Politics

Staffing

Mr A Martin – Head of Department
Mrs K Judge

Department Overview

Politics is currently only offered as an A-Level option. It is a popular Sixth Form subject that often attracts both humanities students and science students who are looking to expand their knowledge of current affairs and develop their communication skills. The department is a highly qualified one, including graduates from Oxford and Warwick Universities. The ethos of the department is centred around a fascination in current affairs and a desire to pass that interest on to our students. To that end, we have an annual History and Politics trip to London where we visit the Houses of Parliament and Downing Street. We also look for any opportunity to get younger students involved in politics. We work closely with the school debating society and have run school mock elections during each of the past three General Elections.

Why study Politics?

It is important that you understand how the country you live in operates. Studying this course will help you make sense of current affairs, create and structure academic and analytical essays.

Politics is particularly useful if you are considering employment in law, journalism or the civil service. The awareness and the skills that you develop through a study of politics, however, are relevant to almost every aspect of life.

What do I need to know or be able to do before taking this course?

Politics is an intellectually challenging and rewarding subject. There are significant elements of written work involved in the course. The ability to articulate views and ideas in both a verbal and written context is essential. You must have an interest in politics in both the UK and USA and be prepared to read widely around the subject.

Features of the course:

This course combines three of the most popular units currently offered by exam boards. It combines practical elements such as how government works in the UK and USA with more theoretical aspects including the study of major political ideologies like conservatism, socialism, liberalism, feminism, nationalism and anarchism.

The course aims to widen students’ understanding of the key issues in modern society. It investigates where power now lies, how people are represented and the opportunities for change. This includes for example, debates over whether we should go to war, civil liberties, the influence of Europe, the obstacles facing minorities plus the role of political parties.

There are numerous extra-curricular activities to support your study of politics such as a joint history and politics trip to London, debating society, Sixth Form discussion group and events like the school mock election.