Overview
A-Level Politics
Studying A-Level Politics will provide students with an understanding of contemporary politics and how it affects people’s lives. It gives a balanced and stimulating introduction to politics in both the UK & US and the operation of representative democracy in both countries, along with wider political ideologies. Politics is a valuable subject to study as it provides the ideal basis for encouraging independent and critical thinking. You will also have the opportunity to take part in a variety of extracurricular activities, including the annual Parliament visit, meeting with politicians and other trips and visits in the Greater London area. You will also take a leading role in college initiatives such as youth voter registration drives.
Course Content
Component 1:
UK Government: theories of democracy; UK political parties; evaluating electoral systems; analysing voting behaviour and the media + core political ideologies (socialism, liberalism, conservatism)
Component 2:
UK Politics: the Constitution; the workings of Parliament; the power of the Prime Minister and the Executive; relations between institutions including the EU + non-core political ideology (nationalism)
Component 3:
US Government and Politics: the Constitution, Federalism, Congress, Presidency, Supreme Court, Civil Rights, Democracy, Comparative Politics (comparing the US and UK)
Careers
Politics is seen as a desirable qualification in many professional sectors including the media, politics, academia, the law, business & marketing, banking and administration. Any profession that requires deductive reasoning skills and the capacity for organising and evaluating information, such as lawyer, the civil service, politician, journalist, teacher/lecturer, will be enhanced by the study of A-Level Politics.