My GCSE Sociology exams

Unit 1 Unit 2
90 marks, 90 minutes 90 marks, 90 minutes

Studying Education Families Social Mass Crime and

Society Inequality Media Deviance

30 marks
Grade 30 marks
boundaries /180 marks30 marks 30 marks
(approximate) 30 marks 30 marks
30 minutes 30 minutes 30 minutes 30 minutes 30 minutes 30 minutes
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Approx 180 Approx 160 140 120 100 80 60 50 40
/6 = 30 /6 = 27 /6 = 24 /6 = 20 /6 = 17 /6 = 14 /6 = 10 /6 = 8.5 /6 = 7

What will I be asked to do?

For each of the six topics except Studying Society, you will be assessed with these questions:
a, b Source based questions 2 x 1 mark Identify
c Identify two 2 marks Identify

d Explain what sociologists mean by 4 marks Describe,

Explain
e, f Describe one way in which 2 x 5 marks Identify, Describe,
Explain
and explain two advantages/problems with this.
g Write 1 of 2 essays: 12 marks Identify, Describe,
Explain, Evaluate
Discuss how far sociologists would agree that

The Studying Society unit assesses your knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of
Sociological research methods. Instead of a 12 mark essay, you will be given a research scenario
such as, As a sociologist, you have been asked to investigate attitudes towards the 2011 summer
riots among a range of age groups in your local area. You must answer three questions on this:

i Identify and explain one potential ethical problem with your 4 marks Identify, Describe,
Explain
research.
ii Identify and explain one useful secondary source for your study. 4 marks Identify, Describe,
Explain
ii Identify one primary method you would use and explain why it 6 marks Identify, Describe,
Explain, Evaluate
i would be better than another primary method.
Examples of students essay answers

Discuss how far sociologists would agree that crime results from inadequate socialisation at home.(12 marks)
Level 4 answer
Crime results from inadequate
socialisation at home. This
blames families for not bringing
their children up properly.
Sub-cultural theory blames
youths for crimes like vandalism.
Relative deprivation says people
steal when they see others
around them with the latest stuff.
Labelling says people are
labelled.
Marxists see crime as like Robin
Hood, the poor steal what they
need from the rich.
Examiners comments
This student covers a good
range of explanations, but does
not explain, evaluate or refer
A different Level 4 answer
The New Right approach says parents
are to blame for crime. They fail to teach
their children the right norms and values.
Their parents may even be criminal
themselves. Families are agents of
primary socialisation. This makes them
important for how their children turn out.
There are a number of other sociological
arguments including sub-cultural theory,
relative deprivation, labelling theory and
Marxist explanations.
Examiners comments
This student offers greater depth for one
explanation, as they briefly explain it in
the context of the question. After that
they fail to go further than just identifying
Level 7 answer
The New Right approach suggests that parents are ultimately to blame
for crime, as they fail to teach their children the norms and values of
society. Their parents may even be criminal themselves. As the agent
of primary socialisation, parents have perhaps the most influential role
on how their children turn out.
However, there are a number of other sociological perspectives.
People seem to commit crime in deviant subcultures. Cohen said that
working class boys gain status within their peer group by committing
crime like vandalism. This explains crimes where there is no motive for
financial reward, but there are many other types of crime that are not
committed by subcultures.
Perhaps young people are just labelled as deviant by the media, who
seek to amplify their deviance and create a moral panic. Marxists
would agree, and would add that the media ignore corporate crime
even though this is a far greater problem for society. If crime is
motivated by our desire for wealth, then the relative deprivation
argument explains why bankers from rich families are just as likely to
back to the question. a list of other explanations. commit crime as working class boys.

Unit 1 Unit 2

Studying Society Page Social Inequality Page

a Comparing Sociology to other approaches 8-9 a Different forms of stratification 84
b Sampling techniques b Functionalist and Marxist approaches to
11 86
social class
c Primary quantitative data: Social surveys 12-13 c Measuring social class 86-87
d Primary qualitative data: Unstructured d Inequalities based on gender, ethnicity
14 88-89
interviews and age
e Primary qualitative data: Participant e Wealth and income
15 90
observation
f Primary and secondary sources, quant and f Absolute and Relative poverty
16 90-91
qual data
g Secondary quantitative data: Official g Individual and Structural explanations of
17 92-93
statistics poverty
h Planning a research project; Ethical issues 18-19 h Meritocracy and social mobility 94-95
Key words Key words
Socialisation, Biology, Journalism, Psychology, Primary method, Absolute poverty, Achieved status, Ageism, Apartheid, Ascribed status,
Secondary sources, Survey, Unstructured interview, Participant Caste system, Culture of poverty, Cycle of deprivation, Glass ceiling,
observation, Sample, Longitudinal studies, Interviewer effect, Practical Income, Individual explanations, Institutional racism, Life chances,
Ethical, Reliable, Representative ,Valid, Objective ,Qualitative data, Meritocracy, Patriarchy, Poverty trap, Racial discrimination, Racial
Quantitative data prejudice, Relative poverty, Sex discrimination, Social exclusion, Social
mobility, Socio-economic class, Social stratification, Structural
explanations, Underclass
Education Page
a The role of education: Functionalist and Mass Media
22-23 Page
Marxist approaches
b The structure of the education system a Changes in mass media technology and
24-25 61
consumption
c Inequalities in educational achievement 26 b The influence of the media on audiences 62
d Influences on educational achievement: c Moral panics and the amplification of
27 63
Home factors deviance
e Influences on educational achievement: d Pluralist and conflict approaches to media
27-29 64
In-school factors ownership
f Influences on educational achievement: e Agenda setting and norm referencing
27,29 64-65
Government policies
Key words f Mass media ownership and political
66-67
Anti-school subculture, Citizenship, Cultural capital, Ethnocentric socialisation
curriculum, Hidden curriculum, Independent schools, Labelling, g Mass media ownership and political
Marketisation of education, Material deprivation, Meritocracy, National 66-67
curriculum, Ofsted, Self-fulfilling prophecy, Setting and streaming
socialisation
School league tables, State funded schools, Vocational education, Key words
Functionalist approach, Marxist approach Agenda-setting, Amplification of deviance, Convergence, Conflict
approach, Democracy, Desensitised, Folk devils, Hyper reality,
Hypodermic syringe model, Identity, Image, Interactivity, Mass popular
Families Page
culture, Moral panic, News value, Norm referencing, Old/new media,
a Defining families and households 34-35
Pluralism, Popular press, Propaganda, Readership, Uses and
b Family types 34-35 gratifications
c Life course diversity 35
d The role of the family: Functionalist, New Crime and Deviance
36-37 Page
Right, Marxist and Feminist approaches
e Changing gender roles 38 a Defining crime and deviance 48
f Child-centeredness 39 b Formal and informal social control 49
g Changing birth and death rates c Sociological explanations of crime and
40-41 50-51
deviance
h Changing patterns of marriage and divorce d Official crime statistics, victim surveys and
42-43 52-53
self report studies
Key words
Beanpole families, Birth rate, Child-centred, Civil partnership,
Cohabitation, Conjugal roles, Death rate, Domestic division of labour,
Divorce rate, Extended family, Empty shell marriage, Fertility rate,
Household, Lone-parent family, Marriage rate, Nuclear family, Patriarchy,
Reconstituted family/step-parent, Symmetrical families.
Functionalist, New Right, Marxist and Feminist approaches
e Crime and age, gender, ethnicity, social
54-55
class and locality
f The impact of crime on victims, society
56-57
and the government
Key words
Agents of social control, Anomie, Antisocial behaviour, Amplification of
deviance, Chivalry thesis, Conformity, Corporate crime, Dark figure,
Deviance, Formal and informal social control, Labelling theory, Moral
panic, Official crime statistics, Recorded crime, Relative deprivation,
Self-report studies, Social control, Social construct, Sub-culture, Victim
surveys, White collar crime