Sociology

Exam Board: AQA

Year 1

Education

• The role and functions of the education system
• Achievement of social groups by social class, gender and ethnicity in contemporary society
• Relationships and processes within schools, with particular reference to teacher/pupil relationships, pupil identities and subcultures, the hidden curriculum, and the organisation of teaching and learning

Families and Households

• Changing patterns of marriage, cohabitation, separation, divorce, childbearing and the life course
• Gender roles, domestic labour and power relationships within the family in contemporary society
• The nature of childhood, and changes in the status of children in the family and society

Year 2

Beliefs in Society

• The relationship between social change and social stability, and religious beliefs, practices and organisations
• Religious organisations, including cults, sects, denominations, churches and New Age movements
• The significance of religion and religiosity in the contemporary world, including the nature and extent of secularisation in a global context, and globalisation and the spread of religions.

Crime and Deviance

• The social distribution of crime and deviance by ethnicity, gender and social class, including recent patterns and trends in crime
• Globalisation and crime in contemporary society; the media and crime; green crime; human rights and state crimes

Crime control, surveillance, prevention and punishment, victims, and the role of the criminal justice system and other agencies.

Assessment

100% exam

Requirements

General Sixth Form admission requirements.

Where can it lead?

Studying Sociology is a valuable way to gain greater knowledge about yourself as well as the wider society. The A-Level provides progression to Higher Education and as entry to a wide range of jobs including the Police, Social Work, Journalism, Teaching, Probation work, Youth work and Nursing.