GCSE History
History is a reading and writing GCSE: every unit asks learners to analyse and evaluate sources and interpretations, and both NEA enquiries require a planned, drafted and refined analytical answer that reaches a substantiated judgement. Numeracy is light and content-led, mainly handling chronology across long periods and reading statistical evidence such as mortality or unemployment figures. The biggest thing Key Stage 3 should build is the routine of reading a source closely, judging how useful and reliable it is, and turning that judgement into a structured paragraph.
- First taught
- September 2026
- Amount of literacy work
- High
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the WJEC specification (PDF)
How this GCSE is assessed
- Unit 1: An in-depth study on Welsh history: Written examination 1 hour, 30%
- Unit 2: An in-depth study on European and/or World history: On-screen non-examination assessment 3 hours, 20%, marked by WJEC
- Unit 3: A study of a period in world history: Written examination 1 hour, 30%
- Unit 4: A changing society: Non-examination assessment 4 hours 15 minutes, 20%, marked by the centre and moderated by WJEC
Skills that use Proofreading, editing and improving
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Planning, drafting and critically reflecting on an enquiry
Both NEA units follow five stages: form a hypothesis, analyse the items, plan the response, develop it, then critically reflect on the process and conclusion. Unit 4 explicitly asks for planning, drafting and refining.
Literacy: Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context, Proofreading, editing and improving
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils plan an answer on life in a medieval Welsh town using a simple writing frame, then use a checklist to improve one paragraph.
- Year 8
- Pupils plan a local history enquiry on Aberdare in the First World War with a spider diagram, draft it, and redraft one section after peer feedback.
- Year 9
- Pupils complete a mini enquiry in five lessons that mirror the five NEA stages, finishing with a short written reflection on how their hypothesis changed.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 4, Section 4.1, page 54; Section 3.2, Unit 2 and Unit 4 overviews, page 57
“planning, drafting and refining an analytical answer that reaches a conclusion which responds to their selected question”
Progression step 3
I can explore different ways to plan, draft and present my work appropriately.
I can reflect on, edit and redraft to improve the quality of my expression, and use a range of strategies to ensure greater clarity.
Progression step 4
I can select and use appropriate strategies to plan and develop my writing for different purposes and audiences.
I can improve writing through independent review and redrafting.
Progression step 5
I can select and use appropriate strategies to plan and develop my writing for a challenging range of different purposes and audiences.
I can improve the content, structure and accuracy of my writing through critical reflection, review and editing, responding constructively to feedback.
Good to know
- No marks for spelling, punctuation and grammar are mentioned anywhere in the specification. All marks sit under AO1 to AO4 (Section 3.1, page 56), with AO3, judging "source material, historical interpretations and historical debates", worth 30% overall.
- Calculator use is not stated in the specification, and the numeracy demand is content-led rather than calculation-heavy.
- Unit 1 and Unit 3 are each a "Written examination: 1 hour" for 60 marks (Summary of assessment, pages 5 and 6), so extended answers are written by hand under time pressure.
- Unit 2 is typed: "Learners will complete the assessment of Unit 2 digitally" through the WJEC e-assessment platform (page 57), in 3 hours for 80 marks.
- Unit 4 takes "4 hours and 15 minutes" and "could be completed in one sitting, or in multiple, shorter sessions" (page 57); the specification does not say whether it is handwritten or typed.
- Unit 4 learners "should engage with four items (two historical sources and two interpretations) per theme" (page 53), so reading load in the course is heavy.
- Appendix A ticks all four literacy strands for every unit (page 62) but only two numeracy strands, geometry and measurement, and statistics (page 63).
Links with other GCSEs
Source evaluation and bias overlap with Geography Unit 4, and extended analytical writing overlaps with English Language and Literature.
Source: WJEC GCSE History specification, Teaching from 2026, For award from 2028, Version 6, June 2026.