A Level Politics

Entry Requirements: Grade 6 in GCSE English. Grade 6 in a Humanities subject (History, Geography, RE, Economics or Sociology)

Exam Board: Edexcel

Course content:

Politics is a good subject for someone who is developing an interest in the news, and in the stories behind the news. Studying politics will make you better informed than most of your fellow students, and many adults too. Politics (sometimes called “Political Studies” or “Political Science”) is an academic discipline. Like most subjects, you will need to learn some facts, some dates and some key concepts. You will need to develop the skills necessary to write essays in which you, for example, evaluate the powers of the Prime Minister, or analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the UK Constitution.

Year 12 Component 1: UK politics · Democracy and political participation · Party policies and ideas · Elections and electoral reform · Pressure Groups and group politics · Voting behaviour and the media · The UK Constitution · Parliament · The Prime Minister and Cabinet · Judges and civil liberties · The EU Component 2: Political ideas · Socialism · Conservatism · Liberalism · Feminism

Year 13 Component 3: US politics & comparative politics · Elections · Parties · Pressure groups · Supreme Court and Civil Rights · US Constitution · President · Congress · Comparison of US and UK politics Other Key Skills Politics students develop a wide range of transferable skills. Students must learn to discover information using books, periodicals, the press, databases and the internet. They learn to read for meaning, to take useful notes, to memorise relevant details, to construct complex arguments and to illustrate them by referring to specific political situations. Students learn to present arguments convincingly, both orally and in writing. Future careers National and Local Government, the Civil Service, the Foreign Office, the European Union, Education (including postgraduate research and teaching), journalism, media, publishing, law, administration, marketing, personnel management and sales all require the kinds of skills developed in A Level Politics.

Complimentary A-Levels Politics can be taken alongside a range of A-level choices, but it does compliment subjects such as History, Economics, Geography, RE, Sociology and English Literature particularly well.

Assessment:

Assessments will be through written examinations with a mixture of essays and source-based questions.