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New, Novice or Nervous? 163: Historical significance
Teaching History feature: the quick guide to the no-quick-fix
Historical significance first appeared in England’s National Curriculum for history in 1995. It entered the assessment framework (Level Descriptions) in 2008. In 2014, it became part of the History NC ‘Aims’. One thing never changes, however: it is hard.
But history teachers have written a great deal about historical significance...
New, Novice or Nervous? 163: Historical significance
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The role of takeaways in shaping a history curriculum
Teaching History article
Jonathan Grande explains how he and his department faced up to the paradox that teaching rich detail is vital for good historical learning and is vital for students to remember in the short term, but is not essential to remember for ever. This article sets out his exploration of why...
The role of takeaways in shaping a history curriculum
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Teaching & Assessing Historical Understanding
Teaching of History Series No.63
The purpose of this pamphlet is to broach several issues relating to a child's understanding of some key concepts in History. These are:
Cause and consequence.
Time concepts, i.e. change, continuity, development, progression and regression.
Evidence.
Significance.
Similarity and difference.
Under each of these headings, consideration will be given to: ...
Teaching & Assessing Historical Understanding
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Teaching History 138: Enriching History
The HA's journal for secondary history teachers
02 Editorial
03 HA Secondary News
04 Alf Wilkinson: Making cross-curricular links in history: some ways forward (Read article)
08 James Woodcock: Disciplining cross-curricularity? Cottenham Village College history department's inter-disciplinary projects: an evaluation (Read article)
13 Michael Monaghan: Having ‘Great Expectations' of Year 9 Inter-disciplinary work between English and history...
Teaching History 138: Enriching History
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Teaching, learning and sharing medieval history for all
Teaching History article
Medieval history is on the rise. Among the many recent reforms in the history curriculum is a requirement for medieval themes at GCSE and across the country the new linear A-level offers fresh opportunities for teachers to look beyond the traditional diet of Tudors and modern history. The huge divide...
Teaching, learning and sharing medieval history for all
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Teaching History 106: Citizens and Communities
The HA's journal for secondary history teachers
This edition deals with the complex debate about whether history should be taught for intrinsic or extrinsic reasons. Balancing the rationaland the emotional in the teaching of contentious topics, Historical significance, Local historical enquiry, Citizenship, Teaching political concepts to post-16 students and much more...
‘Don’t worry, Mr. Trimble. We can...
Teaching History 106: Citizens and Communities
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On-demand webinar: Historical writing
Embracing messiness: teaching disciplinary thinking in history
Embracing messiness: teaching disciplinary thinking in history
Session 4: Historical writing
This session focuses on how we can support our students to write like historians. We will explain why PEE models and other simplistic frameworks actually limit our students and instead we should look to the work of historians as...
On-demand webinar: Historical writing
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Recorded webinar: Making history accessible: context and considerations
Webinar series: Making history accessible
Session 1: Making history accessible
This webinar provides an overview of recent key developments in SEND, including statutory guidance and regulations from Ofsted’s latest Education Inspection Framework and the SEND improvement plan. Drawing on SEND toolkits, we reflect on how to embed inclusive practice. This is explored in the context...
Recorded webinar: Making history accessible: context and considerations
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Doing History at University 2025
Thinking of studying history at university?
Booking closed
(Registration is via Cademy which opens in a new window. Please read the HA CPD terms and conditions before registering)
We are pleased to be hosting a Doing History at University event for students and teachers in partnership with the University of Sheffield. The aim of the event is to...
Doing History at University 2025
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Teaching History 201: Out now
The HA's journal for secondary history teachers
Read Teaching History 201: Interpreting the Past
Interpreting the past is the daily bread-and-butter of history teaching. In each lesson, an history teacher interprets the past to their pupils, structuring and shaping the way in which they present historical material in order to form a coherent lesson. Planning lesson sequences...
Teaching History 201: Out now
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HA Secondary History Survey 2012
HA Survey
A little over a year ago Michael Gove announced the introduction of the English Baccalaureate (EBacc). It would transform education and rid schools and young people of ‘soft subjects'. However the real impact so far has been less than impressive. Those schools that already taught history well to GCSE continued...
HA Secondary History Survey 2012
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Giving students proper recognition for historical oracy
Teaching History article
It was concern about Year 13 students’ reluctance to articulate their thinking that prompted Toby Dove to review his approach to the promotion of oracy within history. Having recognised the importance of young people being able to express and defend their claims in valid ways, as well as the ways...
Giving students proper recognition for historical oracy
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Harnessing the power of community to expand students’ historical horizons
Teaching History article
Many history teachers will already be familiar with ‘meanwhile, elsewhere...’, a website offering freely downloadable homework resources on individuals, events and developments in world history. In this article the website’s creators, Richard Kennett and Will Bailey-Watson, set out a curricular rationale for the project. They argue that using homework tasks...
Harnessing the power of community to expand students’ historical horizons
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Film: Inequalities in the teaching and practice of history in the UK
Discussion: Response to the RHS report
This resource is free to everyone. For access to our library of high-quality secondary history materials along with free or discounted CPD and membership of a thriving community of history teachers and subject leaders, join the Historical Association today
This film (above) recorded in March 2019 features a discussion between Jatinder...
Film: Inequalities in the teaching and practice of history in the UK
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Exploring the challenges involved in reading and writing historical narrative
Teaching History article
‘English king Frederick I won at Arsuf, then took Acre, then they all went home': exploring the challenges involved in reading and writing historical narrative
Paula Worth draws on three professional traditions in history education in order to build a lesson sequence on the Crusades for her Year 7s. First,...
Exploring the challenges involved in reading and writing historical narrative
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Historical significance - the forgotten 'Key Element'?
Teaching History article
How many history departments regularly discuss the quality of their enquiries and teaching processes that relate to historical significance? It would not be unusual, in 2002, for a history department to spend time in a department meeting reflecting upon pupils’ learning about causation or to explore the connection between pupils’...
Historical significance - the forgotten 'Key Element'?
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Film: What's the wisdom on... Historical Interpretations
Your Virtual History Department Meeting
We’ve been talking to our secondary school members and we know how difficult life is for teachers in the current circumstances, so we wanted to lend a helping hand.
'What’s the wisdom on…' is a new and already popular feature in our secondary journal Teaching History and provides the perfect stimulus for a...
Film: What's the wisdom on... Historical Interpretations
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Census 2021: using the census in the history classroom
Article
As we approach the next census in March 2021, we are reminded of what a rich historical source the census is. For historians, using the census can shine a light on particular people and places – a snapshot in time. Big stories can be told through a sharp local lens...
Census 2021: using the census in the history classroom
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200 editions of Teaching History
23rd September 2025
Standing on the shoulders of giants
We're proud to announce the publication of the 200th edition of Teaching History, the UK’s leading journal for secondary history educators. This landmark issue marks over five decades of thought leadership, innovation, and community-building in history education.
Over the last 50 years, Teaching History has...
200 editions of Teaching History
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Past Forward: History for all
Article
This paper takes four premises for granted: (i) that a coherent, motivating, demanding historical education is essential for all citizens in today’s society. This is not a luxury, it is a burning necessity in the interests of social inclusion, human rights and the preservation of democracy; (ii) that the present...
Past Forward: History for all
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'Now listen to Source A' : Music and History
Teaching History article
In Steve Mastin’s classroom, pupils do not just read, look at and observe their historical sources. They listen to them. Steve’s classroom is already full of music. He uses it variously - to focus, settle or simply to expand the cultural curiosity of his pupils. Pupils expect to walk in...
'Now listen to Source A' : Music and History
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On-demand webinar: Assessing the historical parts
Meaningful and useable assessment in the secondary history classroom
Webinar series: Meaningful and useable assessment in the secondary history classroom
Session 2: Assessing the historical parts
This session will explore how history teachers can isolate and assess individual components, or parts, of pupils’ historical knowledge, but without reducing this to an assessment of isolated facts. The session will include examples...
On-demand webinar: Assessing the historical parts
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Contribute an article to Teaching History
Contribute to our journals
Do you have an idea that you'd like to share with the Teaching History community? It's through member contributions that the HA maintains such a rich subject community – we'd love to hear from you!
Please don’t worry about being tentative, and please don’t worry if you have never written before! We really...
Contribute an article to Teaching History
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Britain’s forgotten colony? Why Hong Kong deserves a place in the story of empire
Teaching History article
Ollie Barnes encountered Hong Kong history on honeymoon and, powerfully, in the classroom in Nottinghamshire. Historical changes in the former colony’s present had resulted in increasing numbers of Hong Kongers arriving in school. This history demanded attention – important historical changes were in process and pupils needed to understand them....
Britain’s forgotten colony? Why Hong Kong deserves a place in the story of empire
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Firing enthusiasm for history through international conversation
Teaching History article
Richard Kerridge and Sacha Cinnamond explain how their history department built a culture of international dialogue and collaboration that enriches their students' historical learning. Videoconferencing is at the centre of these activities. Their story begins with an initial, moving encounter with the First World War battlefields that soon turned into...
Firing enthusiasm for history through international conversation
