Department: Sociology

Curriculum Intention: To give opportunities to the curious to explore and ask questions of the world around them. To provide students with an opportunity to critically engage in exploring theories of society using topics of immediate relevance to them and their lived experience of society around them. Sociology enables students to explore experiences of others which may be unfamiliar to them; it allows them to explore perspectives which are both supportive and critical of ‘the way things are’ enabling them to consider carefully their own points of view regarding important elements of being an active member of society. Students will consider the role and impact of: elements of identity; power structures; influence of the media on us as individuals and collectively; the purpose of education; the strengths and challenges of family structures; the social construction of crime and deviance. Sociology will ensure that students are able to develop their skillset in the areas of independent thinking, research, critical analysis and extended writing. To effectively prepare students for further study or training in a range of areas from sociology to business to journalism to medicine to teaching to public services and many areas beyond.

Curriculum Implementation:

• KS5 - AQA Sociology
  • Year 12:
    • Sociology Foundations – key concepts and theories of society
    • Family and Household – role & purpose; changing family structures; roles & relationships; childhood; changing demographics
    • Education – role & purpose; relationships & processes; achievement in relation to gender, class and ethnicity; education policy
  • Year 13:
    • The Media – role of media; the New media; ownership & control; globalisation; the news; representations relating to age, class, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, disability; audiences
    • Crime and Deviance – role and function; trends in crime; globalisation; green crime; state crime; the media & crime; law enforcement

Monitoring and assessing curriculum impact:

• KS5 – students are regularly assessed on their understanding of key concepts; they are also regularly assessed with exam questions. This develops through their studies across the two years, building on skills and knowledge from previous topics and questions.
• Students take 3 exam papers at the end of Year 13 covering all the topics above.