A LEVEL
12,000 years ago the largest society numbered about 100.
Today we’ve got megacities peopled by more than 24 million.
How did we get here? And how has our world changed as a result of societal evolution?
Welcome to Sociology – the scientific study of society and human behaviour.
Everyone’s an armchair sociologist – opining on how society works based on their own experiences.
As a real Sociologist, you’ll be asking moral and political questions about how society works, defining hypotheses and then conducting research using four very different methods to prove or disprove those theories.
On this course you’ll explore in great detail these research methodologies before carrying out your own.
The wide range of topics you’ll study on this course also includes socialisation, sociological enquiry and power.
Socialisation defines influences and how they inform our identity.
When we’re young, typically families are our entire social world, with our parents or guardians the source of primary socialisation. But television, the internet, and the wider media are also huge influences on our personality and behaviour – and we’ll study how, and why, as part of this course.
We’ll also look into societal challenges such as inequality.
We got started today looking at the first examples of society – hunter gatherers. As time passed, we became first a horticultural and pastoral society, then agrarian, and through the revolution of the same name, industrial. And today, we live in a post-industrial society, where wealth is generated not by manufacturing and raw materials, but by knowledge, services and technology.
As societies changed, so surpluses grew, and with them – inequality.
It is often argued that societal change is driven by technological change. But technology also drives inequality. On this Sociology A Level course, we’ll assess how society holds together – or goes askew – during intense phases of political, cultural and technological change, population growth and economic disruption.
We sometimes need a microscope, sometimes a telescope, to answer sociological questions.
To demonstrate your understanding you’ll be writing lots of essays and devouring research that seeks to understand patterns. The skills you’ll learn on this course will prepare you wonderfully well for the academic rigour of degree-level studies.
During the course, you’ll have the chance to learn from visiting lecturers and enjoy trips to the Greater Manchester Police Museum and Archives, and Manchester Crown Court – where you’ll have the chance to enact a criminal case and reach a sentencing verdict.
Today’s lesson is an introduction to crime and deviance and investigating why the BAME community is overrepresented in the prison population.
Study data in ethnicity and crime including statistics shared by the Ministry of Justice showing the arrest, stop and search, prosecution and sentencing rates vary greatly between ethnicities.
Do the police and courts treat social groups differently? There are no right and wrong answers in Sociology. Analysing societal issues from different perspectives is an important part of being a sociologist.
As a sociologist your skills will be put to good use in such diverse areas as crime scene investigation, social research, youth work, probation services and the criminal justice system.
Popular roles among Sociology graduates include:
Degrees popular among Xaverian Sociology students include:
2hr 30 mins exam worth 40% of the A-level
1hr 45 mins exam worth 20% of the A-level
2hr 30 mins exam worth 40% of the A-level
Six good passes at GCSE including two at grade 6 or above
Grade 5 from English and Maths (4s will be considered)
2 years
3 final exams
Linear A-level
Eduqas
Sociology is taught by three very experienced teachers, all of whom are subject specialists with examining experience. Sociology is an essay-based subject and you’ll learn how to
construct reasoned debate using informed opinion and exploring alternative viewpoints.
Choose this A Level and during your second year at Xaverian take advantage of a eight-week crash course in undergraduate life through our close ties with Manchester University.
Weekly two-hour sessions during your autumn term focus on some of the most important study skills for your university success – including critical thinking, oral communication, essay writing and interpreting complex information.
You’ll learn through methods familiar to higher education students – including lectures, reading tasks and interactive group discussion.
Taking part in the Pre-U course and you’ll also receive a one A Level grade reduction in the standard entry requirements if you apply to Manchester University.
Two Xaverian students, Ben Haughton, previously a student at West Hill School and studying A Levels in Biology, Geography and Psychology and Reuben Rowbotham-Keating, previously …
Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance visit Xaverian College on an annual basis to run performance masterclasses, spending hours coaching A Level Music and …
Ten outstanding students from Xaverian College have received offers to study at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. Following months of intensive …
Two Xaverian students, Ben Haughton, previously a student at West Hill School and studying A Levels in Biology, Geography and Psychology and Reuben Rowbotham-Keating, previously …
Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance visit Xaverian College on an annual basis to run performance masterclasses, spending hours coaching A Level Music and …
Ten outstanding students from Xaverian College have received offers to study at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. Following months of intensive …
