What is the WJEC historic site study, and how is it examined in the thematic Unit 3?
The compulsory historic site study built into every WJEC Unit 3 thematic study: a nominated historic site that runs for the lifetime of the specification, studied for its features, function and above all its significance, and examined within the compulsory Unit 3 questions through knowledge, second-order concepts and source or interpretation work.
A focused guide to the compulsory WJEC Unit 3 historic site study, explaining the nominated historic environment requirement, how the site is studied for its features, function and significance, and how it is examined within the thematic paper.
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What this dot point is asking
This dot point covers the compulsory historic site study that WJEC builds into every Unit 3 thematic study. WJEC nominates one historic site for each thematic option, and it is studied for the lifetime of the specification. You need to know what the site study is, why it is part of the required content rather than an optional extra, what you must understand about a site (its features, function and above all its significance), and how it is examined within the compulsory Unit 3 questions.
What the historic site study is
The three levels of study
How the site is examined
Why the site matters in the theme
Try this
Q1. What is the historic site study in WJEC Unit 3? [Knowledge recall]
- Cue. A compulsory study of one nominated historic site, used for the lifetime of the specification, examined within the thematic paper for its features, function and significance.
Q2. Explain how the site can be tested in the Unit 3 exam. [Short explanation]
- Cue. Through describe questions on its features (AO1), explain questions on why it mattered and how significant it was (AO1 and AO2), and source or interpretation questions about the site that feed the wider thematic argument (AO3 and AO4).
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
WJEC Wales (Unit 3)4 marksDescribe two features of the nominated historic site.Show worked answer →
The historic site describe question (AO1). Reward two distinct, developed features of the site, each with one supporting detail.
Feature one. State a physical or functional feature of the site, for example its layout, the buildings on it, or how it was used within the theme of crime and punishment.
Feature two. Give a second, different feature, again with one precise supporting detail.
Top marks. Two distinct features, each developed, drawn from the nominated site rather than the theme in general.
WJEC Wales (Unit 3)8 marksExplain why the nominated historic site was important to the theme studied.Show worked answer →
The historic site explain question (AO1 and AO2), focused on significance. Reward a developed analysis of why the site mattered, each reason supported.
Reason one. The site illustrates a key development in the theme, for example a change in how offenders were punished or held, and shows that change in concrete form.
Reason two. The site is significant because of its scale, its influence on practice elsewhere, or how long its impact lasted.
Reason three. The site is remembered or used as a symbol, which adds to its significance today.
Top band. Connect each reason to the wider theme and judge how significant the site really was.
Related dot points
- How to judge the significance of the nominated WJEC Unit 3 historic site using clear criteria: whether it was representative or unique, how far its influence spread, how long its impact lasted, its scale and duration, and how it is remembered, then how to turn that judgement into a supported answer that links the site to change over time.
A focused guide to judging the significance of the WJEC Unit 3 historic site, covering the criteria of representativeness, uniqueness, influence, scale, duration and how the site is remembered, and how to turn that judgement into a supported answer.
- How to describe the nominated WJEC Unit 3 historic site for the AO1 questions: its key physical features and layout, its function within the theme, why it was built or located where it was, and the wider context of the time, used as precise evidence rather than vague description.
A focused guide to describing the WJEC Unit 3 historic site, covering its key features and layout, its function within the theme, why it was built or located where it was, and the wider context, used as precise evidence.
- The new crimes of the early modern period (vagabondage, witchcraft, smuggling and heresy), the continuing reliance on amateur law enforcement, the harsher and more public punishments, and the influence of religion and economic change, c.1500 to 1700.
A focused answer on the early modern section of the WJEC Crime and Punishment thematic study, covering new crimes (vagabondage, witchcraft, smuggling, heresy), amateur law enforcement, harsher public punishments, and the influence of religion and economic change.
- The long-term change and continuity in law enforcement (from amateur constables and the watch, to the 1829 Metropolitan Police, to modern scientific policing) and in the purpose of punishment (from deterrence and retribution, through prison, to rehabilitation), and the factors that drove change.
A focused answer on the long-term change and continuity in law enforcement and the purpose of punishment across the whole WJEC Crime and Punishment study, and the factors (such as religion, government, attitudes and technology) that drove change.
- The Welsh perspective on crime and punishment: the Rebecca Riots of the 1840s as a Welsh protest crime, the Merthyr Rising of 1831 and Dic Penderyn, the impact of poverty and industry on crime in Wales, and how the Welsh context illustrates the wider themes of change and continuity.
A focused answer on the Welsh perspective in the WJEC Crime and Punishment thematic study, covering the Rebecca Riots, the Merthyr Rising and Dic Penderyn, and how the Welsh context illustrates the wider themes of change and continuity.
Sources & how we know this
- WJEC GCSE History (Wales) specification (3100) — WJEC (2017)
- WJEC GCSE History Guidance for Teaching (Wales) — WJEC (2017)