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Level 3
Psychology A-level
COURSE OVERVIEW
This course aims to develop students’; understanding and awareness of psychological theories and research over a variety of different areas concerned with humans and animals. Students will learn about research which will help them understand why people behave as they do.
There are 11 topics which students will study:
- Introductory Topics in Psychology : Social influence, Memory, Attachment, and Clinical Psychology and Mental Health.
- Psychology in Context: Approaches in Psychology, Biopsychology, Research Methods
- Issues and Options in Psychology (2nd year): Issues and Debates; the options are: Schizophrenia, Gender, and Addiction
Lessons are varied: a range of teaching styles is used throughout the course to enable students with a variety of learning styles to succeed. In addition to teacher-led discussions in class, students will also engage in practical activities, such as small research investigations, debates, group presentations, internet researches. Students are also given the opportunity to visit a university conference specifically for A Level students, as well as a trip to London Zoo to attend a talk on animal psychology. Visiting speakers also come to tell us about their working role as psychologists. 1:1 support is available to all students.
FURTHER INFORMATION
You need a minimum of five GCSEs at 9-4, including grade 5 in Maths, and grade 4 in English Language and a Science.
Psychology goes particularly well with lots of different groupings of subjects. Those going for Performing Arts and more ‘Arts’; subjects will add Psychology to their list after English, perhaps, or Art. As Psychology is classed as a science for university purposes, students interested in medical careers (e.g. doctors, midwives, nurses, physiotherapy, paramedics, etc.) may add Psychology to their list after Biology and Chemistry. Students interested in Law, for example, will often add History and Psychology. Whilst students interested in Sports will often add Biology and Psychology to their choices. Psychology is recognised as an academic subject which counts as both an arts and a science subject for university entrance purposes. It is also useful for all careers dealing with people. It is particularly good for jobs in medicine (doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, midwives), sport (training and managing teams), education and law, as well as the more obvious psychology-related areas (e.g. educational psychology, or psychotherapy). However, as psychology is interesting and related to animals or humans, people take it to use wherever they may go!
All units will be assessed by examinations at the end of the second year. There are three examinations, each of 2 hours: Paper 1: Introductory Topics in Psychology Paper 2: Psychology in Context Paper 3: Issues and Options in Psychology Students may be assessed for an AS qualification in this course at the end of the first year as a measure of progress.
TBC
Good reading skills are important for this subject. Students will need to develop good writing skills and an ability to write well under the pressure of timed conditions; an ability to evaluate studies and research, spotting the strengths and weaknesses. Students will also need to develop, over the duration of the course, an ability to listen to others in class. Students will need to develop excellent independent study skills and crucial to doing well in this course will be organisation: students will need to develop organisational skills, keeping a tidy file and looking ahead will stand them in good stead for life.