2012
Sociology AS at
Knights
Unit 1: Families and Households
Unit 2: Education with Research Methods
Revision pack
Haberdashers’ Aske’s Federation Sixth Form
Mrs Griffiths: sj-griffiths@hahc.org.uk
Mr Roaf: sm-roaf@hahc.org.uk
Unit 1 exam: Thursday 17th May, am
Unit 2 exam: Friday 25th May, pm
Easter Revision: tbc
AS Syllabus: AQA Sociology GCE (new specification)
Unit 1: Families and Households (SCLY1)
 Worth 40% of your AS and 20% of your final A Level
 Written paper, 1 hour
 60 marks available
Unit 2: Education with Research Methods (SCLY2)
 Worth 60% of your AS and 30% of your final A Level
 Written paper, 2 hours
 90 marks available
Timetable
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
Use your revision checklists to draw up a timetable for revision leading up to the exam. Make
sure you cover everything, but make sure it is manageable – you can’t spend every minute
working, so allow yourself some time off, both short breaks and occasional days or half days.
Try http://getrevising.co.uk/
Resources



Handouts and powerpoints from lessons are available on the shared drive and on the VLE.
Additional revision resources will be available to download from the VLE
Use the list of websites in this pack to help you identify other useful revision resources
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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AQA SCLY1
Unit 1: Families and Households
There are 3 sections – choose the CORRECT one, Families and Households (should be section B), and
answer all the questions from that section.
Time allowed: 1 hour
Maximum marks: 60
Time per mark = max 1 min.
Questions carrying 24 marks should be answered in continuous prose and you will be marked on your
ability to use good English, to organise information clearly and to use specialist vocabulary where
appropriate.
Possible Question outlines
06
definition of key term, e.g. ‘primary socialisation’
Marks
Timing
2 marks <2 mins
To get full marks for this question, you need to explain the term and give a supporting example.
Possible questions:

Explain what is meant by ‘primary socialisation’ (Item 2A, line 7). (2 marks) (specimen paper)

Explain what is meant by the ‘expressive role’ (Item 2A, line 5). (2 marks) (January 2009)

Explain what is meant by ‘serial monogamy’ (Item 2A). (2 marks) (June 2010)

Explain what is meant by ‘net migration’ (Item 2A). (2 marks) (January 2011)

Explain what is meant by the ‘social construction’ of childhood (Item 2A). (2 marks) (June 2011)
07
2 examples of a particular idea or reasons for a change, e.g. two ways
in which childhood has become ‘protected and privileged’
4 marks <4 mins
To get full marks you need to explain two things, supported by examples that highlight change or increase,
if this is specified in the question.
Possible questions:

Suggest two ways in which childhood has become .a specially protected and privileged time of life.
(Item 2A, lines 4 . 5). (4 marks) (specimen paper)

Suggest two ways in which ‘family life may have a harmful effect on women’ (Item 2A, lines 6 – 7).
(4 marks) (January 2009)

Explain the difference between a family and a household (Item 2A). (4 marks) (June 2009)

Suggest two reasons why lone-parent families are more likely to be headed by a female. (4 marks)
(June 2009)

Suggest two reasons why women might delay having children (Item 2A). (4 marks) (January 2010)
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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
Suggest two ways in which the position of children could be said to have improved over the last
one hundred years. (4 marks) (January 2010)

Suggest two reasons why there has been an increase in cohabitation (Item 2A). (4 marks) (June
2010)

Suggest two reasons why people may migrate to the United Kingdom, apart from that referred to
in Item 2A. (4 marks) (January 2011)

Suggest two ways, apart from those mentioned in Item 2A, in which government policies and/or
laws may shape the experiences of children today. (4 marks) (June 2011)
08
3 reasons for something e.g. change in divorce rate
6 marks <6 mins
To get full marks you need to explain three things, supported by examples that highlight change or
increase, if this is specified in the question.
Possible questions:

Suggest three reasons for the increase in the divorce rate since 1969. (6 marks) (specimen paper)

Suggest three reasons for the decrease in the death rate since 1900. (6 marks) (January 2009)

Identify three ways in which childhood may not be a positive experience for some children. (6
marks) (June 2010)

Identify three ways in which greater ethnic diversity has contributed to family diversity (6 marks)
(January 2011)

Identify three reasons why the birth rate has fallen since 1900. (6 marks) (June 2011)
Questions 06, 07 and 08 may be any combination of marks, adding up to a total of 12.
09
essay question
24
marks
4min plan
20 min
To reach the higher level marks, you need to demonstrate accurate sociological knowledge and
understanding, and apply it directly to the topic in the question. Support your answer with evidence and
demonstrate how this answers the question.
Possible questions:

Examine the ways in which social policies and laws may influence families and households. (24
marks) (specimen paper)

Examine the ways in which childhood can be said to be socially constructed. (24 marks) (January
2009)

Examine the reasons for changes in birth rates and family size since 1900. (24 marks) (June 2009)
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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
Examine the ways in which government policies and laws may affect the nature and extent of
family diversity. (24 marks) (January 2010)

Examine the reasons for, and the consequences of, the fall in the death rate since 1900. (24 marks)
(June 2010)

Examine the reasons for changes in the patterns of marriage and cohabitation in the last 40 years
or so. (24 marks) (January 2011)

Examine the reasons for changes in the divorce rate since 1969. (24 marks) (June 2011)
10
essay question with reference to item
24
marks
4min plan
20 min
To reach the higher level marks for this question, you have to successfully interpret material and apply it to
answering the question, and explicitly refer to the item, make it clear how your discussion is answering the
question. It is acceptable to repeat key language from the question and item when doing this, however,
don’t simply make statements such as and this shows that the it no longer makes sense to talk about the
patriarchal family. This is not good enough, you must explain how your discussion of relevant evidence
answers the question.
Refers to Item X, but on this occasion you are asked to use Item X in your answer, you must do this, to get
the full marks.
Possible 11 questions

Using material from Item 2B and elsewhere, assess the view that it no longer makes sense to talk
about the patriarchal family. (Item 2B). (24 marks) (Specimen paper)

Using material from Item 2B and elsewhere, assess the view that the nuclear family is no longer the
norm. (24 marks) (January 2009)

Using material from Item 2B and elsewhere, assess the view that gender roles and relationships
have become more equal in modern family life. (24 marks) (June 2009)

Using material from Item 2B and elsewhere, assess the Marxist view that the main role of the
family is to serve the interests of capitalism. (24 marks) (January 2010)

Using material from Item 2B and elsewhere, assess the view that, in today’s society, the family is
losing its functions. (24 marks) (June 2010)

Using material from Item 2B and elsewhere, assess the view that the modern family has become
more child-centred. (24 marks) (January 2011)

Using material from Item 2B and elsewhere, assess the contribution of feminist sociologists to an
understanding of family roles and relationships. (24 marks) (June 2011)
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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REVISION CHECKLIST Unit 1: Families and Households
1 Changing patterns of marriage, cohabitation, separation, divorce, child-bearing and the life-course, and
the diversity of contemporary family and household structures
 Marriage: fall in number of marriages, later age of first marriage.
 Cohabitation: growth of cohabitation, greater acceptability of cohabitation, types (e.g. trial
marriage, long term partnership).
 Separation and divorce: legal position, increase in divorce after 1969, reasons for divorce;
remarriages and reconstituted families.
 Child-bearing: number of children, age at which women have first child, changes in parenting
practices; lone parent families; beanpole families.
 Life course: consideration of range of possibilities, including living alone (singletons), grandparents.
2 The relationship of the family to the social structure and social change, with particular reference to the
economy and to state policies
 Functionalist views: the importance of the nuclear family, the universality of the family, changing
functions, how the nuclear family ‘fits’ modern society.
 Marxist views: the family as part of the ideological state apparatus, as an agent of social control.
 Feminist views: patriarchy; liberal, radical and Marxist feminism.
 Foucault: surveillance of family life, internalisation of norms.
 The New Right: decline of the family, demonisation of single parents, fatherless families,
uncontrollable children; Murray’s view of the underclass; need for a return to ‘traditional’ family
values.
 Some key government policies affecting families, with more detail on the most recent (post-1997).
 Post-1997 government policies assessed in relation to the theories.
 Current policy positions of the main parties assessed in relation to the theories.
3 The nature and extent of changes within the family, with reference to gender roles, domestic labour
and power relationships
 Gender roles within families: functionalist, feminist, New Right and other views.
 The domestic division of labour – changing nature of housework and home-related activities
related to changing roles of men and women and to masculinity and femininity, both in and beyond
the home.
 Decision-making and power relations within households.
 Consequences of unequal power: the ‘dark side of the family’, domestic violence, child abuse,
mental illness.
4 The nature of childhood, and changes in the status of children in the family and society
 The social construction of childhood: how childhood differs over time and between cultures; ways
in which childhood is marked as separate from other stages of life.
 Children and (paid) work: legal situation in UK; comparison with other countries.
 Children as actors within families; the rights and responsibilities of children today.
5 Demographic trends in the UK since 1900; reasons for changes in birth rates, death rates and family size
 For each of the three areas of change (birth rates, death rates and family size) students should be
aware of the trend, of possible reasons for it and of some cross-cultural/global comparisons.
 Birth rates (and fertility rates): falling - availability of contraception/family planning; children more
likely to survive; cost of raising children; later age of marriage; women giving priority to work, etc.
 Death rates: falling - higher life expectancy; better health care, protection and treatment for life
threatening illness, etc.
 Family size: falling - reasons similar to birth rate but focus on decisions on individual reasons.
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AQA SCLY2
Unit 2: Education with Research Methods
There are 2 sections – choose the CORRECT one, Education (should be section A), and answer all the
questions in that section.
Time allowed: 2 hours
Maximum marks: 90
Time per mark = max 1 1/3 min.
Questions with more than 12 marks should be answered in continuous prose and you will be marked on
your ability to use good English, to organise information clearly and to use specialist vocabulary where
appropriate.
The paper has five questions:
No
01
You are advised to spend 50 minutes on Questions 01 to 04
You are advised to spend 30 minutes on Questions 05
You are advised to spend 40 minutes on Questions 06-09
Possible Question outlines
definition of key term, e.g. ‘hidden curriculum’
Marks
2 marks
Timing
<2 mins
Possible questions:

Explain what is meant by the term ‘compensatory’ education. (2 marks) (specimen paper)

Explain what is meant by the term ‘cultural capital’. (2 marks) (January 2009)

Explain what is meant by the term ‘ethnocentric curriculum’. (2 marks) (January 2010)

Explain what is meant by the term ‘vocational’ education. (2 marks) (June 2010)

Explain what is meant by the term ‘cultural deprivation’. (2 marks) (January 2011)

Explain what is meant by the term ‘immediate gratification’. (2 marks) (June 2011)
02
Explain 3 factors
e.g. 3 reasons for boys’ underachievement
6 marks
<6 mins
Possible questions:

Suggest three material factors that might cause working-class educational underachievement. (6
marks)(specimen paper)

Suggest three reasons for gender differences in subject choice. (6 marks) (January 2009)

Suggest three ways in which Marxists see school as being similar to the world of work. (6 marks)
(January 2010)

Suggest three reasons for boys’ educational under-achievement. (6 marks) (June 2010)

Identify three educational policies that may have contributed to social class differences in
achievement. (6 marks) (January 2011)
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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
03
Identify three policies that may promote the marketisation of education. (6 marks) (June 2011)
Outline some reasons for something
e.g. gender differences in subject choice
12 marks <12 mins
Possible questions:

Outline some of the reasons why different pupil subcultures exist in schools. (12 marks) (specimen
paper)

Outline some of the policies introduced by governments to create an education market in the United
Kingdom. (12 marks) (January 2009)

Outline some of the ways in which the labelling process may lead to educational under-achievement
for some pupils. (12 marks) (January 2010)

Outline some of the ways in which cultural deprivation may lead to educational under-achievement
for working-class pupils. (12 marks) (June 2010)

Outline some of the ways in which factors outside the education system have resulted in improved
educational achievement for girls. (12 marks) (January 2011)

Outline some of the functions that the education system may perform. (12 marks) (June 2011)
04
Essay question:
Using material from Item A and elsewhere…
e.g. assess the claim ‘the main function of education…’
20 marks <30 mins
Possible questions:

Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the claim that ‘the main function of education is to
maintain a value consensus in society’ (Item A, lines 7 – 8). (20 marks) (specimen paper)

Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the claim that ‘ethnic differences in educational
achievement are primarily the result of school factors’ (Item A, lines 5 – 6) (20 marks) (January 2009)

Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the claim that gender differences in educational
achievement are primarily the ‘result of changes in wider society’ (Item A, lines 6 – 7). (20 marks)
(January 2010)

Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the claim that the main aim of education policies in
the last 25 years has been to create an education market. (20 marks) (June 2010)

Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the view that the education system exists mainly
to select and prepare young people for their future work roles. (20 marks) (January 2011)

Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the view that factors and processes within the
school are the main cause of differences in the educational achievement of different social groups.
(20 marks) (June 2011)
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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05
Methods in context
Using material from Item B and elsewhere…
e.g. Assess the strengths and limitations of one of the following
methods (observation / official statistics) for investigating teacher
attitudes towards minority ethnic group pupils
20 marks <30 mins
Question 05 requires you to apply your knowledge and understanding of sociological research methods to
the study of a particular issue in education. You will need to read Item B and answer the question /
questions that follow.
Question 05 is worth 20 marks and uses the functional word assess, you will need to carefully read Item B,
and identify the ‘hooks’, clues written into the Item about material to include in your answer.
To get full marks for this question, you have to successfully interpret material and apply it to answering the
question, and explicitly refer back to the question, make it clear how your discussion is answering the
question. It is acceptable to repeat key language from the question when doing this, however, don’t simply
make statements such as and this shows how useful observation is for investigating teacher attitudes. This is
not good enough, you must explain how your discussion of relevant evidence answers the question.
Possible questions:

Using material from Item B and elsewhere, assess the strengths and limitations of one of the
following methods for investigating teachers’ attitudes towards minority ethnic group pupils:
EITHER participant observation OR questionnaires. (20 marks) (specimen paper)

Using material from Item B and elsewhere, assess the strengths and limitations of one of the
following methods for investigating boys’ underachievement:
EITHER (i) official statistics OR (ii) unstructured interviews. (20 marks) (January 2009)

Using material from Item B and elsewhere, assess the strengths and limitations of one of the
following methods for investigating the effect of material deprivation on educational achievement:
EITHER (i) unstructured interviews OR (ii) offi cial statistics. (20 marks) (January 2010)

Using material from Item B and elsewhere, assess the strengths and limitations of one of the
following methods for investigating anti-school subcultures:
EITHER (i) group interviews OR (ii) non-participant observation. (20 marks) (June 2010)

Using material from Item B and elsewhere, assess the strengths and limitations of one of the
following methods for investigating the role of parents in pupils’ achievement:
EITHER (i) questionnaires OR (ii) unstructured interviews. (20 marks) (January 2011)

Using material from Item B and elsewhere, assess the strengths and limitations of one of the
following methods for investigating truancy from school:
EITHER (i) official statistics OR (ii) participant observation. (20 marks) (June 2011)
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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06
Definition of key term, e.g. ‘triangulation’
2 marks
<2 mins
For these questions, you can draw examples from any area of sociology with which you are familiar.
Possible questions:

Explain what is meant by the term ‘triangulation’. (2 marks) (specimen paper)

Explain what is meant by the term ‘longitudinal’ study. (2 marks) (January 2009)

Explain what is meant by the term ‘hypothesis’. (2 marks) (January 2010)

Explain what is meant by the term ‘secondary’ data. (2 marks) (June 2010)

Explain what is meant by ‘primary’ data. (2 marks) (January 2011)

Explain what is meant by ‘validity’ in sociological research. (2 marks) (June 2011)
07 Evaluation of methods
and e.g. 1 advantage and 1 disadvantage of using official statistics
08
4 marks
<4 marks
This question requires you to evaluate a method. Explaining the method or identifying the advantage /
disadvantage is not sufficient; make sure you give an example and fully explain the advantage / disadvantage.
Possible questions:

Suggest one advantage and one disadvantage of a longitudinal study. (4 marks) (specimen paper)

Suggest two disadvantages that sociologists may find when using unstructured interviews. (4 marks)
(specimen paper)

Identify two sampling techniques used in sociological research. (4 marks) (January 2009)

Suggest two disadvantages of using media reports in sociological research. (4 marks) (January 2009)

Suggest two advantages of using official statistics in sociological research. (4 marks) (January 2010)

Suggest two problems that researchers may face when actively participating in the group they are
studying. (4 marks) (January 2010)

Suggest two factors that may influence a sociologist’s choice of research topic. (4 marks) (June 2010)

Suggest two problems of using personal documents in sociological research. (4 marks) (June 2010)

Suggest two disadvantages that sociologists might find when using structured interviews. (4 marks)
(January 2011)

Suggest one advantage and one disadvantage of using laboratory experiments in sociological
research. (4 marks) (January 2011)
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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
Explain the difference between a sampling frame and a sample. (4 marks) (June 2011)

Suggest two problems of using documents in sociological research. (4 marks) (June 2011)
09
Essay question:
e.g. Examine some of the problems sociologists may find in using
experiments
20 marks <30 mins
Possible questions:

Examine the disadvantages some sociologists may find when using official statistics in their
research. (20 marks) (specimen paper)

Examine the problems some sociologists may face when using experiments in their research. (20
marks) (January 2009)

Examine the extent to which practical issues are the most important influence when selecting
research methods and a research topic. (20 marks) (January 2010)

Examine the problems some sociologists find with using postal questionnaires in their research. (20
marks) (June 2010)

Examine the advantages of using personal documents and historical documents in sociological
research. (20 marks) (January 2011)

Examine the problems that some sociologists may face when using different kinds of experiments
in their research. (20 marks) (June 2011)
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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REVISION CHECKLIST Part One of Unit 2: Education
1 The role and purpose of education, including vocational education and training, in contemporary
society
 Functionalist and New Right views of the role and purpose of education: transmission of values,
training workforce
 Marxist and other conflict views of the role and purpose of education: social control, ideology,
hegemony; ‘deschoolers’ (Illich, Friere): socialisation into conformity by coercion
 Vocational education and training: the relationship between school and work:human capital,
training schemes, correspondence theory.
2 Differential educational achievement of social groups by social class, gender and ethnicity in
contemporary society
 Statistics on educational achievement by class, gender and ethnicity; trends over time
 Social class and educational achievement: home environment; cultural capital, material
deprivation; language (Bernstein); school factors, relationship between achievement by class in
education and social mobility
 Gender and educational achievement: feminist accounts of gender-biased schooling; the concern
over boys’ ‘underachievement’ and suggested reasons; subject choice; gender identities and
schooling
 Ethnicity and educational achievement: patterns; reasons for variations; multicultural and antiracist education; experience of minorities in different types of schools
 The relationship between class, gender and ethnicity
 The effects of changes on differential achievement by social class, gender and ethnicity.
3 Relationships and processes within schools, with particular reference to teacher/pupil relationships,
pupil subcultures, the hidden curriculum, and the organisation of teaching and learning
 School processes and the organisation of teaching and learning: school ethos; streaming and
setting; mixed ability teaching; the curriculum; overt and hidden
 the ‘ideal pupil’; labelling; self-fulfilling prophecy
 School subcultures (eg as described by Willis, Mac an Ghaill) related to class, gender and ethnicity
 Teachers and the teaching hierarchy; teaching styles
 The curriculum, including student choice.
4 The significance of educational policies, including selection, comprehensivisation and marketisation, for
an understanding of the structure, role, impact and experience of education
 Independent schools
 Selection; the tripartite system: reasons for its introduction, forms of selection, entrance exams
 Comprehensivisation: reasons for its introduction, debates as to its success
 Marketisation: the 1988 reforms – competition and choice; new types of schools (CTCs, academies,
specialist schools, growth of faith schools)
 Recent policies in relation to the curriculum, testing and exam reforms, league tables, selection,
Special Educational Needs (SEN), etc
 Recent policies and trends in pre-school education and higher education.
5 The application of sociological research methods to the study of education
 Quantitative and qualitative data in education; the dominance of statistics (eg exam results, league
tables)
 Positivist and interpretivist approaches as applied to education
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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

Issues, strengths and limitations and examples of the application to the study of education of the
main sources of data studied (see Sociological Methods section):
o questionnaires
o interviews (formal/structured; informal/unstructured)
o participant and non-participant observation
o experiments
o use of documents, official statistics and other secondary data
The theoretical, practical and ethical considerations influencing choice of topic, choice of method(s)
and the conduct of research on education.
Part Two of Unit 2: Research Methods
1 Quantitative and qualitative methods of research; their strengths and limitations; research design
 The difference between quantitative and qualitative methods, primary and secondary methods and
source, strengths and limitations, using concepts such as validity, reliability, representativeness
 The main factors influencing research design
 The research process: main stages.
2 Sources of data, including questionnaires, interviews, participant and non-participant observation,
experiments, documents and official statistics; the strengths and limitations of these sources
 Through a range of examples students should explore the strengths and limitations in different
areas of sociological research of each of the named methods
 This should include the types of questions asked, different types of interview and of observation,
and the range of documentary and other secondary sources; the value of pilot studies;
triangulation; ways of selecting samples.
3 The distinction between primary and secondary data and between quantitative and qualitative data
 Primary and secondary data: difference, value of each to sociological research, ways of evaluating
usefulness of secondary data
 Quantitative and qualitative data: difference, value of each in sociological research, ways of
presenting different types of data.
4 The relationship between positivism, interpretivism and sociological methods; the nature of ‘social
facts’
 The differences between the positivist and interpretivist approaches, related to choice of method
and to issues such as validity, reliability and representativeness, quantitative and qualitative data
 The nature of social facts: awareness of the relationship between the research process and social
life.
5 The theoretical, practical and ethical considerations influencing choice of topic, choice of method(s)
and the conduct of research
 Theoretical considerations including the theoretical position of the researcher, issues of validity and
reliability, the type of data required
 Practical considerations including costs, time, access to respondents, sample size
 Ethical considerations including the interests of researcher and respondents, the researcher’s
responsibilities to all involved in the research process, the rights of respondents; issues of
anonymity, confidentiality and disclosure. Study of the British Sociological Association’s ethical
guidelines is recommended.
AS Sociology, Revision 2012
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Websites
http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/barrycomp/bhs/
A very good school-based website with links to a range of content, revision materials, ‘duffers guides’ etc
for AS and A2 Sociology.
www.esociology.co.uk
Another good school-based website, includes information on education and methods at AS level and crime
and deviance at A2.
http://www.chrisgardner.cadcol.ac.uk/
Sociology Learning Support site with interactive tests and quizzes, good for revision.
http://www.sociology.org.uk/drevise.htm
Sociology Central website produced by Chris Livesey, a Sociology teacher, with specific links to AQA
Sociology at AS level.
www.s-cool.co.uk
A good revision site with an A Level Sociology section.
www.sociologyonline.co.uk
Site covers good introductory materials (e.g. on gender, class, feminism) and information on some of the
big thinkers (e.g. Durkheim, Marx and Weber)
www.soc.surrey.ac.uk/sru/
Useful information on a range of sociological research methods, produced by the Sociology Department at
the University of Surrey.
http://media.pfeiffer.edu/lridener/DSS/
‘Dead Sociologists Website’ providing summaries and links to information for key Sociological thinkers of
the past.
http://www.sociologyexchange.co.uk/index.php
mainly provided for teachers, but lots of resources available to download
http://www.tutor2u.net/blog/index.php/sociology/
blog site highlighting news stories and developments, with some resources. Good for keeping up to date
with contemporary developments in sociology.
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