Qualifications Update: Higher History Jane Henderson QDM Qualifications Update: Higher History Jane Henderson QDM

Coherent progression from National 5 and to Advanced Higher Relevant, challenging and enjoyable contexts Opportunities for candidates to show the breadth and depth of what they know Opportunities for candidates to show the application of their History skills Personalisation and choice for learners in the Assignment Key messages

Units combine skills and knowledge and offer flexibility in how evidence is gathered, to challenge and motivate learners Knowledge and understanding and the application of skills build progressively up levels in Unit and in Course assessment Maintains the best aspects of current Higher to ensure the continuing quality and value of History Key messages

Points of stability Applying source handling skills within the Scottish section Extended response questions in the British and European and World sections Familiar areas of study Use of command words/question stems Extended response in the Assignment

Points of change In the Assignment, candidates have an open choice of historical issue or question to study British: Church, State and Feudal Society “How far” no longer in exam Combined question paper of two hours and 20 minutes duration Production of evidence in Assignment up to one hour and 30 minutes

Assessment Support Schedule 2013/14 Sept 13 CfE Update Letter Oct 13 Unit Assessment Support (Package 1) Feb 14 Unit Assessment Support (Package 2) Feb 14 Higher Specimen Question Paper Mar 14 Coursework General Assessment Information Apr 14 Unit Assessment Support (Package 3) May 14 Update Mandatory Documents Jun 14 Update Unit Assessment Support

History Unit Assessment Higher Robert Doig QDC History Unit Assessment Higher Robert Doig QDC

Unit assessment Supports assessment as part of learning and teaching Is flexible in the ways in which evidence can be generated Open in the context which is used and in the form of the evidence

Unit Assessment Support packages – purpose Assess your candidates Adapt in line with your own assessment strategy Help you develop your own assessments

Unit Assessment Support Packages – key features Tell you – with examples – how to judge evidence against Assessment Standards Provide further clarification of the Assessment Standards Encourage and support professional judgment Include advice on adapting to different contexts Valid from August 2014

Unit assessment support packages - approaches Unit by Unit approach – discrete assessment tasks for each Unit Combined approach – groups Outcomes and Assessment Standards from different Units Portfolio approach – evidence generated Assessment Standard by Assessment Standard

Assessment Package 1 Scottish HistoryBritish HistoryEuropean and World History You can use the illustrative examples provided and adapt these to suit the contexts that your learners have studied or the kind of approach that would suit them best N3 Great ScotsTudorsEnd of Imperial China N4 Mary Queen of Scots and the Reformation Changing BritainTea and Freedom N5 Era of the great WarCreation of the Medieval Kingdoms Appeasement and the Road to War H Migration and EmpireChanging Britain Crusades

Assessment Package 2 Scottish HistoryBritish HistoryEuropean and World History You can use the illustrative examples provided and adapt these to suit the contexts that your learners have studied or the kind of approach that would suit them best N3 Burke and Hare Crime and Punishment Life in Victorian BritainPolitical prisoners in the Cold War N4 Migration and Empire North America The Slave TradeFree at Last N5 Treaty of Union People and Power The War of the 3 KingdomsGermany H Wars of Independence Revolution and Resistance Britain and IrelandRussia

Document read-through Overview of Assessment – Contains an outline of the example task – Also includes advice on how to adapt the task – Evidence in one form may be supplemented with evidence in other forms

Document read-through Assessment Conditions – Level of teacher/lecturer support should be appropriate but evidence must be the candidate's own work – When group work is used, evidence of individual achievement is required – Centres responsibility to ensure that all evidence is the individual candidate’s work

Document read-through Assessment Conditions (continued) – SQA has left the conditions of assessment at Unit level open and flexible – Candidates should have sufficient time to complete the task – Candidates should have access to appropriate resources to undertake the assessment – Do not inflate the standard by applying conditions not required by the Assessment Standards – Consistency in the application of these conditions National 3 – Higher

Document read-through Evidence to be gathered – A range of possible forms of evidence may be appropriate – Keep accurate records of the evidence gathered and the assessment decisions made – Only need sufficient evidence to show achievement of the Assessment Standards once

Document read-through Judging Evidence – Table tells you how to judge evidence against the Assessment Standards – Illustrations of possible candidate responses – Approach used can change, Assessment Standards do not change – Columns 1 – 2 are fixed, column 4 will vary with the task

Document read-through Re-assessment arrangements – Assessment should be carried out when the individual candidate is ready – If a candidate fails to provide evidence for all the Assessment Standards, it is only necessary to re- assess the individual Assessment Standard that they have yet to achieve

Document read-through Examples of recording documentation – Exemplar tables for recording candidate’s/group’s achievement of Assessment Standards – These can be adapted as required

Document read-through Assessment Task – Aligns with the prompts in the Overview of Assessment section – Exemplifies one context in which Unit assessment may take place

Workshop 1 Use the materials provided: In groups of 2-3 discuss: – The assessment task in the Unit Assessment Support provided – How to generate evidence for the UAS provided – How to make assessment judgements for the UAS provided

Workshop 1 Use the materials provided: read the UASP (10 mins) focus on the candidate task and the judging the evidence table In groups of 2-3 discuss: how you would use or adapt the task provided (20 minutes) how column 4 illustrates the standard defined in column 3 (15 minutes) the ways in which Unit assessment fits in with your overall assessment strategy (15 minutes) what will you take back to your centre to support others?

History Higher Course Assessment Robert Doig QDC History Higher Course Assessment Robert Doig QDC

Context and Rationale for development of Higher History Level of demand benchmarked against SCQF level 6 as in current Higher Progression and articulation from National 5 and on to Advanced Higher CfE principles e.g. personalisation and choice, importance of skills Opportunity to refresh and update content and contexts Consistency with other Highers as appropriate FIOCA provides further detail

Process of Development Course Specification – aims and rationale of the Higher History Course Unit Specifications – skills developed across all Units and assessed within specified contexts Course Assessment Specification – requirements for Question Paper and Assignment – application of skills to mandatory content

Added Value Makes the Course more than the sum of its parts Builds on current Course assessment and Group Award approaches Defined as breadth, challenge and application as outlined in Building the Curriculum 5 May involve accumulation, assimilation, integration and/or application of skills, knowledge and understanding Uses one or two of 7 defined assessment methods

Adding Value – National 4, National 5, Higher For National 4, the added value is assessed in the Added Value Unit - not graded For National 5 and Higher (and Advanced Higher) the added value is assessed in the Course Assessment - graded A - D (as at present)

Higher – Course Assessment Two components – Question Paper: 60 marks - 66% (75% at National 5) – Assignment 30: marks - 33% (25% at National 5) Skills and knowledge and understanding will have equal importance across course assessment as a whole Both components will be externally marked

Higher – Question Paper Three sections each worth 20 marks: Scottish, British and European and World There will be a choice of contexts in each section. There will be a choice of questions in the British and European and World sections, each worth 20 marks. Mandatory content will be sampled Will assess the skills of analysing and evaluating, and draw on detailed knowledge and understanding of complex issues as well as applying source handling skills Greater emphasis on knowledge and understanding than skills

Higher – Question Paper In the Scottish section there will be 3 questions: 1.Evaluate the usefulness of source A on … (6 marks) 2.How fully does source B explain … (9 marks) 3.Compare the views of sources A and B on … (5 marks) All questions will relate to the issues in the Course Assessment Specification. There are no sub-issues.

Higher – Question Paper Evaluate the usefulness of source A on … (6 marks) Marks will be awarded for comments relating to: Author Purpose Timing Content Context

Higher – Question Paper How fully does source B explain … (9 marks) Marks will be awarded for: interpretation of points from the source points from recall which expand or contextualise the points in the source points must relate to the issue in the question

Higher – Question Paper Compare the views of sources A and B on … (5 marks) Marks will be awarded for : developed comparisons of points of detail from the sources overall comparison of viewpoints of the sources

Higher – Question Paper A limited range of command words/question stems will be used in the paper for extended response questions: To what extent … How important … How significant.. Statement or quote How valid is this view of … Greater clarity and support for centres in general marking principles and detailed marking instructions as to how these questions will be marked

Higher – Question Paper Extended Response Questions Marks will be awarded for: Introduction (2 marks) Conclusion (2 marks) Analysis (6 marks) Evaluation (4 marks) Use of knowledge (6 marks)

Higher – Question Paper Introduction Place the issue in context, identify factors which will be used for analysis and connect these to the line of argument Conclusion Makes an overall judgement on the issue

Higher – Question Paper “Analysis” requires candidates to… Identify parts, the relationship between them, and their relationships with the whole. Draw out and relate implications. SQA Guidance Analysis will derive from a body of knowledge and understanding

Higher – Question Paper Establishing contradiction or inconsistencies within factors E.g. While they were successful in that way, they were limited in this way Establishing contradiction or inconsistencies between factors E.g. While there were political motives for doing this, the economic factors were against doing this Establishing links between factors E.g. This factor led to that factor. Or At the same time there was also.. Exploring different interpretations of these factors E.g. While some people have viewed the evidence as showing this, others have seen as showing.. OR While we used to think that this was the case, we now think that it was really..

Higher – Question Paper “Evaluation” requires candidates to… Make a judgement based on criteria. SQA Guidance Evaluation will derive from a body of knowledge and understanding. Candidates will make a judgment(s) by making evaluative comments and linking these to form a line of argument.

Higher – Question Paper Evaluative comments may include: The extent to which the factor is supported by the evidence E.g. This evidence shows that X was a very significant area of impact. The relative importance of factors E.g This evidence shows that X was a more significant area of impact than Y. Counter arguments including possible alternative interpretations. E.g. One factor was ….. However, this may not be the case because … Or However, more recent research tends to show that …. The overall impact/ significance of the factors when taken together. E.g. While each factor may have had little effect on their own, when we take them together they became hugely important. The importance of factors in relation to the context E.g. Given the situation which they inherited, these actions were more successful than they might appear.

Controlled Assessment Where the assessment method is not a question paper, SQA has introduced the concept of controlled assessment to ensure fairness and reliability Three stages of assessment: Setting, Conducting, Marking the assessment Each will have a defined level of control: SQA-led activity, Shared responsibility between SQA and centres, Centre-led Subject-specific decisions, but mostly SQA-led activity in initial years

Higher – Assignment Opportunity for learner personalisation and choice Candidates will have an open choice of Historical Issue Marked out of 30 Externally marked Evidence produced in controlled conditions in up to one hour 30 minutes Assesses the results of their research

Higher – Assignment Greater emphasis on skills than knowledge and understanding SQA will provide General Assessment Information and the Assessment Task Task does not change from year to year Detailed marking instructions available and can be shared with candidates Guide to candidates will be provided as at National 5

Workshop 2 Use the materials provided: In groups of 2-3 discuss: – the requirements of the Higher Course assessment – How these requirements build on the Higher Units – How these requirements build on National 5 Materials provided: – Further Information on Course Assessment – Assignment read across document

Workshop 2 Use the materials provided: read the FIOCA (10 mins) In groups of 2-3 discuss: the relationship between assessment at Unit level and Course level (10 minutes) aspects of your current practice which you plan to continue (15 minutes) aspects of your current practice which you plan to change (15 minutes) what will you take back to your centre to support others?