History students prepped for Uni
BUDDING historians were given a taste of university life during a recent visit from experts in their field.
Dozens of A-level pupils at Kings School, in Macclesfield, were given lectures and seminars by specialists from universities around the country.
Organised by the school’s head of department, it was hoped the experience of listening to the works of the leading academics would give them first had experience of what they could expect from life as an undergraduate.
Giles Barker, head of history at King’s, said it was also useful in helping students prepare for their upcoming exams.
He said: “The purpose of organising the forum was twofold. First, to help both year groups prepare for their upcoming exams through accessing world respected expertise and, second, to give them some experience of what university education is like by attending lectures and seminars.”
Five academics from several universities, including Manchester Metropolitan and Nottingham Trent, spoke to students about aspects of their research into the Crusades and the War of the Roses.
Andrew Jotischky, professor of medieval history Royal Holloway, told the youngsters how studying history was vital to understanding some of the conflicts that mar the world today.
He said: “If we want to understand why there is conflict in the Middle East today we have to go back in time to see the political forces that created those tensions.
“We are not dealing with the same issues today, but we are examin- ing the roots of those issues and the job of the historian is to explain and interpret those nuances.”
David Grummitt, head of humanities at Canterbury Christchurch University, said the study of history challenges students to analyse difficult situations.
He said: “History remains one of the most genuinely useful disciplines. It requires the student to take on large amounts of information, examine different points of view, think about them critically and form their opinion both in writing and conversation.”