Politics
A Level British and American Politics - understanding power, people and ideas.
Qualification Information
Subject Leader for Politics
Entry Requirements: GCSE English Grade 5, GCSE History Grade 4+ is helpful but
not essential
Length of Course: 2 Years
Assessment: 100% Examination
Components: Paper 1: UK Politics and Core Political Ideas
Paper 2: UK Government and Non-core Political Ideas - Nationalism.
Paper 3: Comparative Politics – USA.
Qualification: Edexcel A Level Politics
Components 1 and 2 - UK Politics and UK Government You will study: • how people participate in politics, examining democracy, political parties, electoral systems, voting behaviour and the media. • the British constitution, parliament, Prime Minister and executive, and the relationships between the branches. You will also discuss questions like ‘why is Brexit happening?’, ‘What powers does the Prime Minister have?’, ‘Why was the result of the 2017 General Election such a surprise?’, and ‘Is Britain truly democratic?’ Political Ideas: You will examine some of the great ideas that have shaped our world, including Liberalism, Socialism, and Conservatism; and the work and influence of key political thinkers such as Karl Marx, Mary Wollstonecraft and Edmund Burke. Component 3 – (Comparative) US Politics You will study the US Constitution and federalism, US Congress, US presidency, US Supreme Court and civil rights, democracy and participation, and comparative theories.
You should take this course if: you are interested in politics or would like to know more; if you enjoy discussion and debates about what is in the news each day; you are interested in developing skills like analysis and writing.
The course provides a foundation of political knowledge which you can build on university by studying Economics, Journalism, Law, International Relations, History and Social Policy, or of course Politics.
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