Just turn on your tv, browse the internet, pick up a newspaper – yes its there….front page news – Politics. Our lives are influenced and sometimes directed by political decision making. In the midst of an enormously turbulent few years heaving with political change and crisis, both here in the UK and across the world, the relevance of Government and Politics to the lives of each of us could not be clearer. Government, and the political sphere which encompasses it, is not just accountable for the socioeconomic structure which surrounds us, but it is also the means by which we can reform that structure. As such, it is of critical importance that we understand the concepts behind the current system in the West – liberal democracy – and the workings of the political machine that is the state.
What will I learn?
Government and Politics is an exciting course which enables students to develop an insight into the political beliefs and systems which are central to our understanding of the modern world. The course revolves around contemporary politics and current areas of constitutional concern, putting the UK in the context of its changing relationship with the wider world. Students engage with recent political issues through lively class debates which encourage critical thinking and the construction of effective and coherent arguments. They will learn about political procedures and institutions such as democracy, political participation, party policies and the values and ideas of the Western/global world.
In the Lower Sixth students will study the politics of the United Kingdom, covering the various branches of government and their functions, but also the role played by ordinary citizens in the political process. Students will develop the analytical abilities required to critique the successes and failures of our system whether it be the weaknesses of ‘First Past the Post’ and the alternative electoral systems such as proportional representation or the future of our Supreme Court. Student also study the ideologies which have dominated Western political thought for centuries. The conflicts which form the basis for political disagreement today – liberalism, conservatism and socialism – are explored and placed in the context of contemporary policy.
In the Upper Sixth students progress onto studying the constitution, the role of Prime Minister, other ideologies, such as feminism, and global politics or USA politics.
Assessments
Three exam papers at the end of the Upper Sixth.
Paper 1 – Component 1: UK Politics
33% of the qualification. 84 marks. 2 Hours
Content overview:
- Political Participation, students will study: democracy and participation, political parties, electoral systems, voting behaviour and the media.
- Core Political Ideas, students will study: conservatism, liberalism, socialism.
Assessment overview:
Section A: Political Participation
- One 30-mark question from a choice of two (each question uses a source) – students must complete one of these. Plus one open 30-mark question from a choice of two – students must complete one of these.
Section B: Core Political Ideas
- One open 24-mark question from a choice of two.
Paper 2 – Component 2: UK Government
33% of the qualification. 84 marks. 2 Hours
Content overview:
- UK Government, students will study: the constitution, parliament, Prime Minister and executive, relationships between the branches.
- Non-core political ideas, students will study: one idea from the following: anarchism, ecologism, feminism, multiculturalism, nationalism.
Assessment overview:
Section A: UK Government
- One 30-mark question from a choice of two (each question uses a source). Plus one open 30-mark question from a choice of two – students must complete one of these.
Section B: Core Non-core Political Ideas
- One open 24-mark question from a choice of two.
Paper 3 – Component 3: Global Politics
33% of the qualification. 84 marks. 2 Hours
Content overview:
Sovereignty and globalisation, global governance: political and economic, global governance: human rights and environmental, power and developments, regionalism and the European Union, comparative theories
Assessment overview:
Section A
- One 12-mark question from a choice of two
Section B
- One compulsory 12-mark question focused on comparative theories
Section C
- Two 30-mark questions from a choice of three
Examination board: Edexcel/Pearson
