By Revision Genie
Education and Social Processes
Unit 1
Functions of the Education System
Education and the Economy
Education and Class Structure
Social Class and Educational Achievement
Gender and Educational Achievement
Ethnicity and Educational Achievement
Teacher-Pupil Relationships
Pupil Identities and Subcultures
The Hidden Curriculum
Organisation of Teaching and Learning
Selection Policies in Education
Marketisation Policies in Education
Privatisation Policies in Education
Policies for Equality in Education
Globalisation and Educational Policy
Sociological Perspectives on Education
Consensus Theories and Education
Conflict Theories and Education
Social Action Theories and Education
Quantitative Methods in Education Research
Qualitative Methods in Education Research
Research Design in Education Studies
Questionnaires in Education Research
Interviews in Education Research
Participant Observation in Schools
Non-Participant Observation in Schools
Experiments in Education Research
Using Documents in Education Research
Official Statistics in Education Research
Primary Data in Education Studies
Secondary Data in Education Studies
Positivism and Education Research
Interpretivism and Education Research
Social Facts in Education Research
Ethical Considerations in Education Research
Practical Issues in Education Research
Theoretical Issues in Education Research
Modernity and Post-Modernity in Education
Can Sociology of Education Be Scientific?
Subjectivity and Objectivity in Education Studies
Value Freedom in Education Research
Sociology of Education and Social Policy
Unit 2
Sociological Research Methods
Introduction to Sociological Research Methods
Quantitative Research Methods Overview
Qualitative Research Methods Overview
Comparing Quantitative and Qualitative Data
Primary Data: Definition and Examples
Secondary Data: Definition and Examples
Questionnaires: Strengths and Limitations
Structured Interviews: Strengths and Limitations
Unstructured Interviews: Strengths and Limitations
Semi-Structured Interviews: Strengths and Limitations
Participant Observation: Strengths and Limitations
Non-Participant Observation: Strengths and Limitations
Experiments in Sociology: Types and Uses
Documents as Data Sources in Sociology
Official Statistics: Strengths and Limitations
Research Design in Sociology
Sampling Methods in Sociological Research
Ethical Considerations in Sociological Research
Practical Considerations in Sociological Research
Theoretical Considerations in Sociological Research
Positivism and Sociological Methods
Interpretivism and Sociological Methods
The Concept of Social Facts
Choosing a Research Topic: Key Factors
Triangulation in Sociological Research
Reliability in Sociological Research Methods
Validity in Sociological Research Methods
Objectivity and Subjectivity in Research
Value Freedom in Sociological Research
Debates on Sociology as a Science
Modernity and Postmodernity in Research Methods
The Relationship Between Theory and Methods
Sociology and Social Policy: Research Impacts
Examining Bias in Sociological Research
Case Studies in Sociological Research
Longitudinal Studies: Strengths and Weaknesses
Cross-Sectional Studies: Strengths and Weaknesses
Operationalising Sociological Concepts
Pilot Studies in Research Design
Gatekeeping in Sociological Research
Ethnography in Sociology
Content Analysis as a Research Method
Examining Correlation vs. Causation in Research
Exam Trap: Misinterpreting Research Data
Worked Example: Designing a Questionnaire
Worked Example: Conducting an Interview
Worked Example: Analyzing Official Statistics
Worked Example: Participant Observation in Practice
Worked Example: Ethical Dilemmas in Research
Unit 3
Theory and Methods in Sociology
Consensus Theories in Sociology
Conflict Theories in Sociology
Structural Theories: Overview
Social Action Theories: Overview
Positivism in Sociological Research
Interpretivism in Sociological Research
Modernity in Sociological Theory
Postmodernity in Sociological Theory
Objectivity and Subjectivity in Sociology
Quantitative Research Methods
Qualitative Research Methods
Research Design: Key Principles
Primary vs Secondary Data
Interviews: Types and Uses
Participant Observation: Applications
Non-Participant Observation: Applications
Sociological Experiments: Overview
Documents as Data Sources
Official Statistics in Sociology
Ethical Considerations in Research
Practical Considerations in Research
Theoretical Influences on Method Choice
Relationship Between Theory and Methods
Social Policy and Sociology: Connections
The Role of Sociology in Policy Formation
Examining Social Facts in Research
Strengths of Positivist Approaches
Criticism of Positivist Approaches
Strengths of Interpretivist Approaches
Criticism of Interpretivist Approaches
The Hidden Curriculum in Schools
Teacher-Pupil Relationships in Education
Pupil Subcultures: Formation and Impact
The Organisation of Teaching and Learning
Marketisation and Privatisation in Education
Equality Policies in Education
Social Differentiation in Education
Power and Stratification in Education
Socialisation and Identity in Sociology
Applying Sociological Methods to Education
Exam Traps in Theory and Methods Questions
Worked Example: Evaluating Research Methods
Worked Example: Applying Theories to Social Policy
Unit 4
Culture and Identity
Definition of Culture
Subcultures and Their Characteristics
Mass Culture and Its Features
Folk Culture Explained
High Culture vs Low Culture
Popular Culture in Society
Global Culture and Globalisation
The Socialisation Process
Primary Socialisation and Its Role
Secondary Socialisation and Agencies
The Role of Family in Socialisation
Education as an Agent of Socialisation
Media's Influence on Socialisation
Peer Groups and Socialisation
Religion in Socialisation
Identity as Socially Constructed
The Concept of Self in Sociology
Difference and Social Causes
Age and Identity Formation
Disability and Social Identity
Ethnicity and Identity Construction
Gender and Its Impact on Identity
Nationality and Identity
Sexuality and Social Identity
Social Class and Identity
Identity and Production in Society
Identity and Consumption Patterns
Globalisation's Effect on Identity
Sociological Theories of Culture
Functionalist Perspective on Culture
Marxist Views on Culture
Feminist Perspectives on Culture
Interactionist Views on Identity
Postmodernist Views on Culture
Conflict and Consensus in Culture
Social Structure and Identity
Social Action in Identity Formation
Values and Their Role in Culture
Comparative Dimensions of UK Society
Globalisation and UK Culture
Examining Culture Through Research
Strengths and Limitations of Cultural Research
Links Between Culture and Other Topics
Unit 5
Families and Households
The Role of Families in Society
Family and Social Structure Links
Impact of Economic Changes on Families
State Policies and Family Life
Marriage Patterns in the UK
Cohabitation Trends and Influences
Separation and Divorce Rates
Childbearing Trends in Contemporary UK
Life Course and Family Diversity
Sociology of Personal Life in Families
Contemporary Family Structures
Gender Roles in Families
Domestic Labour Division in Families
Power Dynamics in Family Relationships
Childhood as a Social Construct
Historical Changes in Childhood
Children's Status in Families and Society
Demographic Trends: Birth Rates
Demographic Trends: Death Rates
Family Size Changes Over Time
Life Expectancy Trends in the UK
Ageing Population and Family Impacts
Migration's Influence on Families
Globalisation and Family Dynamics
Functionalist Perspectives on Families
Marxist Views on Family Structures
Feminist Critiques of Family Roles
Postmodernist Views on Family Diversity
Theories of Childhood Development
Examining the Sociology of Personal Life
Comparative Family Structures Globally
Exam Trap: Misinterpreting Family Policies
Worked Example: Analysing Divorce Statistics
Exam Trap: Overgeneralising Family Diversity
Using Demographic Data Effectively
Worked Example: Migration's Family Impact
Exam Trap: Confusing Sociological Theories
Unit 6
Health and Social Inequality
The Social Construction of Health
The Social Construction of Illness
The Social Construction of Disability
The Social Construction of the Body
Biomedical Models of Health
Social Models of Health
Mental Illness and Social Factors
Health Inequalities by Social Class
Health Inequalities by Gender
Health Inequalities by Ethnicity
Health Inequalities by Region
Access to Healthcare: Barriers
Access to Healthcare: Social Class Impact
Access to Healthcare: Gender Impact
Access to Healthcare: Ethnicity Impact
Access to Healthcare: Regional Differences
Privatisation in Healthcare Provision
Marketisation of Healthcare Systems
Role of State in Healthcare Provision
Voluntary and Informal Healthcare Providers
The Role of Medicine in Society
Medical Professions and Social Power
The Globalised Health Industry
Impact of Globalisation on Health Systems
Comparative Health Inequalities Globally
Sociological Theories on Health Inequality
Functionalist Perspectives on Health
Marxist Perspectives on Health
Feminist Perspectives on Health
Interactionist Perspectives on Health
Postmodernist Perspectives on Health
Ethical Issues in Healthcare Access
Research Methods in Health Sociology
Quantitative Approaches to Health Inequality
Qualitative Approaches to Health Inequality
Official Statistics in Health Research
Interviews in Health Sociology Research
Participant Observation in Health Studies
Ethical Considerations in Health Research
Mental Health: Social Distribution
Mental Health: Sociological Explanations
The Role of Technology in Healthcare
Global Health Policies and Inequalities
Conflict and Consensus in Health Systems
Social Stratification and Health Outcomes
Power Dynamics in Healthcare Provision
Examining UK Healthcare Inequalities
The Role of Values in Health Sociology
Social Action and Health Policy
Unit 7
Work, Poverty, and Welfare
Defining Poverty in Sociology
Types of Poverty
Absolute vs Relative Poverty
Measuring Poverty
Social Groups and Poverty Distribution
Poverty by Social Class
Poverty by Gender
Poverty by Ethnicity
Poverty by Age
Theories Explaining Poverty
Marxist Views on Poverty
Functionalist Views on Poverty
Feminist Perspectives on Poverty
Interactionist Perspectives on Poverty
Globalisation and Poverty
Effects of Globalisation on Income Inequality
State Responses to Poverty
Welfare Provision in the UK
Private and Voluntary Welfare Providers
Informal Welfare Systems
The Labour Process in Sociology
Organisation of the Labour Process
Division of Labour in Workplaces
Technology and the Labour Process
Skill and De-skilling in Work
Worklessness and Its Impacts
Globalisation and Work Patterns
Life Chances and Work
The Impact of Work on Social Identity
Social Stratification in Workplaces
Gender Inequality in Work
Ethnicity and Work Opportunities
Age and Employment Trends
Responses to Poverty: Policies and Critiques
Universal Credit and Welfare Reform
Examining Poverty Trends in the UK
Intersectionality in Poverty Analysis
Sociological Research on Poverty
Ethical Issues in Poverty Research
Case Studies of Work and Poverty
Impact of Global Labour Markets
Comparative Analysis of Welfare Systems
Historical Trends in Welfare Provision
Criticisms of Welfare Dependency
Unit 8
Beliefs in Society
Definition of Ideology
Definition of Religion
Definition of Science
Comparing Ideology, Religion, and Science
Christian Religious Traditions
Non-Christian Religious Traditions
Religion and Social Change
Religion and Social Stability
Cults: Characteristics and Examples
Sects: Characteristics and Examples
Denominations: Characteristics and Examples
Churches: Characteristics and Examples
New Age Movements: Characteristics and Examples
Religious Organisations and Belief Systems
Social Groups and Religion: Class
Social Groups and Religion: Gender
Social Groups and Religion: Ethnicity
Social Groups and Religion: Age
Religious Practices in Social Groups
Secularisation: Definition and Indicators
Secularisation in the UK
Secularisation in a Global Context
Globalisation and Religion
Spread of Religions Through Globalisation
Religiosity in the Contemporary World
Measuring Religiosity
Postmodernity and Religion
Functionalist Perspective on Religion
Marxist Perspective on Religion
Feminist Perspective on Religion
Interpretivist Perspective on Religion
The Role of Religion in Socialisation
Religion and Power Structures
Religion and Social Stratification
Religion and Identity Formation
Religion as a Source of Conflict
Religion as a Source of Consensus
The Impact of Religious Policies
Religion and Migration
Religion and Multiculturalism
Religion and Global Inequality
Religion and Environmental Movements
Religion and Human Rights Movements
Religion and Consumerism
Religion and Technology
Examining Case Studies of Religious Movements
Common Exam Traps in Beliefs in Society
Unit 9
Global Development
Defining Development and Underdevelopment
Measuring Global Inequality
Economic Indicators of Development
Social Indicators of Development
Cultural Indicators of Development
Environmental Indicators of Development
Theories of Development: Modernisation Theory
Theories of Development: Dependency Theory
Theories of Development: World Systems Theory
Critiques of Development Theories
Globalisation and Development
Cultural Globalisation and Development
Economic Globalisation and Development
Political Globalisation and Development
Transnational Corporations and Development
The Role of NGOs in Development
The Role of International Agencies in Development
Aid: Types and Effectiveness
Trade and Development
Industrialisation and Development
Urbanisation and Development
The Impact of War and Conflict on Development
Development and the Environment
Demographic Change and Development
Gender and Development
Health and Development
Education and Development
Employment and Development
The Role of Technology in Development
Post-Development Perspectives
Global Inequality: Case Studies
Examining Local Strategies for Development
Examining Global Strategies for Development
Sociological Perspectives on Development
Conflict and Consensus in Development
Power and Stratification in Development
Social Action and Development Policies
Development and Value Systems
Exam Trap: Misinterpreting Development Indicators
Exam Trap: Overgeneralising Development Theories
Worked Example: Evaluating Aid Effectiveness
Worked Example: Analysing TNCs’ Impact on Local Economies
Worked Example: Comparing Development Indicators Across Countries
Using Sociological Research in Development Analysis
Unit 10
The Media and Society
Media Ownership and Control
Concentration of Media Ownership
Pluralist Perspective on Ownership
Marxist Perspective on Ownership
Globalisation and the Media
Impact of Globalisation on Media Content
Cultural Imperialism in Media
The New Media and Digital Revolution
Characteristics of New Media
Effects of New Media on Society
Popular Culture and Media
Media and Global Popular Culture
News Selection and Presentation
Gatekeeping in News Media
Agenda Setting in News Media
Bias and Objectivity in News Reporting
Media Representations of Age
Media Representations of Gender
Media Representations of Social Class
Media Representations of Ethnicity
Media Representations of Sexuality
Media Representations of Disability
Audience Theories in Media
The Hypodermic Syringe Model
Two-Step Flow Theory
Uses and Gratifications Theory
Reception Theory and Encoding/Decoding
Cultural Effects Model
Active Audiences in Media
Media Effects on Behaviour
Moral Panics and Media
Media and Ideological Control
Postmodernist Views on Media
Feminist Perspectives on Media
Media and Power Relationships
Media Regulation and Censorship
Media Ownership and Democracy
Role of Media in Shaping Public Opinion
Media and Consumerism
Media and Social Change
Media and Identity Formation
Media and Youth Culture
Media and Political Communication
Media and Environmental Issues
Media and Crime Representation
Media and Health Awareness
Unit 11
Stratification and Differentiation
Defining Stratification and Differentiation
Social Class and Stratification
Gender Inequality in Stratification
Ethnicity and Social Stratification
Age and Social Stratification
Dimensions of Inequality: Class, Status, and Power
Life Chances by Social Class
Life Chances by Gender
Life Chances by Ethnicity
Life Chances by Age and Disability
Problems Measuring Social Class
Occupation and Social Class
Gender and Social Class Intersections
Changes in Structures of Inequality
Globalisation and Stratification
The Transnational Capitalist Class
Implications of Globalisation for Inequality
Patterns of Social Mobility
Types of Social Mobility: Vertical and Horizontal
Barriers to Social Mobility
Social Mobility by Class
Social Mobility by Gender
Social Mobility by Ethnicity
Social Mobility by Age
Conflict and Consensus in Stratification
Structural Theories of Stratification
Social Action Theories of Stratification
Postmodern Views on Stratification
The Role of Values in Stratification
Comparative Dimensions of Inequality
UK Society in a Global Context
Examining Sociological Research on Inequality
Strengths and Limitations of Inequality Research
Applying Sociological Theories to Stratification
Evaluating Evidence on Social Differentiation
Intersectionality in Stratification Studies
Historical Changes in Social Class Structures
The Impact of Technology on Inequality
Case Studies of Global Inequality
Theoretical Debates on Social Mobility
Policy Responses to Stratification
The Role of Education in Social Mobility
Economic Systems and Class Stratification
Cultural Capital and Stratification
Social Capital and Inequality
Exam Traps in Stratification Questions
Unit 12
Crime and Deviance
Defining Crime and Deviance
Social Order and Social Control
Formal and Informal Social Control
Theories of Crime: Functionalist Perspective
Theories of Crime: Marxist Perspective
Theories of Crime: Feminist Perspective
Theories of Crime: Interactionist Perspective
Theories of Crime: Postmodern Perspective
Labelling Theory and Deviance
Subcultural Theories of Crime
Right Realist Theories of Crime
Left Realist Theories of Crime
Social Distribution of Crime by Class
Social Distribution of Crime by Gender
Social Distribution of Crime by Ethnicity
Patterns and Trends in Crime
Globalisation and Crime
The Media and Crime
Green Crime: Definitions and Examples
State Crimes: Definitions and Examples
Human Rights and Crime
Victims of Crime: Patterns and Trends
Crime Control and Surveillance
Crime Prevention Strategies
Punishment: Sociological Perspectives
The Role of the Criminal Justice System
Agencies of Crime Control
Quantitative Methods in Crime Research
Qualitative Methods in Crime Research
Official Statistics in Crime Research
The Ethics of Crime Research
Positivism in Crime Research
Interpretivism in Crime Research
Consensus Theories and Crime
Conflict Theories and Crime
Structural Theories of Crime
Social Action Theories of Crime
Modernity and Crime
Postmodernity and Crime
Objectivity and Value Freedom in Crime Research
Sociology and Social Policy in Crime
Unit 13
Archive
Meaning of “role” and “function” in sociology of education
What “methods in context” questions require (AQA)
Sociology vs common-sense explanations
Defining crime: legal definitions and limits
Class and crime: patterns and explanations
Globalisation and new opportunities for crime
Aims of punishment: retribution, deterrence, rehab, protection
What culture means in sociology
Families, households and diversity: key definitions
Social construction of health and illness
Poverty: absolute vs relative definitions
Ideology: what it means in sociology
Development: definitions and measurement
New media: what’s different about digital media
Stratification vs differentiation: key distinction
Education and socialisation into shared values
Turning an education issue into aims and hypotheses
Quantitative data: meaning and uses
Defining deviance: norms, values and social context
Gender and crime: patterns and explanations
Transnational crime: trafficking, drugs and organised networks
Formal agencies: police, courts, prisons and probation
Subculture and how subcultures form
Family and economy: how work shapes family life
Disability: social model vs medical model
Measuring poverty: strengths and indicator limits
Religion, science and belief: key distinctions
Underdevelopment: meaning and causes
Media and social change today
Social class: different ways to define it
Durkheim: social solidarity and specialist skills
Choosing qualitative vs quantitative approaches in education
Qualitative data: meaning and uses
Social order: why societies need rules and compliance
Ethnicity and crime: patterns and explanations
Cybercrime and global digital networks
Policing: community policing vs zero tolerance
Health
Folk culture and traditions
State and families: policy shaping family patterns
Body: social meanings and regulation
Why poverty persists in the UK
The Media
Christian traditions in the UK: key features
Global inequality: patterns and explanations
Ownership and control: why it matters
Measuring class: occupation and its limits
Parsons: meritocracy and role allocation
Operationalising concepts (achievement, identity, subculture)
Primary vs secondary data: strengths and limits
Social control: informal and formal mechanisms
Youth crime: patterns and explanations
Global inequality and crime: exploitation and profit
Surveillance: CCTV, data and monitoring
Work, Poverty and Welfare
Mass culture and standardisation
Social change and family change: key drivers
Biomedical vs social models of health and illness
Poverty distribution: class, gender, ethnicity and age
Non-Christian traditions: diversity and change
Modernisation theories of development
Concentration of ownership and media power
Gender stratification: patterns and explanations
Functionalism: bridge from family to wider society
Sampling pupils, teachers, parents: access and representation
Research design: aims, hypotheses and variables
Functionalist explanations of crime and deviance
Victimisation by class, gender and ethnicity
Media representations of crime and criminals
“Surveillance society” and social control
High culture vs popular culture
Marriage trends and explanations
Class inequalities in health chances
Wealth inequality vs income inequality
Social change and religion: why beliefs shift
Dependency and world-systems approaches
Public service vs commercial models
Ethnic stratification: patterns and explanations
New Right: market principles and standards in education
Ethics in school research: consent, power and safeguarding
Pilot studies and improving research instruments
Durkheim: anomie and functions of crime
Media amplification and public fear of crime
News values and constructed crime stories
Situational prevention: target hardening and design
Global culture and cultural hybridity
Cohabitation trends and explanations
Gender inequalities in health chances
Sociological explanations of wealth inequality
Social stability and religion: integration and control
Globalisation: development winners and losers
Media globalisation and cultural flows
Age stratification: patterns and explanations
Neoliberalism: competition, choice and performance
Practical barriers: permissions, time and gatekeepers
Sampling: random, stratified, systematic methods
Merton: strain theory and adaptation types
Crime data bias: policing, reporting and recording
Moral panics: folk devils and amplification
Punishment and inequality: who is punished and how
Socialisation as a life-long process
Separation and divorce trends and explanations
Ethnic inequalities in health chances
State responses: welfare policies and debates
Religious organisations: churches and denominations
Cultural globalisation and development
Popular culture: creation and consumption
Disability and life chances: barriers and inequality
Marxism: education and class inequality
Questionnaires: designing closed and open questions
Sampling: quota, snowball, opportunity methods
Marxism: capitalism, class power and crime
Over-representation: structural vs cultural explanations
Green crime: defining environmental harm
Prison: functions, effectiveness and alternatives
Primary vs secondary socialisation
Childbearing patterns and explanations
Regional inequalities in health chances
Private and voluntary welfare: charities and NGOs
Religious organisations: sects and cults
Political globalisation and development
News selection: gatekeeping and news values
Class, status and power: differences
Althusser: ideological state apparatus and legitimation
Reliability vs validity in pupil questionnaires
Representativeness and sampling bias
Neo-Marxism: hegemony, resistance and crime
Intersectionality in offending and victimisation
Green crime types: pollution, depletion, species harm
Rehabilitation vs punishment debates
Main agencies of socialisation
Life course: family experiences over time
Measuring health inequalities: data and interpretation
Informal welfare: family, community and care networks
New Age movements and spiritual markets
Economic globalisation and development
News presentation: framing and agenda setting
Life chances: meaning and how they’re shaped
Bowles and Gintis: correspondence principle
Interviews: structured, semi-structured, unstructured
Reliability and how sociologists improve it
Interactionism: labelling, stigma and moral careers
Green crime: power and denial in defining harm
Victims: typologies and victim blaming
How socialisation shapes identity
Sociology of personal life and intimacy
Access to healthcare: barriers and inequalities
Labour process: how work is organised
Explaining sect growth and conversion
TNCs and development strategies
Media bias: political and ideological influence
Problems measuring class in a changing economy
Willis: counter-school culture and class reproduction
Rapport, power imbalance and leading questions in interviews
Validity and how sociologists improve it
Becker: labelling and rule enforcers
Human rights: defining rights and abuses
Victim support and restorative justice
The self: identity as socially constructed
Family diversity: lone parent, reconstituted, same-sex, extended
Healthcare provision: variation and rationing
Division of labour: skilled vs unskilled work
Religiosity patterns: social class
International agencies: roles and influence
Media representations of age
Gender and social class: overlapping inequalities
Feminist views on gendered socialisation in schools
Observations: participant vs non-participant in schools
Generalisability: when findings apply more widely
Lemert: primary and secondary deviance
State crime: why states break rules
Evaluate the criminal justice system using evidence
Identity and difference: labelling and categorisation
Gender roles in the family: change and continuity
NHS role and contemporary pressures
Technology and work: automation and control
Religiosity patterns: gender
NGOs: strengths, limits and accountability
Media representations of social class
Changes in inequality structures over time
Cultural capital and educational advantage
Overt vs covert observation in education settings
Objectivity and risk of researcher bias
Realism: right realism and social control
Crimes of the powerful: corporate and state harm
Age and identity: youth and ageing
Domestic labour: measuring and explaining inequality
Mental illness: definitions and labelling
Skill change: de-skilling and re-skilling
Religiosity patterns: ethnicity
Aid and development: types and criticisms
Media representations of ethnicity
Globalisation and inequality: changing patterns
Material deprivation and educational outcomes
Hawthorne effect and observer bias in classrooms
Questionnaires: pros, cons and evaluation
Left realism: relative deprivation and marginalisation
Neutralisation and state justification narratives
Disability and identity: stigma and social barriers
Power in families: decision-making and control
Social distribution of mental illness
Managerial control and worker resistance
Religiosity patterns: age
Trade, debt and development
Media representations of gender
Transnational capitalist class and global elites
Class identity, aspirations and achievement
Experiments: lab, field and natural experiments in education
Structured interviews: strengths, limits and topics
Feminist theories of crime: gender and patriarchy
Global governance and limits of enforcement
Ethnicity and identity: belonging and racism
Childhood as a social construction
Medicalisation: normal life turned into illness
Worklessness: who is affected and why
Religion today: changing significance
Industrialisation and development paths
Media representations of sexuality
Social mobility: absolute vs relative mobility
Gendered subject choice and achievement patterns
Documents: policies, reports and school records
Unstructured interviews: depth, meanings and evaluation
Postmodern views: media, consumerism and identity
Gender identity: femininities and masculinities
Changing status of children over time
Medical profession: power and control
Worklessness and life chances
Secularisation in the UK: evidence and debate
Urbanisation: opportunities and problems
Media representations of disability
Social mobility patterns in the UK
Teacher expectations and gendered interactions
Official statistics: strengths, limits and interpretation
Participant observation: access, insight and ethics
Measuring crime: official stats and the dark figure
National identity and global influences
Birth rates since 1900: trends and explanations
Health professions and division of labour
Globalisation and labour markets
Global secularisation vs global religion trends
Development and environment: sustainability debates
Audiences: passive vs active theories
Explanations for mobility and immobility
Ethnicity, language and educational outcomes
Triangulation: combining methods for stronger findings
Non-participant observation: detachment and practical issues
Victimisation surveys: strengths and limits
Sexuality and identity: norms and change
Death rates and life expectancy since 1900
Globalised health industry: pharma and private providers
Precarious work and the gig economy
Globalisation and spread of religions
War, conflict and development setbacks
Uses and gratifications: why audiences choose media
Mobility significance for life chances
Institutional racism and ethnocentric curriculum
Writing evaluations in context: theory, practical and ethical issues
Experiments: control, causality and ethical constraints
Self-report studies: strengths and limits
Social class and identity: lifestyle and status
Ageing population: causes and consequences
Globalisation and health risks: pandemics, lifestyle, markets
Evaluate poverty solutions: effectiveness and consequences
Fundamentalism and modern society
Employment as a development indicator
Media effects debates: violence, fear, social attitudes
Evaluate evidence on inequality and mobility
Intersectionality in achievement patterns
Documents: personal vs official documents
Trends in crime: interpreting change over time
Identity and production: work and role identities
Migration and family patterns
Evaluate explanations for inequalities using evidence
Evaluate evidence on belief, practice and belonging
Education and development
Interpret media evidence critically in essays
Setting, streaming and banding: grouping and outcomes
Official statistics: trends and social construction issues
Identity and consumption: brands, taste and lifestyle
Globalisation and family life in the UK
Health and development
Labelling and the self-fulfilling prophecy
Positivism: social facts and scientific approaches
Globalisation and identity: choice, hybridity and tension
Demographic change and development
Pupil identities and pro-school/anti-school subcultures
Interpretivism: meanings, verstehen and social action
Gender and development: inequality and empowerment
Hidden curriculum: norms, values and compliance
Social facts and their impact on method choice
School organisation: rules, hierarchies and ethos
Theoretical considerations when choosing a method
School policies and exclusion: who is disadvantaged?
Practical issues: time, cost, access and skills
Selection by ability: policies and consequences
Ethical issues: consent, harm, deception, confidentiality
Marketisation: league tables, choice and competition
Consensus theories: order and shared values
Privatisation: outsourcing and profit motives
Conflict theories: power, inequality and competing interests
Policies to reduce inequality: aims and limitations
Structural theories: institutions shaping behaviour
Policy outcomes for class, gender and ethnicity groups
Social action theories: meanings and interaction
Globalisation and education policy: pressures and reforms
Modernity: key features and social change
Using contemporary evidence to evaluate education theories
Postmodernity: identity and scepticism of meta-narratives
Can sociology be scientific? arguments for and against
Relationship between theory and methods
Subjectivity vs objectivity in research
Value freedom: meaning and possibility
Sociology and social policy: research influencing decisions
Social policy problems: funding, bias and political agendas
Using theory and methods to evaluate evidence in essays