What is sociology?
Sociology can be described as the study of people and society. It involves looking at all aspects of social life including families, education, crime, media and poverty for example, and examining how these factors can influences peoples lives. During the two year course we explore issues as why girls and boys behave differently, why some groups are poor and others rich, why young boys have the highest crimes rates, whether violence in the films and media can lead to violence in real life, why there is racism in socity.
Course Structure
The sociology GCSE will consist of two components covering six topics. These modules will be assessed in two separate exams at the end of the course in year 11. Please note the topic of research methods appears in both components and will be taught throughout the duration of the course.
Component 1
- Key concepts and processes of cultural transmission
- Families
- Education
- Sociological research methods
Component 2
- Social differentiation and stratification
- Crime and deviance
- Applied methods of sociological enquiry
Key concepts and processes of socialisation
New born babies have to be taught how to live in society. We will look at how children acquire their identity and the processes involved in teaching children acceptable behaviour. A detailed investigation is made into feral children (children brought up in the wild by animals or neglected). We will also study the nature-nurture debate, considering whether our behaviours are a result of upbringing or natural differences, and whether there are different patterns of upbringing for boys and girls
Families
Learners will study different types of families in Britain and how they have changed over time. We will consider patterns such as the increasing rate of divorce, changing roles of men and women, growth of new types of family, along with the topic of childhood. We will also look at how sociological theories such as Marxism and feminism explain the role of the family.
Education
Learners will study how processes within schools may affect achievements such as labelling and the hidden curriculum. We will consider patterns of achievement according to gender, class, and ethnicity, and how sociological theories explain these patterns such as Marxism, functionalism and feminism.
Social differentiation and stratification
There is still great inequality between people in the UK. We will consider inequality between men and women, social classes, ethnic groups, age groups, disability and sexuality. In this module, learners will look at how these inequalities arose, the extent of the inequalities and different life patterns. For example, gender inequality would involve a study of differences between males and females in the school, the workplace, the home and the way men and women are presented in the media; an examination of changes in gender roles such as the ‘new man’ and the ‘career woman’; the laws which have been passed to bring about equal rights and how effective these laws have been.
Crime and deviance
Learners will undertake a detailed investigation of various aspects of crime in society. We look at crime rates for different groups; the reliability of the criminal statistics; the causes of crime; youth crime; theories of crime and punishment and how the media present and label deviant groups.
Sociological research methods and applied methods of sociological enquiry.
Sociology is an evidence based subject. Research methods used by sociologists to examine and research society are taught in year 10 and year 11. Learners will develop an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the main research methods and which are most appropriate for different topics. For example, we consider how deviant groups such as criminals could be researched. Would observation or questionnaires be most appropriate and what issues might arise with each method? As learners progress they will be required to design their own research and become familiar with all of the stages of research design and the interpretation of data.
Summary of assessment
Component 1
- 50% of the qualification
- Written examination: 1 hour and 45 minutes
- The exam will involve a written assessment with a mix of short answer, structured, and extended response questions, all of which are compulsory.
Component 2
- 50% of the qualification
- Written examination: 1 hour and 45 minutes
- The exam will involve a written assessment with a mix of short answer, structured, and extended response questions, all of which are compulsory. The extended response questions will require students to draw together different areas of knowledge, skills and understanding from across all of the GCSE content.
Grading
Please note that grading for the Sociology GCSE follows the English system of 9-1. This means that at the end of studying the qualification students will be awarded a number from 9-1, with 9 being the top grade, as is the way GCSEs are awarded in England. Please refer to the conversion table using the link below to see how this works, and if you require any further information please do not hesitate to get in touch.
Specification
Future Options
The GCSE provides a suitable foundation to study sociology at A-Level. It combines successfully with a wide variety of subjects and is useful for many jobs. Learners are likely to meet up with a sociology module in numerous higher education courses such as journalism, medicine, criminology, history, education, law, and town and country planning. As such, the knowledge, understanding and skills acquired during the course will provide a sound basis for further learning and numerous career choices.
Credits:
Created with images by vegefox.com - "unity" • lucid_dream - "Family" • darkmedia - "Two friendly adventurers on mountain tops" • yanadjan - "children folded their hands together, play on the street. Selective focus." • Africa Studio - "Small model of house and family on nature background" • saksit - "Group of little preschool kids hands up in class . portrait of children diversity education concept." • calypso77 - "oor and rich piggy bank on balance scale - Concept of social inequality between rich and poor" • astrosystem - "Police car with blue lights on the crime scene in traffic / urban environment." • amazing studio - "Magnifying glass on charts graphs paper. Financial development, Banking Account, Statistics, Investment Analytic research data economy, Stock exchange trading, Business office company meeting concept." • vectorfusionart - "Composite image of words exam"