2012

1. 2012 CHANGES TO HY1 FOR TEACHING FROM SEPTEMBER 2012 WITH THE FIRST EXAM IN MAY 2013

2. HY1 CHANGES Changes to the GCE History AS units, HY1 and HY2 have been accredited by the examinations regulator, OFQUAL. These changes result from a Government scrutiny of the subject in 2009. They apply for first teaching from September 2012. The first examinations in the amended style will be available in May 2013.

3. HY1 CHANGES THE SPECIFICATION HAS CHANGED FOR ALL HY1 UNITS. Please ensure that you are teaching the new specification – only available online. The amended specification and the amended specimen assessment materials are available now on the WJEC website www.wjec.co.uk

4. HY1 CHANGES Each period study for HY1 now offers a choice from four topic areas. Some of these are additional content areas, some have been created by splitting existing topic areas. Some of the other general topic areas have had their content amended slightly to make the coverage clearer. There are NO changes to the content of the Period Study at HY4 – these changes apply only to HY1.

5. HY1 CHANGES An example of the specification layout for HY1 showing FOUR topic areas: the original template has been retained.

6. HY1 CHANGES A summary of the main changes to the Period Studies.

7. HY1 CHANGES The nature of the questions and the expectations of the Examiners have not changed – though the mark scheme has. The question paper will still be worth 120 UMS marks. More time will be allowed for the paper to meet concerns that 90 minutes left no time for thinking and planning. We are adding 10 minutes THINKING TIME to the paper in the hope that candidates will spend the extra time to consider and plan a response to the exact questions set. The HY1 examination will last for 1 hour and 40 minutes from the Summer of 2013.

8. HY1 CHANGES In each question on the examination paper, key words which relate to historical concepts will be highlighted. For example: • The changing role and status of women, 1880-1929 • (a) Explain why women were granted the right to vote by 1928. [24] • Was the First World War mainly responsible for the changing role and status of women 1880-1929? [36] There is no other change to the style or layout of the question papers – an example of which follows:

9. HY1 CHANGES An example of the HY1 examination paper showing the instruction page and all four questions on the reverse.

10. HY1 CHANGES The mark schemes for HY1 have changed considerably but we have retained three levels in both Part (a) and Part (b). The current arrangement of splitting the assessment objective up into strands of AO1a and AO1b has been replaced by an amalgamated version: Assessment Objective 1. This is the official description of Assessment Objective 1: Candidates recall, select and deploy historical knowledge appropriately, and communicate knowledge and understanding of history in a clear and effective manner. Candidates demonstrate their understanding of the past through explanation, analysis and arriving at substantiated judgements of key concepts such as causation, consequence, continuity, change and significance within an historical context; the relationships between key features and characteristics of the periods studied.

11. HY1 CHANGES The mark scheme is laid out as follows for Part (a) and Part (b).

12. HY1 CHANGES The mark scheme then has a generic grid showing the three levels. In each level there is a general description of the type of response expected and then each level is divided into LOW, MID and HIGH responses with a description of the characteristics at each point and the mark range available. Here is a Part (a):

13. HY1 CHANGES A LEVEL 3 GRID IS SHOWN NEXT FOR CLARITY

14. HY1 CHANGES LEVEL 3 OF THE PART (a) GRID. Note that the demands of the mark scheme has not changed – we have been required to amalgamate AO1a and AO1b.

15. HY1 CHANGES Then there is a section showing the INDICATIVE CONTENT for each sub question – the general introduction here is not a get out clause: it is simply a reflection of the range of possible content.

16. HY1 CHANGES

17. HY1 CHANGES The mark scheme for Part (b) follows the same structure. THE THREE LEVELS OF THE PART (b) GRID.

18. HY1 CHANGES • INDICATIVE CONTENT FOR QUESTION 4(b) • NOTE: This content is not prescriptive and candidates are not expected to mention all the material referred to below. Each answer will be assessed on its merits according to the generic mark scheme as well as the indicative content. • QUESTION: • To what extent was the First World War mainly responsible for the changing role and status of women 1880-1929? • Candidates are expected to reach a substantiated and supported judgement about whether the First World War was mainly responsible for the changing role and status of women 1880-1929. • The impact of the First World War on the changing role and status of women should be analysed and evaluated in relation to issues such as: • introduction of legislation which gave women more access to work • the response of women to the war effort • the changing attitudes of many men as a result of the war • the general demand for more political reform • The impact of the First World War on the role and status of women should be evaluated against other factors responsible for the changing role and status of women in this period. Some of the issues to discuss may include: • the change in attitude of the various governments across the period • the overall impact of the suffrage movements • the economic emancipation of women • social and cultural change in general • changing educational opportunities • impact of specific individuals and campaigners • the high points of the extension of the franchise in 1918 and 1928