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As a sociologist, you will study the impact of social structures on people’s opportunities and experiences and begin to understand the reasons why people differ depending on their circumstances. This course is designed to appeal to you if you are curious about the world in which we live, what makes us the people we are and what our role and function is in society. You will investigate different social functions such as youth cultures, education, social inequalities, crime and deviance. A central theme is the research methodology used by sociologists to collect their data.
Five GCSEs at grade 4 or above including English Language.
On this course, you will study: Year 1: Education – Why do some pupils achieve more qualifications than others? Is it because of their class, gender or ethnicity, or is there an exact correlation between hard work and exam results? We will examine the functions of education, patterns of academic attainment by class, gender and ethnicity, labelling and subcultural pupil groups and policies affecting education. We will also discover how sociologists research education. Youth Culture – Factors influencing the formation of youth cultures including the media, economic changes, globalisation and the impact of class, gender and ethnicity. Looking at the changing nature of youth cultures including punks, hippies and now gangs. Investigating why youth subcultures commit crime and are often linked to drugs. How does the media influence our views and understanding? Theoretical perspectives of youth cultures: functionalist, Marxist, feminist, postmodernist, interactions.Year 2: Social Inequalities – We will study evidence and examples of areas of inequality related to social class, gender, ethnicity and age in the contemporary UK; evidence and examples may be drawn from across the specification. Changing patterns of inequality including the distribution of income, wealth and social mobility in the contemporary UK. Crime and Deviance – We study patterns of criminal and deviant behaviour. Why are black men stopped and searched by the police more than white or Asian men? Why do men commit more crimes than women? Does capitalism cause crime? We also look at crime prevention and punishment, victimisation and a range of theoretical perspectives including Radical Criminology and Left Realist Approaches. Again, we will consider how globalisation may have shaped the nature and extent of crime.
Teaching is delivered by a variety of methods such as small group work, presentations, quizzes, debates and practical research. The research undertaken by students will allow them to experience some of the practical, ethical and methodological issues that sociologists encounter in their fieldwork.
Three exams at the end of the second year: Paper 1: Socialisation & Culture. Variety of short answers as well as essay responses.Paper 2: Methods and Social Enquiry. Variety of short answers as well as essay responses.Paper 3: Social Inequality and Crime and Deviance. Variety of short answers as well as essay responses.
A good A Level pass in a range of subjects will help you to progress to Higher Education or relevant employment. A sociology degree, and the skills it brings, is invaluable for careers in social research, law, teaching/lecturing, social work, the police force, journalism, media, politics and many others.
