Humanities

The study of geography stimulates an interest in and a sense of wonder about places. It helps young people make sense of a complex and dynamically changing world.

It explains where places are, how places and landscapes are formed, how people and their environment interact, and how a diverse range of economies, societies and environments are interconnected. It builds on students’ own experiences to investigate places at all scales, from the personal to the global.

The geography curriculum at Tuxford Academy provokes curiosity about the world by inspiring students to ask questions and open their minds to change, diversity, interactions, perceptions and representations of place and space.

Within lessons we foster a strong sense of British values and a holistic awareness of spiritual, moral, social and cultural aspects of the world around us. We hope this curiosity leads students to pursue geography beyond key stage 3 to GCSE, A level and into future careers.

A wide range of examples from the physical and human world are used to build students’ understanding of geographical concepts and theories to broaden and deepen their knowledge of place. As such, geography lessons enable all students to gain confidence in core geographical skills, whilst providing opportunities for independent research and creativity through homework challenges allowing students to explore their interests beyond the classroom. Students are fully supported in practising and developing knowledge retention techniques and metacognitive thinking strategies to aid them in becoming resilient and independent learners. Geography also facilitates the development of students’ literacy and numeracy skills, whilst consolidating transferable skills from a wide range of other subject areas.

Approaching lessons through geographical enquiry encourages questioning, investigation and critical thinking about issues affecting the world and people’s lives, now and in the future. Fieldwork is an essential element of this. Providing active and immersive learning opportunities for all across a range of environments is at the heart of our ethos, aiding students to develop their verbal and teamwork skills. Students learn to think spatially and use maps, visual images and new technologies, including geographical information systems (GIS), to obtain, present and analyse information, ensuring our curriculum is modern and engaging.

Geography at Tuxford aims to inspire students to become global citizens by exploring their own place in the world, their values and their responsibilities to other people, to the environment and to the sustainability of the planet.

Tuxford’s history curriculum is meaningful. It provides children and young people with historical knowledge and ideas that are both relevant and enriching to their lives. Our curriculum encourages our students to be empathic, curious, and conscientious. The curriculum has developed our student’s ability to articulate their judgements based on evidence, whilst skeptically questioning the past.

Engaging in the process of historical enquiry and interrogating evidence is central to history at Tuxford.
Every lesson is centered around an historical enquiry, within an overarching question for the scheme of work. Moreover, the students use historical sources constructively, and they are exposed to historical interpretations. Students therefore learn to value history as a dynamic subject of argument. As such, our curriculum is cumulative and reflective: students build knowledge; pursue historical enquiries; engage with evidence and interpretations; and then they communicate their learning in rigorous and creative ways. The skills of deploying evidence, explanation, critical thinking, argument and literacy are of great transferable value and benefit the students across the academy.

Within our curriculum, we have also included studies across time where a clear connection between the past and the present is forged and salient changes and continuities across time are noted. Student’s learning is positioned within a chronological context; a framework from which students can understand their world. Crucial to this rich curriculum is diversity.

The histories that we explore have varied agencies, where different creations of the past are explored. Students are exposed to a range of periods, civilisations and cultures. They explore the local, the national and the international noting the various aspects of history itself, whether they be social, political, religious or economic. Hence, our students are exposed to a variety of histories that are more diverse than the catchment of the academy.

Most importantly, we are proud of our history curriculum and, as teachers, we believe that the history that we teach is relevant and engaging. Students at Tuxford gain social and cultural capital through their studies. The students we produce become citizens who can discuss and debate British values. Here the range of careers pursued by our students is a testament to the curriculum’s success. It also provides students with magic moments and life-enhancing experiences for all children. We hope students are inspired by their learning and choose to pursue history at GCSE level, and our key stage 3 curriculum is guided by a desire to maximise every student’s potential future achievement in GCSE history. As such, we have: competitions, extra guided learning, careers, speakers, artefact boxes, and trips: imbuing them with a lifelong love for history.

Philosophy and ethics at Tuxford Academy allows our students to explore beliefs, morals and ethical issues in a safe, mutually respectful environment. From the start, it enables the reflection and the skills necessary to enhance understanding of a plurality of views and beliefs, on locally, nationally and globally relevant issues. In turn, this enables students to reflect on their own views, as well as giving the opportunity to reflect constructively on the ideologies of others, developing both personally and spiritually.

Throughout the philosophy and ethics curriculum, students will study the beliefs, teachings and practices of religious and non-religious groups, and, using this knowledge and a varied range of activities provided to develop high levels of empathy, becoming active members of a global community. Lessons demonstrate a sense of respect, tolerance and open-mindedness, through the exploration of religions and beliefs, teachings, practices and forms of expression, as well as of the influence of religion on individuals, the family, communities and cultures.

By approaching learning through ‘big’ questions, students are able to explore issues of right and wrong, fundamental questions about existence, differing beliefs about God and what it means to be human. Lessons lend strong support to the pastoral curriculum, exploring many aspects of British values and relationships and sex education. Lessons use independent, student-led discussion and debate to fully foster the verbal confidence skills vital both in the subject and throughout life. This in turn enables students to develop spiritually and morally as well as giving them an opportunity to make sense of their own place in the world. The subject also promotes literacy as students learn to explain and describe their own views, and the views of others, using interpretation of texts to anticipate, describe and explain diverse views.

As students transition from key stage 3 to key stage 4 and beyond, their philosophy and ethics lessons will continue to enable them to express their own ideas, and the ideas of others, but also develop an understanding of appropriately selected worldviews with an increasing level of discernment, based on interpretation, evaluation and analysis, developing and articulating well-reasoned positions.