Sociology is a highly valuable and engaging subject which helps students analyse important matters in society that affect their personal lives, communities, and the world.  Sociology A level students will develop skills valued by higher education and employers, including critical analysis, independent thinking, and research.

At Radnor House we study the AQA Sociology course (code: 7192), a highly popular course which covers a range of topics and a variety of different approaches.  The topics range from how gender, ethnicity and class affect educational achievement to how we decide who are the criminals in our society.  This is also done with an examination of research methods, giving the students a valuable understanding of how the information that they are shown is created and the ability to evaluate strengths and limitations of this data, a critical skill in the modern world. 

Aims and Objectives:

- To promote an interest and enthusiasm for the subject
- To see how society functions around them and how it affects people differently
- To develop a range of critical thinking skills allowing them to analyse and synthesise information effectively
- To help understand the world around them

Course Description

Year One
Students will study two topics:

1. Education with Theory and Methods.  In this topic we investigate the role and functions of the education system and how various factors such as ethnicty , gender and social class play a role in educational attainment.  Students also look at how government policy and processes within schools shape the educational experience.  In this section students also learn about different methods of data collection and how they should be applied in research.

2. Health. We cover the sociological explanations of the social construction of health and how the unequal social distribution of health chances in the UK are affected by social class, gender, ethnicity, and region. Pupils also look at the role of medicine, the health professions, and the globalised health industry.

Year Two
Students will cover two topics:

1. Crime and Deviance.  Students will investigate the social construction and distribution of crime, deviance, social order, and social control and how it is affected by ethnicity, gender and social class.  We also look at the globalisation of crime in contemporary society and how crime is controlled.  In this section students will also learn about different methods of data collection and how they should be applied in research. 

2. Global Development.
We will investigate global forces and how they affect development, under-development and global inequality.  Students also see the role of globalisation and its influence on the cultural, political and economic relationships between societies and how the modern globalised world is created and recreated around them.

Assessment

The AQA Sociology A level qualification is assessment with three externally-examined papers at the end of Year 13.

Progression

As Sociology develops a wide range of skills and knowledge there is a broad array of potential careers linked to it.  These can include jobs such as the police, social work, marketing, journalism, think tank researchers and human resources officers.  Any role which benefits from understanding the world around you will be helped by Sociology.