Professional Focus Paper
Course: Social Subjects
1.
Level: National 2
Who is this paper for and what is its purpose?
This paper is for teachers and other staff who provide learning, teaching and support as learners work towards
Social Subjects National 2.
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 strong focus on the 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 will be more engaged and enthused. To ensure continuity and progression,
qualifications at the senior phase have been changed to embrace this unambiguous focus on high-quality 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 schools may take the opportunity to offer National Courses
over two years which might involve bypassing qualifications at a given level, whereas others may work towards a
qualification within one year. In both cases, this advice 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?
Social Subjects National 2 comprises three mandatory Units providing learners with the opportunity to develop and
apply a range of skills for learning, life and work within relevant real-life contexts.
Mandatory
 Making a Decision
 Making a Contrast
 Organising and Communicating Information
SOCIAL SUBJECTS
To achieve Social Subjects National 2, learners must pass all three of the required Units. The outcomes across the
units at Social Subjects 2 may also provide personalised achievement opportunities for learners, for example:
 National 2 Personal Achievement Award
What are the key aspects of Social Subjects National 2?
The three mandatory Units in Social Subjects National 2 can be taught individually in any order or integrated to
form different types of Courses. The structure of the Course and Units gives staff the flexibility to create learning
experiences that are relevant to learners and their locations. For example, sequencing of learning within Units can
be taken from a single social subject, used across a theme, or from a different social subject for each Unit. The
contexts for learning can be taken from Geography, History, Modern Studies, Classical Studies and/or Religious,
Moral and Philosophical Studies. The Course provides opportunities for learners to develop an understanding of
the world by considering other people and their values and beliefs, in different times, places and circumstances.
Skills development
Social Subjects National 2 builds on the experiences and skills developed within the BGE and has a focus on
developing skills and applying them in real-life learning situations. The skills being developed are making a
decision, contrasting, organising and communicating information in chosen contexts. Learners will also be able to
develop a range of skills for learning, life and work, including numeracy, literacy, problem solving, and Information
and Communications Technology. Social Subjects National 2 enables learners to develop thinking skills through
gathering information from relevant sources relating to their chosen context, identifying key or important pieces of
that information and then making decisions or contrasts linked to the context. For example, in undertaking the
Organising and Communicating Information Unit with a chosen context of World War II, learners can gather
information by visiting a local or regimental museum, conducting research on websites or interviewing a person
from the local community. When communicating information about this topic, learners can use a range of
presentation approaches, for example, their usual mode of communication, computer software, photographs or
video clips. For some learners, specific targets may continue to be set within their individualised educational
programmes to ensure skills are developed across literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing. In planning
activities and skill development in this area, staff should also take account of targets set in other curricular areas,
including literacy, numeracy and personal development.
Wider range of evidence of learning
There is an increased emphasis on naturally occurring evidence and combined assessments, building on
approaches developed in the BGE. Staff can now make use of a wider range of evidence including, for example:
observation of evidence demonstrated during an activity by using an observation checklist, visual recording,
photography or equivalent; oral questioning before, during and on completion of a task; self assessment using
‘Assessment is for learning’ strategies; peer assessment; learning and teaching activities which generate physical
evidence for assessment. Opportunities for interdisciplinary and cross-curriculum working can provide a framework
for integrated approaches to assessment.
Hierarchy of Units
Social Subjects National 2 Units build on skills developed within the BGE and experiences and outcomes from
Social Studies and Religious and Moral Education. Learners can also progress from Religious, Moral and
Philosophical Units and the Personal Achievement Award at National 1. Learners can progress to other Units at
SCQF level 2, for example, Personal Achievement Award National 2, Multimedia Applications National 2 and
Working with Digital Images National 2. They can also progress to Courses and Units at National 3 namely, Social
Subjects courses at National 3, Religious, Moral and Philosophical Studies National 3 and the Religion, Belief and
Values Award at National 3. The hierarchical nature allows for flexible approaches to learning and teaching.
SOCIAL SUBJECTS
Programmes of learning can be designed to enable learners to experience learning within and across SCQF levels
as appropriate to their needs. This approach has the potential to encourage all learners to achieve at the highest
level and build a strong platform for further learning at National 2 and beyond.
What are the key features of learning in Social Subjects National 2?
Active learning
Learners will be expected to take an active role in the learning process, working individually and collaboratively to
develop and apply skills. Learning activities, linked to their own needs and interests, will develop learners’ ability to
test their ideas, solve problems and apply their learning in other aspects of their lives. Through active learning,
learners should experience tasks and activities that require them to analyse and make decisions, explain their
thinking and synthesise aspects of their existing skills. When learners are increasingly active in their learning, they
make links across their learning that help them to make sense of the world and give their learning relevance and
authenticity.
How will you plan opportunities for learners to take a more active role in their learning?
Personalised learning and learning independently
Learners undertaking Social Subjects National 2 will continue to develop their confidence as independent learners
either working on their own or in groups. Learners can develop confidence and self-motivation through activities
that offer a choice of approaches and resources and which encourage them to be self-reliant. This could nurture
their leadership skills and promote responsibility and team working, essential skills for learning, life and work.
Personalised learning helps every learner to develop and understand their own distinctive set of skills and abilities,
into adulthood and beyond. Learners may initially require a high level of adult support in order to foster confidence
and independence and should be routinely reviewed by staff. Well defined assessment will determine the level of
support an individual learner may require at any given point within the learning and teaching environment. Learners
should be given the opportunity to use their normal mode of communication and have access to the appropriate
resources identified to support their learning. Learners should be encouraged to improve their literacy skills by
being able to understand and interpret ideas from information presented in different ways. For example, using
graphs in geography; timelines in history and basic statistics in modern studies to help them make reasoned and
informed decisions.
How will you plan opportunities for learners to work independently?
Responsibility for learning
Learners should be expected to take increasing responsibility for, and plan their own learning based on an
understanding of how best they themselves learn. Opportunities for personalisation and choice will enable learners
to show what they can do. This will promote motivation and ensure that individuals are challenged appropriately.
Learners progress at different rates and will require different levels of support depending on the task/activity to be
undertaken. Staff should be aware of the types and range of supports required to enable the learner to achieve and
experience success, with the least possible intervention. Personalised learning, with clear links to previous
learning, progress and achievement ensures that learning and teaching and individual educational programmes are
tailored to the learners’ needs across the contexts for learning. Learners’ preferred methods of communication and
the increasing use of technology such as electronic tablets; software resources, for example virtual tours of
museums and cities ; text prediction software will all play an important role in allowing the learner to take increased
responsibility for learning. Within Social Subjects National 2 the use of real-life sources of information, for example
weather apps, community facilities, religious buildings, archives, archaeological finds and people in the local
SOCIAL SUBJECTS
community will engage learners in learning outside the centre, helping them to understand themselves and the
world in which they live.
How will you support learners to take responsibility for, and plan, their own learning?
Collaborative learning
Social Subjects National 2 builds on collaborative approaches to learning from the BGE. Collaborative learning
challenges learners to think independently and engage in discussion, debate and activity to achieve specific
outcomes. In planning activities, staff should provide opportunities for learners to collaborate more widely with
others. This reinforces that learning takes place both within and beyond the centre. Using the resources of the local
community offers very good opportunities for real-life and relevant contexts for learners. Finding out about what the
community looked like in the past and now will allow learners to visit local facilities, meet people of different ages,
and involve families. They will be able to use photographs, film and other archived materials. Learners could
organise and communicate this information, making a contrast between aspects of life in the community now and in
the past such as, entertainment facilities. Alternatively, they could find out about the local community as it is now
and decide what they would like to change about it. Working with partners and peers enable learners to use
different learning styles and strengths, share interests and aptitudes, explore and investigate topics of interest. For
example, learners could watch a travel programme about a Mediterranean country, find about the climate of that
country and use that information as a contrast with the climate where they live. Learners could also work in small
groups to compare and contrast festivals and ceremonies associated with two world religions. Staff can also use
such opportunities to enhance learners’ creative skills, allowing them to engage in a variety of roles and making
effective contributions as part of a team.
How will you ensure that learners have the confidence to take on appropriate roles and responsibilities in
collaborative tasks?
How will you ensure that learners can access opportunities to work with a wide range of partners?
Applying learning
Social Subjects National 2 encourages learners to apply the skills they have learned in relevant real-life settings.
Using important and key aspects of information to make decisions can be transferred into a range of curriculum,
areas as well as centre events. For example, using the context of the use of water in the developing world by
comparison to the developed world could link in with a whole-centre charity fundraising event. Literacy skills could
be further enhanced by communicating information to others in the centre as part of deciding which charity would
be supported. Links could be made to Science in the Environment National 2: Sustainable Lifestyles Unit as part of
exploring using resources responsibly. Numeracy and literacy skills can be enhanced by using or creating graphs
and statistics to find out about water use in the centre, at home and in the wider community. Links with Units in
Food, Health and Wellbeing would enable learners to explore the importance of clean and safe water in their own
lives. By linking and connecting these contexts, learners can apply their skills of making decisions, comparing and
contrasting, organising and communicating information in a meaningful way to enhance their understanding.
How can you ensure that learners can access opportunities to apply their learning in other curricular areas?
SOCIAL SUBJECTS
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:
Social Subjects National 2: http://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/48573.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
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/studyingscotland/
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/scotlandshistory/
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nationalqualifications/subjects/geography.asp
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nationalqualifications/subjects/classics.asp
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nationalqualifications/subjects/modernstudies.asp
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/learningteachingandassessment/curriculumareas/rme/nondenominational/nqs
/index.asp
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/learningteachingandassessment/curriculumareas/rme/rerc/index.asp
T +44 (0)141 282 5000 E enquiries@educationscotland.gov.uk W www.educationscotland.gov.uk
Education Scotland, Denholm House, Almondvale Business Park, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA
© Crown copyright, 2012
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