Professional Focus Paper
Course: Sociology
1.
Level: National 5
Who is this paper for and what is its purpose?
This paper is for teachers, lecturers and other staff who provide learning, teaching and support as learners work
towards Sociology National 5.
Curriculum for Excellence is a unique opportunity to raise achievement and to ensure that all learners are better
prepared than they have been in the past for learning, life and work. This is because the new curriculum gives real
scope to build learning 3–18 in a joined-up, seamless way. As a result, progression in learning can be much
stronger with a clear focus on attributes and capabilities, skills (including higher-order thinking skills), and
knowledge and understanding. These are delivered through the experiences and outcomes of the 3–15 Broad
General Education (BGE) and, at the senior phase, through programmes that build directly on the BGE leading to
qualifications. Because of a strengthened focus on the nature and quality of learning experiences, self-motivation is
likely to be increased and learners consequently more engaged and enthused. To ensure continuity and
progression, qualifications at the senior phase have been designed to embrace this unambiguous focus on highquality learning.
Curriculum for Excellence has the flexibility to meet the needs of all learners in their local circumstances, enabling
each to achieve their very best. For example, some centres may take the opportunity to offer qualifications over two
years which might involve learners bypassing qualifications at a given level, whereas others may enable learners to
work towards qualifications within one year. In both cases, the advice in this paper is relevant to the learning and
teaching approaches that learners will encounter. This paper, then, is intended to stimulate professional reflection
and dialogue about learning. It highlights important features of learning which are enhanced or different from
previous arrangements at this SCQF level.
How will you plan for progression in learning and teaching, building on the Broad General Education?
2.
What’s new, and what are the implications for learning and teaching?
Sociology National 5 consists of three Units.
 Human Society
 Culture and Identity
 Social Issues
To achieve Sociology National 5, learners must pass all three Units, along with an assignment and question paper,
which assess the added value of the course. Staff should note the mandatory content in the course assessment
specification.
SOCIOLOGY
What are the key aspects of Sociology National 5?
Sociology National 5 consists of three Units that give learners the opportunity to develop their knowledge and
understanding of sociology as a discipline, research methods and contemporary issues in society. This is achieved
through an introduction to the basic concepts and terminology of sociology and an opportunity for learners to
explore areas of sociological enquiry that can be tailored to suit their own experiences and interests. There is a
significant departure from the Intermediate 2 Sociology course and a great deal more scope for personalised
learning.
Since there is no Sociology National 4, for many learners National 5 will be their first introduction to the subject.
Many of the experiences and outcomes within the People in Society, Economy and Business organiser of the
social studies curriculum provide a relevant introduction to the National 5 course. It should be noted however that
Sociology National 5 sits within the health and well-being suite of courses for SQA purposes and that some of the
experiences and outcomes within health and well-being, social wellbeing may also be relevant.
Integrated approach to skills development
Learning experiences can develop a range of transferable skills in learners. Skills that are developed in sociology
include: identifying and describing basic differences between sociological and common-sense explanations of
human social behaviour; understanding society by describing sociological perspectives, theories and concepts;
describing the sociological significance of relationships amongst individuals, groups and institutions; using
investigation skills to find appropriate sources of information; organising and interpreting information in sociology;
describing the main research methods used in sociology; using sociological explanations for human social
behaviour; using knowledge and understanding of research and evidence to support explanations; and
communicating sociologically informed views.
Teachers should use imaginative approaches to learning and teaching that foster the development of skills across
the Units. Higher-order thinking skills can be promoted particularly effectively as learners are encouraged to make
links across the Units.
Personalisation and choice is readily facilitated by study in the Culture and Society and in the Social Issues Units
as well as in the assignment. In the Culture and Identity Unit, centres and learners can choose the cultures and
subcultures that they study. In the Social Issues Unit, in addition to differential achievement in education, another
social issue is studied, which is not prescribed. The assignment offers great scope for individual choice in topic and
sources.
Wider range of evidence of learning
There is a new emphasis on learning that will give rise to naturally occurring evidence and combined assessments.
Staff can make use of a wider range of forms of learning that will facilitate this evidence including, for example,
through digital or oral presentations, recorded DVD/video, written work, podcasts and wall displays. Staff should
consider imaginative approaches to learning and teaching that will best reflect the depth and application of
learning, thereby ensuring that the richness of learning experiences leads naturally to the evidence required to
meet the respective outcome and assessment standards.
Hierarchy of Units
Programmes of learning should be planned to encourage learners to aim for the highest level of achievement they
can. The hierarchy of Units in sociology allows for a flexible approach to be adopted by staff, enabling learning to
be tailored to individual needs. Most centres will choose to teach the Human Society Unit first or in conjunction
with another Unit at the beginning of the course as it offers an introduction to sociology and an examination of what
sociology is.
SOCIOLOGY
Added value
Learners will also be required to demonstrate added value in the form of an assignment and a question paper.
Learners will draw on, extend and apply the skills, knowledge and understanding gained from across the breadth of
their learning. The assignment provides an excellent opportunity for learners to demonstrate their abilities and
develop a deeper understanding of the topic they have chosen to explore. Considerable flexibility exists in the way
information is gathered for the assignment.
How will you ensure that the assignment will reflect learners’ progress throughout the course?
What are the key features of learning in Sociology National 5?
Active learning
Learners are encouraged to think independently and apply their growing sociological understanding to real-life
contexts and topical issues. Staff should work closely with learners in devising stimulating programmes of work and
stimulating lessons which allow for personalisation and choice at all levels. In sociology, learners can be actively
involved in this process through, for example, class debates, staff-led questioning, peer assessment and cooperative learning strategies.
How will you plan opportunities for learners to take an active role in their learning?
Learning independently
Learning experiences will enable all learners to continue to develop skills in learning independently, either working
individually or in groups. Learners can develop confidence and self-motivation through activities that offer a choice
of approaches which promote independence. Learners will be expected to find appropriate sources of information
within the context of the assignment. Staff should work to support learners by promoting independent learning in
gathering a variety of different sources from which to collate this information. Holistic class consideration of a
variety of different sources may then allow for personalisation and choice as learners select those most appropriate
to their assignment.
How will you ensure that learners have opportunities to engage with a broad and challenging range of sources of
evidence?
Responsibility for learning
Learners need to be encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning. Staff can promote this by regularly
asking learners to engage with understanding outside of the classroom including, for example, reading a quality
newspaper or checking a reliable news website, such as the BBC. Furthermore, sociology allows learners to
develop an increased awareness of themselves as learners by promoting personalisation and choice, particularly
so in the assignment where learners have a broad choice in the topic they select for independent study. Effective
teaching will ensure learners are encouraged to take on challenges. Learning experiences will also help them to
make informed choices and decisions through reasoned debate and discussion. Learners should be involved at all
stages in monitoring their own progress including, for example, by maintaining their own learning logs.
How will you support learners to take responsibility for, and plan, their own learning?
SOCIOLOGY
Collaborative learning
Staff should promote collaborative working, independent thinking and learning through interdisciplinary links,
building from the BGE and through the assignment. Debates between groups taking on structural or action
perspectives could help to embed understanding of the nature of sociological debate. Teamwork approaches lend
themselves readily to learning and teaching in sociology. For example, role-play activities on the difficulties faced
by some subcultures, news report presentations on social issues or factual displays on differential achievement in
education by different groups and ethnicities, could all lend themselves to teamwork approaches. Staff should look
to embed roles and responsibilities for learners within the lessons. This could be done, for example, by adopting
co-operative learning practices or a critical-skills approach, which require every learner to be involved. Ensuring
that responsibility is a shared process across learning will help learners to develop a willingness to address
challenges set by staff collaboratively, while also fostering progression in their inter-personal skills.
How will you ensure that learners have the confidence to take on appropriate roles and responsibilities in
collaborative tasks?
Applying learning
Staff should look to embed thematic approaches to learning and teaching wherever possible to promote effective
learning and skills development across the areas studied. This could be done with regard to social inequalities, for
example, which is an area of learning in the Social Issues and Culture and Identities Units and can also be
introduced when discussing the structural/action perspective debate in the Human Society Unit.
Combining learning to create extended responses is crucial in sociology, so it is important for learners to have the
opportunity to engage in this type of activity in a range of contexts. Exposing learners to a diverse mixture of texts
will enable them to develop further their critical-thinking skills. They might do this by calling into question, for
example, the reliability and consistency of information on a number of websites. The assignment will also allow for
considerable scope in the development of learners’ writing skills. Learners will become familiar with statistical
information in a range of different formats such as educational achievement statistics or research showing
opinions. This information will be dealt with in a critical manner to prompt learners to draw conclusions, critically
assess or to contrast different pieces of research evidence or sources of information.
Links with a range of curriculum areas, such as mathematics, English and other social subjects (in particular
modern studies), are essential to help learners apply and make connections in their learning. This will help to
ensure that their skills are reinforced and transferrable. The skills and knowledge gained when looking at research
methods is particularly transferrable.
How can you ensure that learners can access opportunities to apply their learning in different curriculum areas?
SOCIOLOGY
3.
Qualification information
The SQA website provides you with the following documents:
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Assessment Overview
Course Specification
Unit Specification
Support Notes
Course Assessment Specification
Unit Assessment Support Packages
Full information on arrangements for this qualification is available at the SQA website:
Sociology National 5: http://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/47402.html
4.
What other materials are available on the Education Scotland website which staff
could use?
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/learningteachingandassessment/curriculumareas/socialstudies/principlesandp
ractice/index.asp
Support materials have been produced over the last year to support Curriculum for Excellence and further support
materials and events are planned. This downloadable list is updated quarterly with the most up-to-date details
available from the page below.
Published and planned support for Curriculum for Excellence:
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/publishedandplannedsupport