Sociology

Staff

Role 

Mr S Porter Teacher of Sociology, Assistant Head 

What is Sociology?
  • Why does poverty exist?
  • How does poverty affect a child's life chances?
  • How does the media portray teenagers?
  • Does the media have any kind of impact on our behaviour?
  • You will spend at least 15,000 hours of your life in a classroom. Why?
  • What are schools for? 
  • Men commit more crime than women. Why?
  • Thousands of students attend failing schools every day. Why aren’t schools better?

Studying sociology will provide you with the answers to these questions and many more about the society you live in today.

Everyone is part of society. Society has helped shape who you are and how you experience life – but how much do you understand about it?High crime rates in our inner cities, ‘binge drinking ladettes’, boys’ underachievement in school, the effects of divorce on children, racism and the police, the effects of the media on violent behaviour… these are among the great debates of today. They are the subject of countless views and opinions, many of which are ill-informed or prejudiced, most expressed simply from personal and often very limited experience.

This is where Sociology comes in – because these are all SOCIAL issues. The Sociologist sets off to try and understand our human world a little better. This task is often challenging and controversial, but to many it is also fascinating and rewarding.

Sociology, then, is the study of people in society.

By learning how society operates you will be learning how the world works, you will be putting your current life in context and preparing yourself for what society may have in store for you, you will gain the knowledge, analytical and debating skills to add your voice to the great popular discussions of our time in areas such as the family, education, the police/judiciary, the media, religion and politics.

How will I be assessed?

Sociology a 100% exam based course. There is no coursework. You will sit two 1 hour and 45 minute exams at the end of year 11. In order to prepare you for the exam, you will be required to complete essays and shorter exam questions each week.

We follow the AQA specification.

Subject content

1. The sociological approach
2. Social structures, social processes and social issues
3. Families
4. Education
5. Crime and deviance
6. Social stratification
7. Sociological research methods

Paper 1: The sociology of families and education 

  • The sociology of families 
  • The sociology of education 
  • Relevant areas of social theory and methodology

Paper 2: The sociology of crime and deviance and social stratification

  • The sociology of crime and deviance 
  • The sociology of social stratification 
  • Relevant areas of social theory and methodology