Sociology

“The truth is hidden and we need to unravel layers to reach the very core of society, to discover it and change the illusion that most hold to be the truth”

Anon.

Sociology is the study of society, patterns of social relationships, social interaction and culture of everyday life. It is a social science that uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about social order, acceptance and change or social evolution. Here at Bordesley Green Girls' School and Sixth Form, this subject is currently offered only at A Level, rather than lower down the school, but is a tremendously popular choice amongst students.

'Curiosity leads to questioning, questioning leads to exploration, exploration leads to discovery and discovery leads to the truth'.

The Sociology curriculum at B.G.G.S focuses on different traditional focuses of sociology include social stratification, social class, social mobility, religion, secularization, law, sexuality, gender and deviance.

' You are now who you think you are. Take away your thoughts, identity, beliefs, values, and now think who you are'.

Assessment

Year 12

Year 13

Year 12
Term	Topic/ Enquiry questions/ Key skills	Type of Assessment
	Education with Methods in Context The role and functions of the education system, including its relationship to the economy and to class structure. 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. Differential educational achievement of social groups by social class, gender, ethnicity in contemporary society. The significance of educational policies, including policies of selection, marketization and privatisation, and policies to achieve greater equality of opportunity or outcome, for an understanding of the structure, role, impact and experience of and access to education: the impact of globalisation on educational policy. Methods in Context The application of sociological research methods to the study of education	A-level Style questions A-level Style questions
	Research Methods The relationship between Positivism, Interpretivism and sociological methods and the nature of ‘social facts’. The theoretical, practical and ethical considerations including choice of topic, choice of methods (s) and the conduct of research. The distinction between primary and secondary data,. and between quantitative data and qualitative data Sources of data, including questionnaires, interviews, participant and non-participant observation, experiments, documents, official statistics and quantitative and qualitative research methods including: their strengths and limitations of research design	A-level style questions
	Families and Households The relationship of the family and to the social structure and social change, with particular reference to the economy and to state policies. Changing patterns of marriage, divorce, cohabitation, separation, divorce, child-bearing and the life course, including the sociology of personal life, and the diversity of contemporary family and household structures. Gender roles, domestic labour, power relationships within the family in contemporary society. The nature of childhood and the changes in the status of children in the family and in society. Demographic trends in the UK since 1900, birth rates, death rates, family size, life expectancy, ageing population and migration/globalisation.	A- Level style Questions
Extra-Curricular Activities [Top of page]

Year 13
Term	Topic/ Enquiry questions/ Key skills	Type of Assessment
	Theory and Methods Consensus, conflict, structural and social action theories. The concepts of modernity and post modernity in relation to sociological theory. The nature of science and the extent to which Sociology can be regarded as scientific. The relationship between theory and methods. Debates about subjectivity, objectivity and Value Freedom. The relationship between Sociology and Social Policy.	A-level Style questions
	Crime and Deviance Crime, deviance, social order and social control. The social distribution of crime and deviance by ethnicity, gender, social class including recent patterns and trends in crime. Globalisation and crime including the media and crime, green crime, human rights and state crime. Crime control, surveillance, prevention and punishment, victims and the role of the criminal justice system and other agencies.	A-level style questions
	Beliefs in Society Ideology, science and religion including both Christian and non-Christian religious traditions. The relationship between social change and social stability and religious beliefs, practices and organisations. Religious organisations, including cults, sects, denominations, churches, new age movements, and their relationship to religious and spiritual beliefs and practice. The relationship between different social groups and religious/spiritual organisations and movements, belief and practices. The significance of religion and religiosity in the contempoary world, including the nature and extent of secularisation in a global context, and globalisation and the spread of religions.
Extra-Curricular Activities [Top of page]

How we assess the impact of what your child has been taught:

SOCIOLOGY
How will classwork be marked/ monitored/ graded/ self-assessed?	KS3	n/a
	KS4	n/a
	KS5	Class notes won’t be marked as it’s the responsibility of the student to make sure there completed. If timed questions/exam questions are completed within class, then they will be peer marked or /self-assessed with a mark scheme or teacher marked and returned with a follow up lesson of whole class feedback on that question.
What classwork will be marked?	KS3	n/a
	KS4	n/a
	KS5	This won’t be tick marked as students will take ownership over classnotes.
How will students ‘reflect’ on marking/ feedback?	KS5	Students will respond to feedback using green pen on model answers and purple pen for improvements on answers.
How will Homework be marked/ monitored/ graded?	KS3	n/a
	KS4	n/a
	KS5	Homework will be essay questions, and that will be marked by the teacher and it will be graded in accordance to the exam mark scheme. The class teacher will then have a follow up lesson with the students, and they will then go through that specific question and provide students with a model answer. It will then be corrected and improved.
What are the formal Assessments? When are they marked?	KS5- There will be a combination of mock exams, extended essay questions at the end of each unit, starter activities of shorter questions, 10 mark questions will be in the lessons which will be self and peer assessed with a WWW/EBI to follow.