A LEVEL SOCIOLOGY
During this course you will learn to consider how individuals are socialised, controlled and constrained by a number of institutions including the family, the mass media, the education system and many more.
The A Level is broken down into three units and the course is assessed through exams only, using a mixture of short and long essays. Below is an overview of some of the key themes being studied.
KS5 topics by year
Year 12
Introducing sociological terminology and theory
In this unit you will develop an understanding of:
- Sociological language
- Sociological theories:
- Functionalism
- Marxism
- Feminism
- Social Action
- Postmodernism
Socialisation, Culture and Identity
In this unit you will look at how cultures are formed, and how they change over time.
- These include high culture, popular culture and cultural diversity
- The process of socialisation, which includes the nature versus nurture debate, feral children, primary and secondary socialisation.
- How agents of socialisation shape our identities. These include the family, mass media, religion and education.
- The creation and reinforcement of gender, age, sexuality, disability, nationality, class and ethnicity identities.
Socialisation, Culture and Identity
In this section you will study:
- The creation and reinforcement of gender, age, sexuality, disability, nationality, class and ethnicity identities.
Sociology of Youth Subcultures
In this section you will study:
- How and why are youth culture and subcultures formed?
- Why do young people participate in deviant subcultures?
Research Methods
In this section you will study:
- A range of methods and sources of data and the factors influencing the design of sociological research
- The relationship between theory and methods
- The practical, ethical and theoretical issues arising in sociological research
Understanding social inequalities
In this section you will study:
- Examine patterns and trends in social inequality in relation to social class.
REVISION & MOCK EXAMS
Year 13
Understanding social inequalities
In this section you will study:
- Examine patterns and trends in social inequality in relation to gender, ethnicity and age
- Investigate the main sociological explanations
Globalisation and the Digital Social World
In this section you will study:
- Factors affecting social change in the modern world
- The relationship between globalisation and digital forms of communication, including social media, convergence and the digital revolution.
- The impact of digital forms of communication on individual identity, social inequality and culture.
Crime and Deviance
In this section you will study:
- A detailed study of crime and deviance
- The social construction of crime and deviance
- Patterns and trends of crime and deviance in a global setting
- Social distribution of offending and victimisation, in terms of class, gender and age.
Crime and Deviance
In this section you will study:
- Theoretical explanations of crime and deviance
- Solutions to the problem of crime and deviance
REVISION
Key Contact
If you would like any more information about this subject, please contact Kirsty Wilson at