Sociology (KS5 only)
Sociology is the scientific study of the development, structure and functioning of human society.
The study of Sociology at A Level gives students a deeper and more scientific understanding of the world that they live in and the way in which societies have developed.
The course allows them to develop their own opinions about the factors shaping society and come to conclusions about how individuals interact with and shape the society they live in.
The study and evaluation of sociological perspectives is a particularly rigorous element of the course which students find challenging and stimulating as they explore differing interpretations from sociologists analysing modern society.
Students can go on to further study of Sociology at university and are ideally placed for careers in a wide variety of areas including local and national government, the civil service and charities. Sociology provides the tools and skills students require to take a more active role in creating, participating in, managing, and advancing such groups which shape our society today.
The intent behind the Sociology curriculum is to help students to better understand the world they live in and the reasons why the structures in society have developed in the way that they have.
To do well at A-Level, the students need to understand the trends in modern society, be able to explain why these trends have developed using sociological perspectives and evaluate the contribution of particular sociologists’ perspective, concurrently critiquing their research methods to come to an informed opinion.
They should be able to make synoptic links across the topics that they study as well as applying their real-life knowledge and examples. The two core themes of the A-Level are socialisation, culture and identity and social differentiation, power and stratification. They must understand the significance of conflict and consensus, social structure and social action as well as the role of values.
Further details of the curriculum can be downloaded below.
