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We have designed our curriculum using the KS3 National Curriculum and it is delivered under the framework of the IB Middle Years programme. We have also referenced the KS2 Programmes of Study in our initial planning.

In social sciences, we value our students’ character and the contribution they will make in shaping their communities and circumstances. Our knowledge rich curriculum challenges students to progress towards expertise in a range of academic disciplines such as religion, philosophy, ethics, anthropology, psychology and sociology, which develop students’ cultural, social and symbolic capital. Students’ curriculum journey from Year 7 to Year 13 is underpinned by Bruner’s concept of the spiral curriculum, this ensures that students gain deeper understanding of social life, groups and societies to become a more socially aware member of society. This will be achieved by developing students’ fluency in the ability to express themselves in the language of social sciences.

As passionate social scientists, our aim is to instill an appetite for study that extends beyond the classroom and will be applicable to life experiences and future careers. As social beings, interaction is a fundamental part of our existence and exploring and understanding the complexity of the biological and environmental influences on behaviour is a vital awareness we would like students to take forward into adult life.

KS3 RSE

Exploration of what is belief? What do people believe? Abraham – the father of monotheism. Introduction to Western Religions. Introduction to Eastern Religions.

Exploration of – What can we learn from Guru Nanak? What are the 5 Ks in Sikhism and why was Khalsa formed? Why is the Golden Temple important to Sikhs? How have Sikhs contributed to Britain? Why do Sikhs celebrate light?

Introduction to the Bible and Prophets. Study of Beatitudes and the teachings of Jesus.

Study of why rites of passage are celebrated? How is birth celebrated? How do Jews celebrate adulthood? How do Hindus celebrate adulthood? When should baptism occur? How does the Khalsa help Sikhs become a community?

Understanding what is spirituality? Exploration of spirituality through art, Spirited Art, Spirituality through music, Spirituality through pilgrimage and Spirituality through actions.

Understanding of what the situation in Jerusalem is today? What does the Israeli-Palestinian conflict mean for Jerusalem?  What  are the Abrahamic religions? Why is Jerusalem important to Jews? Why is Jerusalem so important to Muslims? Why is Jerusalem so important to Christians?

Understanding of the reasons for conflict. Christian Attitudes of War. Jihad. Pacifism and people working for peace.

Study of – Siddhartha and the 4 Sights, 4 Noble Truths, Eightfold Path, 5 Moral Precepts, Reincarnation and Karma and Meditation.

Introduction to the ethical codes. Where does morality come from? Study of Ethics in Christianity, 

Sewa in Sikhism, Situation Ethics and Christian Aid / Islamic Relief.

Exploration and study of Birth narratives, Teachings, Miracles, Crucifixion, Resurrection, Impact.

Study of why do people feed their bodies? Why do people use drugs? Why are new drugs developed? Why do people smoke? Why do people drink? Why do substances impact ourselves and others?

Study and understanding of what artificial intelligence is? Do computers think? What is wrong with the Turing Test? Would artificial intelligence improve life? Should we create superintelligence?

Study and understanding of why Muhammad is important to Muslims? What are the 5 pillars and why are they important? What is Salah and why is it important? What is Sawm and why is it important? What is Zakat and why is it important? How does Islamophobia affect Muslims in Britain today?

Study and understanding of Weapons of Mass Destruction, Protest, Prisons in the UK, Prisons around the world, the Death penalty and Forgiveness.

Understanding forgiveness and when does life begin. Exploration of  Stewardship, Gender Equality, Role of family and the impact of AI.

Study of what human rights are. Do human rights apply to everyone? What is a prisoner of conscience?  Censorship, Privilege and poverty and Civil rights.

Study and understanding of being Christian in modern society, being Muslim in modern society. Understanding Anti-Semitism in modern society,  being Jewish in modern society and adapting religions in modern society.

Understanding what is conformity, and how does it influence behaviour? What is bystander apathy, and why do people not help in emergencies? Why do people obey authority, even when it feels wrong? How does peer pressure influence our decisions and actions? What makes people resist authority and break social norms? How can understanding social psychology help us make better choices in real life?

KS4 Sociology

Introduction to sociological approach and imagination; Emile Durkheim; Functionalism; Karl Marx; Marxism: Max Weber; Social Action; Interactionism; Feminism; New Right; Social structures; Social processes; Social issues; Sociological debates; Conflict vs. Consensus; Quality and quantity; Culture and nature; Sex and gender; Race and ethnicity; Facts and values.

Study of what is a family? Family diversity; Reasons for family diversity; The nuclear family;

Alternatives to the family; Families in a global context; Functionalism and the family; Alternative theories on the functions of the family; Relationships within families.

Exploration of Marriage; Divorce; Consequences of divorce; Theories about divorce; Conjugal roles

The symmetrical family; Changing relationships within families; Functionalist and Marxist theories about conjugal roles; Feminist theories about conjugal roles; Research in action: conjugal role relationships.

Understanding the function of education; Schools as an agency of socialisation; Education and capitalism; Comparing different perspectives on education; Different types of school; Alternative education; State or private school?

Understanding external factors affecting educational achievement; Internal factors affecting educational achievement; Social class and educational achievement; Gender and educational achievement; gender and subject choice; Ethnicity and educational achievement; Education policies and their possible impact on patterns of achievement.

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Introduction to crime and deviance; Measuring crime; The social construction of crime and deviance; Factors affecting criminal behaviour; Informal social control; Formal social control.

Study of social class and crime; Gender and crime, ethnicity and crime; Age and crime, Treatment of young offenders and the prison system.

Study of violent crime and sentencing; Media reporting of crime; Functionalist theories about crime; Alternative theories about crime.

Study of systems of Social stratification; Functionalism and social stratification; Socio-economic class; Marx on class and Weber on class.

Understanding of life chances; The affluent worker, Social mobility; Poverty; Relative deprivation and Underclass.

Study of globalisation; Welfare state, Weber on power; political power; Power relationships and Patriarchy.

KS5 Sociology

Introduction to sociological approach and imagination; Functionalism; Marxism; Feminism; Social Action; Postmodernism.

Understanding Functionalism; New Right; Marxism; Feminism and gender roles; Social policy; Changing family patterns.

Understanding changing family patterns; Family diversity; Demography and Childhood.

Understanding key terms, theories, issues; The role of education in society; consensus and conflict views; Key education policies over time; links with theory.

Understanding the impact of education policies on differing groups; marketisation and parentocracy; Has education been privatised; Social class and achievement: external factors; Social class and achievement: internal factors; Ethnicity and achievement: external factors; Ethnicity and achievement: internal factors; Gender and achievement: external factors; Gender and achievement: internal factors / subject choice; Key issues in undertaking social research.

Study of Positivist vs. interpretivists approaches; The research context of education; Strengths and limitations of different primary methods; Strengths and limitations of different secondary methods; Applying methods to the context of education.

Study of crime, deviance and social control as socially constructed; Functionalist views of crime and deviance Interactionist views of crime and deviance; Class, Marxism and crimes of the powerful; Realist views of crime.

Study of gender and crime – patterns; Gender and crime – sociological explanations; Ethnicity and crime – patterns; Ethnicity and crime – sociological explanations; The media and crime / moral panics; Globalisation and crime; Environmental and state crimes / human rights; Crime prevention and control; Surveillance; Punishment – purpose / theories of; Victims of crime.

Understanding key terms, theories, issues; The role of education in society; consensus and conflict views; Key education policies over time; links with theory.

Understanding key terms, theories, issues; The role of education in society; consensus and conflict views; Key education policies over time; links with theory.

Exploration of quantitative and qualitative research design; sources of data, including questionnaires, interviews, participant and non-participant observation, experiments, documents and official statistics; the distinction between primary and secondary data, and between quantitative and qualitative data; the relationship between positivism, interpretivism and sociological methods; the nature of ‘social facts’; the theoretical, practical and ethical considerations influencing choice of topic, choice of method(s) and the conduct of research.

KS5 Psychology

Understanding of the approaches to the  (background to Psychology) Origins of Psychology: Wundt, introspection and the emergence of Psychology as a science. The basic assumptions of the following approaches: Cognitive, social, behaviourist and biological.

Paper 1: Introductory topics in Psychology Social Influence Memory Attachment.

Paper 2: Psychology in context Year 1 Research Methods (dispersed throughout teaching of Paper 1 topics) Research methods, scientific processes and techniques of data handling and analysis.

Understanding of the approaches to the  (background to Psychology) Origins of Psychology: Wundt, introspection and the emergence of Psychology as a science. The basic assumptions of the following approaches: Cognitive, social, behaviourist and biological.

Paper 1: Introductory topics in Psychology Social Influence Memory Attachment.

Paper 2: Psychology in context Year 1 Research Methods (dispersed throughout teaching of Paper 1 topics) Research methods, scientific processes and techniques of data handling and analysis.

Paper 1: Introductory topics in Psychology – Attachment and Psychopathology.

Paper 2: Psychology in context Approaches (continued) The basic assumptions of the following approaches: psychodynamic and humanistic. Comparison of approaches Paper 2: Psychology in context Year 1 Research methods (continued) Research methods, scientific processes and techniques of data handling and analysis.

Paper 1: Introductory topics in Psychology – Attachment and Psychopathology.
Paper 2: Psychology in context Approaches (continued) The basic assumptions of the following approaches: psychodynamic and humanistic. Comparison of approaches Paper 2: Psychology in context Year 1 Research methods (continued) Research methods, scientific processes and techniques of data handling and analysis.

Study of Biopsychology and Year 2 Research methods – Research methods, scientific processes and techniques of data handling and analysis; inferential statistics.

Study of Biopsychology  and Year 2 Research methods – Research methods, scientific processes and techniques of data handling and analysis; inferential statistics.

Paper 3: Issues and options in Psychology Issues and Debates 

Option 1: Schizophrenia 

Option 2: Relationships

Paper 3: Issues and options in Psychology Issues and Debates 

Option 1: Schizophrenia 

Option 2: Relationships

Paper 3: Issues and options in Psychology 

Option 2: Relationships (continued) 

Option 3: Forensic Psychology

Paper 3: Issues and options in Psychology 

Option 2: Relationships (continued) 

Option 3: Forensic Psychology