A-level history to focus on Britain

More British history is to be taught in schools to counter concern that young people have little understanding of the nation's past.

A-level history students will be forced to spend at least a quarter of their time studying Britain's past. History exams will also be made more difficult under a shake-up proposed by the Government's exams watchdog.

The changes to the sixth- form syllabus were proposed after concern that history lessons were increasingly focussed on 20th- century dictators such as Hitler and Stalin. They form part of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority's wider A-level reforms, which will reduce the number of modules in each subject from six to four, so they can be taught more thoroughly, in 2009.

Currently, schools need only spend one-sixth of their time on British history. Until recently, one syllabus enabled students to select five of their six A-level modules on German history from 1917 to 1939.

Sean Lang, honourary secretary of the Historical Association, who led a Government-commissioned inquiry into secondary school history, welcomed the proposals but said he was wary of ministerial interference in the curriculum.

"We don't have any problem with this at all. Some people worry that British history is going to be all about patriotism or the empire. The idea that there's some sort of political agenda is just daft. British history is just as open to interpretation as anything else," he said.

However, he warned educators to be vigilant about undue interference after a recent call by the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, for a "British Day" to celebrate patriotism and the publication of history books by the Home Office to educate new British citizens about the country's past.

As well as the new minimum, the draft plans also lay down new rules for exam boards when devising syllabuses that students should study a "substantial" amount of British history. The guidelines also set out a requirement that courses should be "broad and balanced" to phase out courses dominated by one topic.

The four units will also have to be linked, for example chronologically or thematically. This is intended to reduce the number of schools who combine very diverse topics at A-level - for example the Tudors and 20th-century dictators - to ensure that students study in greater depth.

Exam boards will also be required to set more sophisticated exam questions after complaints that flawed exams were penalising bright students and rewarding muddled thinking. The Historical Association has highlighted the poor use of historical sources in questions set up by exam boards, which saw teenagers asked "dull and lifeless" questions.

A recent poll of 1,000 young people found that three-quarters did not know that D-Day was the start of the Normandy landings in 1944, while a third thought it marked the end of the Second World War. A third of those polled thought Henry VIII had eight wives, not six, and 80 per cent did not know Queen Victoria's reign lasted for 64 years.

Test your British history

1. Boudicca was the leader of which Celtic tribe?

a) Iceni; b) Trinovantes; c) Armorica; d) Cantiaci

2. For how many years was Britain controlled by the Roman Empire?

a) 667; b) 567; c) 467; d) 367

3. Who started the Domesday book?

a) King John; b) William Rufus; c) William the Conqueror; d) Sheriff of Nottingham

4. How many wives did Henry VIII have?

a) four; b) five; c) six; d) eight

5. What year was the Great Fire of London?

a) 1666; b) 1555; c) 1665; d) 1670

6. What historic event does the nursery rhyme "Ring-a-ring of Roses" commemorate?

a) The Great Fire of London; b) The Plague; c) The Restoration of the Monarchy; d) The Discovery of America

7. Who was the first British Prime Minister?

a) Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington; b) The Earl of Chatham, William Pitt the elder; c) Sir Robert Walpole; d) Henry Pelham

8. When was the Battle of Trafalgar?

a) 21st March 1795; b) 21st October 1805; c) 21st October 1815; d) 21st March 1800

9. When did women receive equal voting rights to men?

a) 1918; b) 1928; c) 1938; d) 1948;

10. The Battle of Britain was part of which conflict?

a) the Boer War; b) World War I; c) World War II; d) 100 years' war

ANSWERS: 1. A; 2. D; 3. C; 4. C; 5. A; 6. B; 7. C; 8. B; 9. B; 10 C