Bede or Beowulf? Reflecting on the constructed narratives of teaching medieval history in schools in England

The GCSE syllabus changes from 2014 introduced an element of medieval history across all examination boards. The content and structure of these new topics largely reinforces the traditional stereotypes of Key Stage 2 and 3 school history. Pressures of external examinations combined with insecure teacher specialist knowledge and few opportunities for training do not create a rich pupil experience. The government National Curriculum review (2025) includes recommendations for further use of oracy and Drama in schools as well as reducing content in the GCSE History syllabus. This article shows how the famous Old English poem Beowulf can be used as a teaching tool in History lessons to better inform pupil learning of early medieval England in relation to Key Stage 3 and to specific GCSE papers. It finds that using Beowulf in the classroom would draw upon the emotions and senses to connect landscape and memory, artefacts and conventional historic narratives in an innovative and creative way to deepen the hinterland of pupil knowledge and build upon those government recommendations. It suggests that we should reflect on how ‘history’ itself is constructed and how we could reimagine the past as scholars, teachers and students.