Overview
Students are encouraged to use critical thinking to interpret, evaluate and debate the nature of politics and explore differences in other political systems.
Board: Edexcel
This subject is best suited to students who have an interest in politics and current affairs and read extensively to broaden their knowledge.
Course Structure
Teaching begins in September (January for 18 month courses) In the first year you will cover the following topics:
- Democracy and participation, political parties, electoral systems, voting behaviour and the media
- The Constitution, Parliament, Prime Minister and executive, relationships between the branches
Students may take the AS exam at the end of the first year. The second year then builds on this foundation for the completion of the full A level.
In the second year you will focus on the following topics:
- Political Participation: democracy and participation; political parties; electoral systems; voting behaviour and the media
- Core Political Ideas: conservatism; liberalism; socialism
- The Constitution, Parliament, Prime Minister and executive, relationships between the branches
- Non-core Political Ideas: choose one from anarchism, ecologism, feminism, multiculturalism, nationalism
- USA: the US Constitution and federalism; US Congress; US presidency; US Supreme Court and civil rights; democracy and participation; comparative theories
- Global: sovereignty and globalisation; global governance; political and economic, global governance; human rights and environmental, power and development; regionalism and the European Union; comparative theories
Exam Structure
A level Exam Format
| Component 1 | Component 2 | Component 3 |
|---|---|---|
| UK Politics 2 hours |
UK Government 2 hours |
Comparative Politics 2 hours |
Politics One-Year A level
We follow the Edexcel legacy syllabus for resit candidates.
Programme Requirements
Students do not need prior qualification in this subject but an interest in politics and a good level of English are required.
Related Further Study and Careers
A Level Politics prepares students well for a wide range of social science and humanities courses at university. It is a useful A level for students who are intending to read politics or a related subject at tertiary level. It can be good preparation for degree courses such as International Relations, Law and PPE.
