Social Sciences

Why study Social Sciences?

‘Sapientia Ianua Vitae’ (Wisdom is the Gateway to Life)

The vision of our team is to provide academic rigour and instil a lifelong love of learning and curiosity, aspiration and engagement in the world around them. We will provide constant cultural capital through Citizenship, Religious Studies, Politics, PSHRE and Philosophy and students will leave us as active and conscientious citizens, ready for all challenges ahead. Wisdom, really is, the gateway to life.

We will do this by developing the four key skills of a Barnhill Social Scientist:

Higher order thinking
Empathy
Consideration of other points of view
Rational and critical thinking.

Our pedagogical approach to achieve the four key skills is threefold:

Concept Cracking (Trevor Cooling) – making judgements about the competing truth claims in world religions, from Year 7’s Who Am I? To Year 13’s Critique of Religious Belief.
Human Development (Michael Grimmett) - searching for meaning and reflecting on ‘what does this mean for my life?’ from Year 8’s Morality to Year 13’s How Should We Live (NT)
Critical Realism (Andy Wright) - students discovering truth claims themselves and thinking critically about these, from Year 9’s Philosophy and Me to Year 12’s Arguments for the Existence of God.

Social Sciences will teach students to think, listen, speak thoughtfully, and write clearly – all skills that are important in other subjects, and beyond school.

Programme of Study

KS3
Social Sciences encompasses Citizenship, PSHRE and Religious Studies. The blended model means all 3 of these subjects will be taught as 1, with clear signposts to each constituent part.

Themes
Students will show progression through the same themes (with different sub-topics) every year. This way we can ensure maximum blend of Citizenship, PSHRE and Religious Studies. In Year 7 the themes will be looked at in a local context. In Year 8 the themes will be looked at in a national context. In year 9 the themes will be looked at in a global context.

Term	Theme
A1	Identity
A2	Relationships
Sp1	Social Justice
Sp2	Conflict
Su1	British Values/Politics
Su2	World Religions

Year 7

Term	Topic
A1	Who am I?
A2	Is there such a thing as democratic society?
Sp1	What are my rights and responsibilities?
Sp2	Does evil prove that God doesn’t exist?
Su1	What makes a good citizen?
Su2	Why don’t all Muslims think the same way?

Year 8

Term	Topic
A1	Where do I stand morally and ethically?
A2	What is my wider community?
Sp1	How is crime an issue in the UK?
Sp2	How do I know what I know?
Su1	What problems is the UK facing today?
Su2	Why don’t all Christians think the same way?

Year 9

Term	Topic
A1	Philosophy and Me
A2	Medical Ethics
Sp1	Global Issues
Sp2	Debating
Su1	What problems is the world facing today?
Su2	What can we learn about ourselves from lesser-known world religions?

Religious Studies

Year 10 Core

Term	Topic
A1	Christian Extremism: The Westboro Baptist Church
A2	Jewish Extremism: Ultra-Zionism
Sp1	Islamic Extremism: ISIS
Sp2	British Right-Wing Extremism: English Defence League
Su1	Anti-White Extremism: The Black Nationalists
Su2	Anti-Black Extremism: The KKK

Year 10 GCSE RS - Exam Board: Edexcel
Paper 1: Christianity: Ethics (50%, 1h45 exam)

Christian Beliefs
Marriage and the Family
Living the Christian Life
Matters of Life and Death

Year 11 GCSE RS - Exam Board: Edexcel
Paper 2: Islam: Peace and Conflict (50%, 1h45 exam)

Muslim Beliefs
Crime and Punishment
Living the Muslim Life
Peace and Conflict

A-Level Religious Studies - Exam Board: Edexcel
Paper 1: Philosophy of Religion (33%, 2 hours)

Arguments for the Existence of God
Religious Experience
The Problem of Evil and Suffering
Religious Language
Critiques of Religious Belief
Life After Death/Religion and Science

Paper 2: Religion and Ethics (33% 2 hours)

Issues and Debates in Religion (Equality and the Environment)
A Study of 5 Ethical Theories
Issues of Importance (Sexual Ethics, War and Peace)
Ethical Language
Religion and Morality
Medical Ethics

Paper 3: New Testament Studies (33% 2 hours)

Social and Historical Context of the 1st Century
Interpretation of the Person of Jesus
Interpreting the Text
Ways of Interpreting Scripture
Jesus’ Death
Scientific and Historical Challenges

Citizenship

Exam Board: Edexcel

Paper 1: Themes A-C (50%, 1h45)
Paper 2: Themes D and E (50%, 1h45)

Theme A: Living Together in the UK

Migration
Human Rights
Political Rights

Theme B: Democracy at Work in the UK

Political Parties
Democracy
Voting Systems
Westminster and Devolved Parliaments

Theme C: Law and Justice

Sources of Law
Court Systems
Crime
Punishment

Theme D: Power and Influence

Participation
The Media
The UK and Europe
International Law and Conflict

Theme E: Citizenship Action

Students will plan, research and carry out a citizenship action about an issue arising from your course.

Politics

Exam board: Edexcel

Paper 1: UK Politics (33%, 2 hours)
Paper 2: UK Government (33%, 2 hours)
Paper 3: Global Politics

In Year 12 students look at UK Politics and UK Government:  

UK Politics:  

Democracy and Participation   
Political Parties  
Electoral Systems  
Voting Behaviour and the Media

UK Government:  

The Constitution  
Parliament   
PM and the Executive  
Relationships between the branches

Core Political Ideas:  

Conservatism   
Socialism   
Liberalism

Non-core Political Ideas:  

Feminism

In Year 13 we will be looking at Global Politics

Sovereignty and Globalisation   
Global governance   
Human Rights and the Environment   
Power  
Regionalism  
The EU

Useful Resources

Homework

At KS3 students will be set short research homework related to the lessons prior or next.

At KS4 students will be set exam-style questions as homework.

At KS5 students will be set pre-reading or research homework, and occasionally essays.

Enrichment

The Social Sciences Cultural Capital Fund

If students want to do something that will enrich their lives, and it links to the Social Sciences, we will pay for it. Similarly, if a student would like some literature to broaden their horizons or contribute to their studies, we will purchase it for them.