Curriculum Statement
Sociology, the study of Society aims to create independent, critical thinkers who have an awareness of how sociology affects every part of our lives. Studying Sociology at school will introduce learners to aspects of modern life that would prepare them for understanding the world around us. Learners will be required to take an interest in current affairs and analyse their own experiences of society. Taking Sociology both at GCSE and A’ Level helps students to gain knowledge and understanding of key social structures, processes and issues through the study of families, education, crime and deviance, belief and social stratification. Studying Sociology will also prepare our learners for careers where they need a good understanding of social groups. The Police, Education, Media, Social Work, Caring Professions etc are all areas where Sociological study is useful.
Year 10
Students cover four key topic areas throughout the year and these are taught by two specialists. Initially students study sociological approaches in the first two terms as an introduction to the topic whilst also applying these theories to a detailed study of Education which all students are able to relate to. The topic of Education continues until around Easter of Year 10 when they will then learn about Sociological Methods. In tandem with this topic, the Sociology of the Family is covered which will take up the rest of the academic year. Mock examinations will then be sat in the summer term.
Year 11
In Year 11, students will cover two topics side by side. These are Crime and Deviance and the Stratification. Crime and Deviance topics include theories of crime and how certain characteristics such as gender, class and ethnicity can be linked to crime. The study of Social Stratification explores affluence and poverty, life chances and a discussion on the role of the Welfare State, Globalisation and power theories. These topics will be completed by Easter of Year 11 allowing time for revision and mock examinations.
Year 12
The Year 12 curriculum builds on the skills and knowledge of the KS4 curriculum covering very similar themes. The content is again split and taught by two specialists. In Year 12, students will be taught a brief introduction for those students who do not have a GCSE background and as a refresher for those who do. The topic of Education is revisited but in much greater depth and with the requirement that students must learn more key studies and apply more sophisticated levels of evaluation. Education topics include: types of schools, sociological theories of Education and the impact of class, gender and ethnicity of educational outcomes. Similarly, students will study the Sociology of the Family but in greater depth. This unit covers types of families, divorce and power within the family and sociological perspectives on the family. At the end of year 12, students will learn about sociological methods and how these can specifically be applied to the study of Education.
Year 13
The topics in year 13 are again taught by two specialists teaching two separate topics concurrently. The section on Beliefs begins with defining the functions of religion and moves on to the more critical theories of Marxism and Feminism. Postmodernism and belief are covered along with social characteristics, secularization and the debate between science and religion. In the curriculum on Crime, learners will explore theories of crime including left and right realism, class, gender and ethnicity, media and crime and aspects of global and green crime. In the lead up to the final exams in the summer of year 13, students will have time to revise key topics and perfect exam technique.
Further information can be found for the GCSE course at:
https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/sociology/gcse/sociology-8192
Further information can be found for the ‘A’ Level course at:
https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/sociology/as-and-a-level/sociology-7191-7192