History Study Centre
History Study Centre provides a vast collection of digitised primary and secondary sources for the study of global history from
ancient times to the present day, and is particularly well-suited for learners at A/AS level.
Download JISC Collections for Schools' NEW catalogue page for History Study Centre
Relevance to the National Curriculum
History Study Centre contains primary and secondary source material relevant to learners of history at all levels, however, it is particularly appropriate for learners at A/AS level. It includes, but is by no means limited to, medieval, early modern, nineteenth and twentieth century British history; the First and Second World Wars; the Cold War; modern American history.
Please see an example of how History Study Centre can be mapped to the AQA AS & A2 History syllabus.
Content
History Study Centre is divided into 5 types:
- Study units present material selected on over 500 topics, and make it easy to find the most relevant content of multiple types (e.g. journal articles, images, maps etc.) on a given historical topic. They provide a good starting point for learners new to a topic, while document based questions provide a method of consolidating knowledge on some of the most widely-studied topics.
- Historical documents feature primary source texts ranging from transcripts of historical speeches to digitised newspaper articles and government documents.
- Maps & reference includes over 50 encyclopedias, biographical dictionaries and atlases. These are sources of reliable, factual information for learners. Also included are over 70 topic overviews, and essay-length introductions to historical themes and texts.
- Multimedia offers images and video clips, all captioned to provide historical context, plus links to selected websites of interest to historians.
- There are over 60 journals relevant to the study of history which can be searched or browsed by tables of content. These include a range of titles, including History Review which is specifically intended for A & AS level history learners.
There is also an interactive timeline showing around 200 of the major events in world history.
The journal database is updated on a monthly basis. The rest of the site is updated approximately every 6 months. Study units are reviewed on at least a biannual basis.
Access options
A range of access options is on offer to enable teachers and learners to use JISC Collections for Schools resources both within the school (for example by IP address) and from home (for example via Shibboleth, a link on the school's secure intranet, and / or username and password).
Pricing
Pricing is calculated on the basis of the total number of learners at schools that choose to subscribe to History Study Centre, either independently or as part of a buying group.
Individual schools may subscribe at the price based on the total number of learners in their school.
The pricing for History Study Centre will increase by 3% over each year of the agreement, and there will be an administration fee of £35 to cover JISC Collections administration and invoicing costs for all invoices over £500. This administration fee only applies to the History Study Centre agreement.
Subscription and invoicing information
- Pricing for History Study Centre will increase by 3% over each year of the Licence agreement.
- For the History Study Centre agreement only, there will an administration fee of £35 to cover JISC Collections administration and invoicing costs for all invoices over £500. This nominal fee shall be added be added to each invoice if applicable.
- Schools or buying groups can join the agreement at any time from 1 April 2008.
- The licence agreement runs until 31 July 2011, with a potential opt-out on 31 July 2009 (with 3 months notice).
- After 1 August 2009 subscribers are required to maintain their subscription until 31 July 2011.
- Subscribing schools or buying groups will be invoiced annually. The first invoice is on receipt of the Licence Agreement Form. Subsequent invoices will be sent 1 August for the lifetime of the agreement.
- Schools or buying groups entering into an agreement from 1 April 2008 to 31 July 2008 will pay the pro-rata amount of Year 1 prices, from the date at which they enter the agreement until 1 August 2008.
- Schools or buying groups entering into an agreement during the course of the subscription year, will pay the pro-rata amount from the date at which they enter the agreement until 31 July of the subscription year.
See our subscription faqs for more information.
How to get the best price
Regional Broadband Consortia are taking an active role in coordinating buying groups to achieve the highest possible discount for individual schools in their region. In places where this is not the case, JISC Collections is aggregating orders at a regional level.
If your school is interested in placing an order, or finding out about buying groups in your region, please email jcs-info@jisc.ac.uk
4 steps to subscription
- Organise your buying group. Your buying group can be an individual school, an informal group of schools making a single transaction, a local authority for some or all of the schools in its region, or a Regional Broadband Consortium for some or all of the schools in its region.
- Become a member of JISC Collections. Download the membership registration form if you are an English or Scottish school, local authority or Regional Broadband Consortium not already a member of JISC Collections. Contact Sarah Fahmy at jcs-info@jisc.ac.uk if you are an individual school, local authority or Regional Broadband Consortium in Northern Ireland or Wales not already a member of JISC Collections.
- Download and read the licence and retain a copy for your records.
- Download and complete 3 copies of the appropriate agreement form.
- Keep 1 copy of the agreement form for your records and send the other two copies to:
Sarah Fahmy
JISC Collections
Brettenham House
5 Lancaster Place
London, WC2N 7EN
Help with subscription
To complete the Licence Agreement Form you will need to have the names of schools represented within your buying group, the total number of learners represented, and the IP range of the schools represented.
On receipt of the agreement, an invoice will be sent to you and access to the resource will be set up for the schools represented in you buying group.
If you need any help, email Sarah Fahmy at jcs-info@jisc.ac.uk who will assist you. Please ensure that you have ready the total number of learners represented by your school or buying group.
Support for teachers
Teachers can use images, maps and primary source documents as the basis for study whether in homework or project assignments or for classroom participation exercises. Document based questions can also be used as exam/essay practice (e.g Why were the Bolsheviks able to seize power in October 1917? Answer the question in an essay format by applying your knowledge of the era and by making a direct reference to the accompanying primary source documents.)
Additionally, over 40 animated maps are ideal for classroom use - for example an animated map with rats showing the spread of the Black Death.
Teachers can use My Archive to create multiple folders of selected items that they wish to present to a class, and learners can create their own personalized My Archive folders with items they have selected.
See further examples of how History Study Centre could be integrated into the classroom.
Once you have subscribed, the following information and support for use of History Study Centre is available:
Free trials
If you would like to evaluate History Study Centre before making a purchasing decision, you can have free access for 30 days. This trial access is provided through username and password. The access will only be active for 30 days - so please ensure that you and your colleagues take advantage of the opportunity for free evaluation.
Email jcs-info@jisc.ac.uk to set up the 30 day free trail.