• A Level

• AQA

• Entry requirements: GCSE English Grade 6 or above

• Goes well with: Psychology, History, Politics and most other subjects

Sociology is a vibrant and exciting subject which will require you to think differently about the society in which we live. We all have views on the various everyday things that make up our society; crime is rising, teenage pregnancies are more common, religion is losing its influence, and education is allegedly failing many of its students. In this course we will look behind these headline ideas, challenge orthodox views and examine the interesting and complex workings of society.

Year 1

Families and Households

We examine the way in which the family unit is involved in passing on important social messages. We explore the mechanics through which this is achieved and the impact which the lessons learned In the family have on individual people and wider society. We also examine the ways in which our expectations of family are constructed and how the shape of the family is changing as society changes.

Methods

Here we explore the ways in which sociologists conduct their research, how to ensure that the people chosen for a study can produce findings which really apply to the society in which they live, and balance various sociological arguments about the best way to find out about human life.

Education

We explore the role of education in shaping our minds and behaviours. We seek to explain the different rates of attainment between different genders, social classes and ethnicities and ask whether these are down to the traits of those groups or their treatment within the educational system.

Year 2

Global Development

We look at why some nations are poor and some are not, ask whether aid is really a good thing or whether it forces countries to be dependant and try to explain why there is a hierarchy of global nations.

Crime and Deviance

We explore the meaning of crime and how it has been constructed as well as examining the way different groups of people are treated under the law. We seek to explain the main causes of crime in our society and even consider the extent to which crime might be useful. We also explore the repercussions of crime for both its victims and offenders.

Assessment:

Exam based, three 2 Hour Exams taken at the end of year 13 (Each worth 33% of overall grade)