Social Darwinism and race in the British Empire
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain the importance of Charles Darwin's ideas for British imperialism in the mid-19th century.
Key learning points
- The British Empire was very large and ruled over a diverse mix of people.
- Charles Darwin developed the theory of natural selection and evolution.
- Social Darwinism adapted Darwin's theories to claim that some groups of humans were superior to others.
- Social Darwinism was used to justify imperialism.
- Many ideas were used to justify British imperialism, such as the desire to spread Christianity.
Keywords
Empire - an empire is a collection of territories or countries ruled by a single person or government
Colonies - colonies are countries and territories ruled over by another country
Evolution - evolution is the process of gradual change which occurs over long periods of time
Social Darwinism - Social Darwinism was the false claim that Charles Darwin's ideas apply to human societies, making some groups of people superior to others
Imperialism - imperialism refers to the control of one country over another and the expansion of a country's empire by gaining new colonies
Common misconception
Ideas of racial superiority were the only justification for British imperialism.
Cultural and religious beliefs such as a belief in the superiority of Christianity helped to justify an encourage British imperialism throughout the 19th century.
Teacher tip
In learning cycle 1, rather than present pupils with a choice of adjectives, they could be asked to provide two of their own which can appropriately describe the British Empire and then asked to justify their choices.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is an empire?
Q2.Write the missing word. Charles developed the theory of evolution.
Q3.Write the missing word. A } is a country or territory ruled by another country.
Q4.Who gained control over Bengal, in India, between 1757 and 1764?
Q5.Which statement is most accurate?
Q6.Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match each of the key words to its correct defintion.
territories ruled over by another country
collection of territories ruled by a single person or government
refers to a country's expansion of the territory under its control
Q2.Write the missing word. People often claimed that 'the never sets on the British Empire.'
Q3.Which type of British colony offered more political power to the people who lived in it?
Q4.What did Social Darwinists falsely argue skull measurements could show?
Q5.Which religion did many people in Britain claim made their country superior to others?
Q6.Which statement is most accurate?
To help you plan your 9 history lesson on: Social Darwinism and race in the British Empire, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 9 history lesson on: Social Darwinism and race in the British Empire, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 history lessons from the The British Empire: how far was it transformed in the mid-nineteenth century? unit, dive into the full secondary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.