. The evidence that inclusion in the non-statutory guidance leads to individuals being taught is mixed. Schools seem more concerned about teaching individuals that fit into overall units such as space or explorers. As teachers and schools make the decision at their own level, it explains why there is a wide variety of individuals taught overall and therefore the experience of pupils in Key Stage 1 varies greatly overall.

Significant Individuals – British						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Florence Nightingale	25	32	25	22	30	26.8
Mary Seacole	41	17	13	28	15	22.7
Captain James Cook	4	1	48	2	10	12.9
Queen Victoria	2	9	13	12	11	9.5
Samuel Pepys	2	10	15	10	10	9.4
Grace Darling	2	4	18	5	18	9.3
Guy Fawkes		17	15	7	5	8.7
Elizabeth I	2	7	8	7	5	5.6
Mary Anning	6	9		2	7	4.6
Elizabeth II		6		7	8	4.2
Tim Peake		3	3	3	11	4.2
Robert Falcon Scott	2	5	3	5	5	4.0
George Stephenson	6	3	8		2	3.5
Isambard Kingdom Brunel	2	2	3		10	3.3
Beatrix Potter		16				3.2
David Attenborough	4	1		2	8	3.0
Sir Francis Beaufort	2		3		10	2.9
Emmeline Pankhurst	2	3	3		5	2.4
Tim Burners-Lee	2	1	3	2	3	2.2
Henry VIII		3	3	3	2	2.1
Alice Hawkins					10	2.0
Richard III					10	2.0
Francis Drake		2	3	2	2	1.6
L.S. Lowry	2		3		3	1.5
William Caxton			3	3	2	1.5
Ernest Shackleton		2		3	2	1.4
Charles Darwin	4	1			2	1.4
Wordsworth		6				1.2
Sir Walter Raleigh			3	2	2	1.2
David Livingston			3		3	1.2
Edmund Hilary			3		3	1.2
Willam the Conqueror	4				2	1.1
Emily Davison		2		2	2	1.1
Henry Pease			5			1.0
Lord Shaftesbury			3		2	0.8
Alexander Graham Bell		1		3		0.8
Ellen MacArthur		1		3		0.8
Jane Goodhall	4					0.8
Claudia Jones	2			2		0.7
Daniel Lambert					3	0.7
George and John Cadbury					3	0.7
Lady Jane Grey					3	0.7
Thomas Cook					3	0.7
Blackbeard		1			2	0.6
Isaac Newton		1			2	0.6
Robert Louis Stevension	2	1				0.5
Alice Schofield			3			0.5
Frank Wild			3			0.5
Gertrude Bell			3			0.5
Jane Austin			3			0.5
John Walker			3			0.5
Lord Chaloner			3			0.5
Nicholas Patrick			3			0.5
Roald Dahl			3			0.5
St Hilda			3			0.5
The Beatles		1		2		0.5
Ann Bonny		1			2	0.5
Charles II		1			2	0.5
Charles I		2				0.4
James Ramsden		2				0.4
Charles Barry	2					0.4
Charlie Chaplin	2					0.4
Richard Branson	2					0.4
Sir Horace Jones	2					0.4
Walter Tull	2					0.4
Floella Benjamin				2		0.3
Frederick Horniman				2		0.3
Grinling Gibbons				2		0.3
Guy Bailey				2		0.3
John Boyd Dunlop				2		0.3
Paul Stephenson				2		0.3
Sir Mo Farah				2		0.3
Spike Milligan				2		0.3
Alfred the Great					2	0.3
Angus MacAskill					2	0.3
Boudicca					2	0.3
Gary Linekar					2	0.3
Henry Walter Bates					2	0.3
Joseph Fry					2	0.3
Joseph Lister					2	0.3
Joseph Merrick					2	0.3
Lady Diana					2	0.3
Phillip Astley					2	0.3
Richard Attenborough					2	0.3
Robert Wallow					2	0.3
Sandra Allen					2	0.3
Amy Johnson		1				0.3
Eddie Stobart		1				0.3
James I		1				0.3
Ranulph Fiennes		1				0.3
Richard Catesby		1				0.3
William Shakespeare		1				0.3
Bear Grylls		1				0.1
Canon Rawnsley		1				0.1
Christopher Wren		1				0.1
Doctor Beaching		1				0.1
Dwayne Fields		1				0.1
Edward Elgar		1				0.1
Edward Jenner		1				0.1
Elizabeth Fry		1				0.1
Jethro Tull		1				0.1
John Cunliffe		1				0.1
John Muir		1				0.1
John Ruskin		1				0.1
King Arthur		1				0.1
Leo Houlding		1				0.1
Mary Kingsley		1				0.1
Mary Queen of Scots		1				0.1
Nelly Spindler		1				0.1
St David		1				0.1
William Hiliary		1				0.1

 

Certainly there is a more ethnically diverse selection of individuals taught when studying the lives of significant individuals internationally compared to significant individuals nationally. This is unsurprising given the composition and ethnic population of Britain throughout most of its history. There is a tendency to focus on the 20th century when selecting which significant individuals to teach both British and International, and this is true regardless of the ethnicity of the individuals selected.

 

Significant Individuals – International						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Neil Armstrong	24	36	28	16	25	25.3
Christopher Columbus	16	22	3	9	20	13.7
Rosa Parks	14	5	3	5	5	6.2
Edith Cavell	4	7		2	7	3.8
Martin Luther King	10	1		2	5	3.6
Wright Brothers	6	5			3	2.8
Ibn Battuta	4			5	2	2.1
Nelson Mandela		2		2	7	2.1
Amelia Earhart	2	1		2	5	2.0
Pieter Bruegel the Elder	2		3		5	1.9
Vincent Van Gogh	2	1			3	1.3
Malala Yousafzai			3		3	1.2
Roald Amundson		1	3	2		1.1
Mahatma Gandhi		1		3		1.0
Katherine Johnson	2	1		2		0.9
Mattthew Henson	2	1			2	0.9
Marie Curie			3		2	0.8
Mother Teresa		1			3	0.8
Dorothy Vaughan	2			2		0.7
Mary Jackson	2			2		0.7
Buzz Aldrin		2			2	0.7
Mae Jemison				2	2	0.7
Louis Braille		3				0.5
Sappho		3				0.5
Bessie Coleman	2	1				0.5
Bob Geldof			3			0.5
John Van Hengel			3			0.5
Marco Polo			3			0.5
Maya Angelou			3			0.5
Ole Kirk Christiansen		1		2		0.5
Anne Frank		1			2	0.5
Paul Cezanne		1			2	0.5
Claude Monet		2				0.4
Emily Davison	2					0.4
Granville T Woods	2					0.4
Henry Ford	2					0.4
Maria Sibylla Meriam	2					0.4
Michael Werikhe	2					0.4
Annie Londonderry				2		0.3
Bob Marley				2		0.3
Christine Darden				2		0.3
Muhammed Ali				2		0.3
Shelley-Ann Fraser-Pryce				2		0.3
Usain Bolt				2		0.3
Valentina Tereshkova				2		0.3
Fatima al Fihri					2	0.3
Guion Bluford					2	0.3
Hans Christian Anderson					2	0.3
Hernan Cortes					2	0.3
Juan Garrido					2	0.3
Jules Leotard					2	0.3
King Charles X of France					2	0.3
Milton Hershey					2	0.3
Moina Michael					2	0.3
Pauline Cafferkey					2	0.3
Phineas Barnum					2	0.3
Roger Arliner Young					2	0.3
Sunita Williams					2	0.3
William Coup					2	0.3
Montgolfier		1				0.3
Albert Einstein		1				0.1
Buddha		1				0.1
John McCrae		1				0.1
Julius Caesar		1				0.1
Kate Sheppard		1				0.1
Margaret Hamilton		1				0.1
Picasso		1				0.1
Sachin Tendulkar		1				0.1
Sergei Prokoviev		1				0.1
St Valentine		1				0.1
Tenzig Norgay		1				0.1
Vasco da Gama		1				0.1
Yuri Gagarin		1				0.1

 

Local History – KS1

 

Where local history is taught, and it is not taught consistently across schools, there is tendency to link it with geography. The actual historical content is difficult to determine. Unlike KS2, there is less linking to wider regional and national events or periods of history of significance. 

 

Local History – KS1						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Local History – Locality/City/Not Specified	30	40	37	32	29	33.6
Local History – Individuals	4	6	3		9	4.3
Local History – School	2	3		2	8	2.9
Local History – Romans		2	3		2	1.2
Local History – Windrush	6					1.2
Local History – Railway Builders	2	1			2	0.9
Local History – Harbours and Ports/Shipbuilding		2				0.4
Local History – London Underground	2					0.4
Local History – Victorian School Life					2	0.3
Local History – Castles					2	0.3
Local History – Textiles					2	0.3
Local History – Transport					2	0.3
Local History – Maritime History		1				0.1
Local History – Mining		1				0.1
Local History – Slave Trade		1				0.1
Local History – Industrialisation		1				0.1
Local History – WW1		1				0.1

 

Primary: The Key Stage 2 Curriculum

 

Clearly the national curriculum areas of study are being followed, though not always chronologically. It seems from the content that could be ascertained, there is a tendency to follow the non-statutory guidance quite closely – e.g. the teaching of Skara Brae as part of Changes from the Stone Age to the Iron Age unit. 

 

KS2 British History						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Lindow Man	2					0.4
Changes in Britain from the Stone Age to the Iron Age	87	86	80	78	85	83.1
The Roman Empire and its impact on Britain	85	87	85	79	92	85.5
Britain’s settlement by Anglo-Saxons and Scots	62	72	68	67	70	67.8
The Viking and Anglo-Saxon struggle for the Kingdom of England to the time of Edward the Confessor	79	75	75	60	82	74.3

 

The influence of the old QCA units can again be seen strongly in the choices made in one of the few units that schools have a direct choice in – a study on an aspect or theme in British history that extends pupils’ chronological knowledge beyond 1066. The non-statutory guidance is not followed in the same way as for other units. However, there is evidence that alongside the usual World War Two unit, some schools choose to add additional units such as Windrush but the greatest predictor of this is the population of the pupils in the LEA, though there are exceptions such as the Slave Trade.

 

The real issue however is the extent to which the units studied constitute a repetition of what they pupils will then study later on. It is unclear that there is collaboration between primary and secondary schools to ensure that this does not happen. As a result, it means that the same periods are being studied – the greatest barrier to a range of history being taught from KS1 to KS3 based on this survey. 

 

a study of an aspect or theme in British history that extends pupils’ chronological knowledge beyond 1066						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
World War 2	62	40	58	59	61	55.7
The Victorians	38	39	25	29	30	32.2
Tudors	23	21	40	40	15	27.8
Changing power of monarchs/ Monarchy	19	14	18	2	5	11.5
Crime and Punishment	8	11	5	9	21	10.7
World War 1	4	10	15	9	10	9.5
British Empire	8	9		9	5	6.0
Battle of Britain		7	8		13	5.5
Railway History	4	5	11	7		5.4
World War 1/2	12	9				4.0
Great Plague	12	1	5		2	3.8
Industrial Revolution	2	6		5	5	3.6
Normans		7	3	2	5	3.3
Slave Trade	6	3	3		3	3.0
Best of British/ British Heroes			13		2	2.9
Leisure and Entertainment		2	5	3	2	2.4
WIndrush		2		3	7	2.4
Transport	2	1			9	2.3
Emigration and Exploration in the Early 1900s			3		8	2.1
History of Medicine	4			5		1.8
Titanic		3		5		1.7
Buildings/Homes		2	3		4	1.7
Stuarts		2	3	3		1.6
Migration/ Immigration	6			2		1.5
Post-War Britain			3	3	2	1.5
20th Century Britain		2	3	2		1.2
14th Century England	2		3	2		1.2
Castles	2	1		2	2	1.2
History of Art Units	2			2	2	1.1
Suffragettes	2				3	1.0
What happened in Britain from 1900-1939	2				3	1.0
Settlements		1	3		2	1.0
Changing Roles of Women		1		2	2	0.9
Middle Ages			3	2		0.8
19th Century Ocean Exploration			3		2	0.8
London		1	3			0.8
Raj/Colonialism in India	2			2		0.7
History of Theatre	2			2		0.7
Tudor Monarchs				3		0.7
Restoration				3		0.7
Windrush and Migration				3		0.7
Civil War		1		2		0.6
Elizabethans		1			2	0.6
Gunpowder Plot		1			2	0.6
Education Through Time		1			2	0.6
1066 to the Reformation			3			0.5
British History/Conflict			3			0.5
Society: Recording the Past			3			0.5
The Windsors		1		2		0.5
How did Britain change after 1945?		1			2	0.5
Britain since 1950 – Civil Rights		2				0.4
English language from Iron Age to Norman conquest	2					0.4
Bristol Bus Boycott	2					0.4
History of Computing	2					0.4
Changes within Living Memory	2					0.4
What happened in Britain from 1066-1900?	2					0.4
The Great Fire of London	2					0.4
Houses of Parliament	2					0.4
Rule of Law and Murder at the Cathedral				2		0.3
Abolition of Slavery				2		0.3
Refugees and Immigration				2		0.3
Christianity and Unit of England and Scotland				2		0.3
Early Law Makers				2		0.3
Jobs 100 Years Ago				2		0.3
War of the Roses					2	0.3
Shakespeare and the Great Plague					2	0.3
British Conflict Since 1900					2	0.3
Partition of India					2	0.3
Building Bournville					2	0.3
Children in History					2	0.3
Children’s Jobs					2	0.3
The Crusades		1				0.3
The Reformation		1				0.3
Georgians		1				0.3
How Has Britain Changed? 1930 – Present		1				0.3
Children in WW2		1				0.3
1960s		1				0.3
Black History in the UK		1				0.3
History of York		1				0.3
Medieval Monarchs		1				0.1
British Queens		1				0.1
Ice Age		1				0.1
Great Britain since Roman Times		1				0.1
Farming in Britain since 1066		1				0.1
The Hanoverians		1				0.1
Irish Famine		1				0.1
Victorian Children		1				0.1
Victorian Inventions		1				0.1
Edwardian Britain and the Titanic Disaster		1				0.1
Homefront – A Child’s View		1				0.1
1950s		1				0.1
1960s and 1970s		1				0.1
World Wars to modern day		1				0.1
Impact of the Slave Trade today		1				0.1
History of Immigration in the UK		1				0.1
Commonwealth		1				0.1
Significant Turning Points in British History		1				0.1
Who Used to Live in Britain?		1				0.1
Sir Nicholas Winton and other people with courage		1				0.1
Seaside		1				0.1

 

The evidence is that schools are choosing to add additional units, those these do tend to focus on international figures more than British ones, to teach ‘black history’. This seems to be the result of the materials that have been produced by various organisations since black history month was first introduced in 1988. The breadth of figures shows the extent to which, again teachers and schools are making decisions at the most localised level, how this fits in with a systematic history curriculum is not clear.

 

While there is evidence for units such as explorers to include individuals such as Torzig Norgay, elsewhere it would seem a more politicised agenda is being driven in the choices of individuals being studied – e.g. Claudia Jones. Perhaps the drive for a ‘diverse’ history is purely ideological driven and divorced from the aims and principles of the history curriculum. This is likely in the end to lead to resistance in the actual diversifying of historical units studied locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. Moreover, the content of such units has to be questioned – is it really providing pupils opportunities to study the events and individuals concerned or are these units leading to a ‘right’ set of beliefs and views for the benefit of external politically motivated actors. 

 

Other History Units						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Important historical figures/ Significant People	33	2			2	7.4
Explorers	2	3	8	7	2	4.4
Black History Month/Week	12		3	4	2	4.0
Inventions/Inventors	4	2	3	4	2	2.8
History of Computing			3		8	2.1
Human Rights	4	1		6		2.1
Significant Scientists	4	1		2		1.3
History of the Camera/Film		1		2	3	1.1
Clothing		1			5	1.1
Communication	4			2		1.1
Dinosaurs	2			2	2	1.1
Polar Explorers				2	3	1.0
Technology	2	1		2		0.9
Change Makers (Yr 5 and 6)	4					0.8
Electricity/Lighting	2			2		0.7
Figures in History from diverse ethnicities	2				2	0.7
Seafarers			3			0.5
Everest			3			0.5
Family History		1			2	0.5
Pirates/and Explorers		2				0.4
Me too Movement/ Equality Act 2010/ Black Lives Matter	2					0.4
Equality	2					0.4
Hidden Figures – Slavery to Martin Luther King	2					0.4
Invention of Plastics	2					0.4
Female Archaeologists	2					0.4
War Child	2					0.4
Black Scientists and Engineers				2		0.3
History of Black Lives Matter				2		0.3
History of Robots				2		0.3
Elections/Fake News				2		0.3
Do All Lives Matter? (Race and Gender)					2	0.3
History of Gardens					2	0.3
History of Numbers					2	0.3
Weapons and War					2	0.3
Refugees and Displaced People		1				0.1
Great Leaders		1				0.1
History of Sport		1				0.1
Journeys		1				0.1
History of Air Transport		1				0.1
A History of Music		1				0.1

 

Individuals – British						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Charles Darwin	4	5			11	4.0
Isaac Newton	2	1	3		11	3.2
Mary Anning	2	2			10	2.8
Richard III					13	2.6
Henry VIII	6	3	3	2		2.6
George Stephenson	4		8			2.3
Edward Jenner	10					2.0
Shakespeare	2		8			1.9
Emmeline Pankhurst	4		5			1.8
Queen Victoria	2	2	3	2		1.6
Ernest Shackleton		1	3		3	1.3
James Lind	2		3		2	1.2
Elizabeth I	2	1	3			1.2
Lord Nelson			5			1.0
Churchill			5			1.0
Marcus Rashford	2		3			0.9
Boudicca			3		2	0.8
William Wilberforce and the Clapham Sect.	4					0.8
Alfred the Great		2			2	0.7
Elizabeth II		1	3			0.6
Edmund Hiliary		1	3			0.6
Captain Scott		1	3			0.6
Sam Beaver King	2	1				0.5
Captain Cook	2	1				0.5
Steve Gibson			3			0.5
Raheem Sterling			3			0.5
Preeti Desai			3			0.5
Jamie Bell			3			0.5
Gareth Southgate			3			0.5
Francis Meadow Sutcliffe			3			0.5
Dr Barnardo			3			0.5
David Kinnersley			3			0.5
Charles Smith			3			0.5
Bill Scott			3			0.5
Benjamin Zephaniah			3			0.5
William the Conqueror		2				0.4
Robin Hood	2					0.4
Paris Lees – Transactivist	2					0.4
Olive Morris – British Black Nationalist/ Activist	2					0.4
Olaudah Equiano	2					0.4
Mary Shelley	2					0.4
Dr Harold Moody	2					0.4
Doreen Lawrence	2					0.4
David Bowie	2					0.4
Alexander Graham Bell	2					0.4
Walter Tull				2		0.3
Alexander Fleming				2		0.3
Tim Peake					2	0.3
Robin Falcon Scott					2	0.3
Robert Hooks					2	0.3
Lady Jane Grey					2	0.3
Kate Luard					2	0.3
Damien Hirst					2	0.3
William Wordsworth		1				0.3
Thomas Coram		1				0.1
Samuel Pepys		1				0.1
Robert Peel		1				0.1
Mike Parker-Pearson		1				0.1
L.S. Lowry		1				0.1
King Canute		1				0.1
John Ruskin		1				0.1
John Paul Jones		1				0.1
John Muir		1				0.1
Isambard Kingdom Brunel		1				0.1
Howard Carter		1				0.1
Gertrude Bell		1				0.1
Francis Pryor		1				0.1
Francis Drake		1				0.1
Edward the Confessor		1				0.1
David Livingston		1				0.1
Charles Rennie Mackintosh		1				0.1
Captain Shaw		1				0.1
Arthur Scargill		1				0.1
Anne Bonny		1				0.1
Aneurin Bevan		1				0.1
Alfred Wallace		1				0.1
Alfred Wainwright		1				0.1
Alan Turing		1				0.1
Admiral Robert Fitzroy		1				0.1

 

Individuals – International						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Galileo Galilei	2	1	3		10	3.0
Nelson Mandela	6	1	3	3	2	2.8
Martin Luther King	4		3	3		2.0
Rosa Parks	6			3		1.9
Christopher Colombus	2	1	3	3		1.7
Matthew Henson	4			4		1.6
Anne Frank	2			3		1.1
Gandhi	2				3	1.0
Amelia Earhart		1		2	2	0.8
Irena Sendler				3		0.7
Oskar Schindler				3		0.7
The Wright Brothers		1	3			0.6
Harriet Tubman	2	1				0.5
Tenzig Norgay	2	1				0.5
Hernan Cortes			3			0.5
Karl Benz			3			0.5
Nellie Bly			3			0.5
Roald Amundsen			3			0.5
Cleopatra		1		2		0.5
Leonardo da Vinci		2				0.4
Aaron Fricke	2					0.4
Barack Obama	2					0.4
Bob Marley	2					0.4
Ellie Simmonds	2					0.4
Harvey Milk	2					0.4
Jessie Owens	2					0.4
Lewis Latimer	2					0.4
Thomas Edison	2					0.4
Cabot				2		0.3
Gudred				2		0.3
Isabella Bird				2		0.3
Louis Pasteur				2		0.3
Marie Curie				2		0.3
Ruby Bridges				2		0.3
Sacagawea				2		0.3
Karl Landsteiner					2	0.3
Wagari Maathai					2	0.3
Alexander the Great		1				0.1
Alfred Wegener		1				0.1
Annie Smith Peck		1				0.1
Archimedes		1				0.1
Augustus		1				0.1
Bessie Coleman		1				0.1
Carl Linnaeus		1				0.1
Charles Francis Richter		1				0.1
Chico Mendes		1				0.1
Dorothy Vaughan		1				0.1
Elvis Presley		1				0.1
Erik the Red		1				0.1
Fanny Bullock Workman		1				0.1
Freydís Eiríksdóttir		1				0.1
Jacinto Canek		1				0.1
John Paul Jones		1				0.1
Josephine Baker		1				0.1
Julius Caesar		1				0.1
Katherine Johnson		1				0.1
Kofi Annan		1				0.1
Chris Kraft		1				0.1
Leif Erikson		1				0.1
Louis Armstrong		1				0.1
Marco Polo		1				0.1
Mary Jackson		1				0.1
Nina Simone		1				0.1
Oprah Winfrey		1				0.1
Pelé		1				0.1
Sidney Poitier		1				0.1
Sophia Loren		1				0.1
Steve McQueen		1				0.1
Tutankhamun		1				0.1
Vivaldi		1				0.1
Walt Disney		1				0.1
Zaha Hadid		1				0.1

 

Local History – KS2.

 

As in Key Stage 1, it is not clear that Local History is systematically studied across all schools. There is a greater tendency to link local history to individuals and events that are of local and national importance to enable pupils to study a greater range of history rather than an opportunity to extend an existing unit. For example, where the local history study is World War Two, then usually World War Two is not included as a separate unit of study too. Where generic local history units have been included on curriculum plans, the exact content is unknown and therefore it is not possible to state what precise content is being taught and to what extent this reflects local diversity. 

 

Local History						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Local History	20	42	42	17	26	29.4
Local History – Windrush	25	1		7		6.7
Local History – Romans		5	3	2	10	3.7
Local History – Richard III					18	3.6
Local History – WW2	10		3	3	2	3.5
Local History – Mining		1	13			2.7
Local History – Victorians	2	2		3	5	2.5
Local History – Migration	8				3	2.2
School’s Local History	4	1			3	1.7
Local History – Railways		2	5			1.4
Local History – WW1		2			5	1.4
Local History – Rivers			5	2		1.3
Local History – Tudors				2	3	1.0
Local History – Industrialisation		1	3		2	1.0
Local History – Cumbrians		4				0.8
War Memorials	4					0.8
Local History – WW1/2		1	3			0.6
Local History – Iron Age			3			0.5
Local History – Castles			3			0.5
Local History – Jarrow March			3			0.5
Local History – Grace Darling			3			0.5
Local History Standing Stones		2				0.4
Crystal Palace and the Impressionists	2					0.4
Local History – Children in WW1				2		0.3
Local History – Social and Political Reform				2		0.3
Local History – Arthur Wakeley					2	0.3
Local History – Glen Parva Lady					2	0.3
Local History – Democracy					2	0.3
Local History – Women’s Lives					2	0.3
School History – Comparison		1				0.3
Local History – Shipbuilding		1				0.3
Local History – Slave Trade		1				0.3
Local History – Economic		1				0.3
Local History – Scottish Invasion of Britain		1				0.1
Local History – Jacobites		1				0.1
Local History – Beatrix Potter		1				0.1
Local History – Entertainment		1				0.1
Local History – Comparison		1				0.1
A Street Through Time		1				0.1

 

Non-British History  – KS2 

The story of schools retaining QCA units repeats itself in the study of Ancient Greece, the most studied of the units (although it is a statutory requirement that it is). In terms of the earliest civilisations, there has been little change – the Ancient Egyptians are the most studied and where the other two suggested civilisations have been included it’s usually in addition to this unit not as a replacement for it. This is understandable given the greater teacher subject knowledge, teaching material available and likelihood that schools have resources already to support the teaching of such a unit. 

 

Ancient Greece						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Ancient Greece	80	82	88	79	85	82.9

 

Achievements of the earliest civilizations						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Ancient Egyptians	80	77	78	64	89	77.4
Shang Dynasty	8	13	8	14	5	9.5
Ancient Sumer		1	3	9	5	3.3
Overview of first civilisations	6	1	3		3	2.6
Ancient Civilisations					2	0.3

 

The non-European society unit is heavily weighted to the Mayans and this choice of unit stems primarily from the fact that it allows for a linked unit with Geography – where primary schools are expected to study North and/or South America. The local population makes a differences as to whether Benin or Islamic Civilisation is taught instead or in addition to the Mayans. 

 

A non-European society						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Mayans	14	59	53	50	48	44.6
Benin	35	10	5	22	11	16.8
Islamic Civilisation	16	6	5	16	21	12.7

 

There is evidence however, that schools do extend themselves beyond the National Curriculum with the inclusion of shorter or alternative history units and in doing so they teach a range of international history. This is sometimes linked to the local population but is more likely to be the result of the interests of the history coordinators in the school or due to the particular scheme of work that the school has bought into to teach the foundation subjects. 

Other non-European society units						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Space Exploration/Moon Landing	19	6	8	5	11	9.8
Aztecs	6	4	3	2	2	3.1
Chocolate Trade	6	3		5		2.7
Native Americans	4	2	3		3	2.3
History of Africa	6					1.2
Indus Valley		1	3		2	1.1
Aboriginal History				3	2	1.0
USA			5			1.0
California Goldrush	4					0.8
Japan			3			0.5
Palestine and Israel			3			0.5
South African History		1		2		0.5
Apartheid	2					0.4
US Women’s Soccer Team	2					0.4
Caribbean	2					0.4
India, China and Japan				2		0.3
History of the Spice Trade					2	0.3
Mughal India					2	0.3
Abbasid Civilisation					2	0.3
Muslim History					2	0.3
Civil War in Lebanon					2	0.3
American War of Independence		1				0.3
Civil Rights		1				0.3
Mayans, Aztecs and Incas		1				0.1
Mayans and Aztecs		1				0.1
History of Brazil		1				0.1
Zulu History		1				0.1
History of America		1				0.1
American West		1				0.1
China and Japan		1				0.1
A brief history of China’s revolution		1				0.1
China		1				0.1
The Middle East		1				0.1
International Studies		1				0.1

 

Other European and World History Units						Average across all LEA’s
	Lambeth	Cumbria	Redcar and Cleveland	Lewisham	Leicester
Holocaust		1		5		1.3
French Revolution		1		2		0.5
History of Slavery	2					0.4
Age of Discovery	2					0.4
Ocean Exploration	2					0.4
Pompeii Archaeologists	2					0.4
EU				2		0.3
History of the European Continent		1				0.1
History of Europe		1				0.1
History of Italy		1				0.1
European Conflicts		1				0.1

 

Conclusion:

 

Overall the primary history curricula taught are largely a reflection of the lack of change since 2014 and shows how much continuity remains in the system. The opportunities to branch out have mostly been taken when it has been necessary – e.g. teaching the Ancient Maya. Schools have clearly used their academy freedoms at times to include a range of units, including units that include individuals and events reflecting a more diverse history but seems to be the result of feeling the need to reflect the local population rather than in ensuring a genuinely broad and balanced curriculum. 

 

The other concern within the system is that lack of collaboration between primary and secondary schools is resulting in repetition of units that will be covered in more depth in Key Stage 3 – e.g. World Wars One and Two, the Tudors and the Victorians. 

 

A greater range of local, regional, national and international history could be taught if greater collaboration existed between the infant and junior schools and then again between the primary and secondary sector. One of the areas of study missing in both primary and secondary is the teaching of European history. Thus claims of Eurocentrism, as made by The Black Curriculum Report for example, are unfounded.

 

There is evidence that individual teachers and schools are trying to teach history that is ‘diverse’ but these are localised phenomenon. The greater politicisation of the teaching of history, as advocated by activist groups, is unlikely to have the impact regarding more diverse histories being taught. This is because some of the units proposed – e.g. Bristol boycotts – are clearly local, and because how they fit into a well sequenced primary history curriculum is not clear and is not made clear. Neither are the units themselves linked to the other areas of the History National Curriculum sufficiently in order to enable links to be made. This may be because the focus of activists is to promote an agenda rather than historical investigation and enquiry.

 

A better approach would be to shift the focus of history teaching units in KS1 to focus more specifically on people and events and away from the history of things – e.g. toys – to enable a greater diversity of history to be taught. A move away from topics would also ensure a greater grounding in KS1 of historical concepts and ideas that would support a more knowledge rich and in depth curriculum in Key Stage 2. The alternative would be to look at popular units, including explorers, and introduce a greater diversity of individuals to be studied in these units, including materials that enable comparisons to be made. This needs to be thought through in terms of the children’s existing knowledge and schema to enable these stories and narratives to be built on over time. 

 

Overall the idea that history is being ‘whitewashed’ in English schools does not match the reality of what is being taught. Moreover, it is important that in aiming to diversify the history curriculum it does not become overly focused on the twentieth century and therefore limit the range of individuals and historical periods studied. In addition, there is a clear risk that in order to meet more politicised content demands that the delineation between studying history and other politicised goals is blurred. This could lead to pupils gaining a distorted sense of the purpose of history study. Ultimately schools need to teach a broad and balanced curriculum, a requirement which is not the objective of external actors and organisations with singular agendas. 

 

I will publish the KS3 equivalent soon.