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Psychology
What is the overall aim of what we are learning in Psychology?
This qualification offers an engaging and effective introduction to Psychology. Students will learn the fundamentals of the subject and develop skills valued by Higher Education (HE) and employers, including critical analysis, independent thinking and research.
What are the students learning in Year 12 & 13?
Students will be learning about psychological approaches and research methods related to the core areas of Psychology. They will also be learning about social influence in society and how individual and group behaviour is impacted by a range of different factors. Students will study different types of attachments and theories used to explain these. They will consider how memories are stored and retrieved. When studying psychopathology they will explore how phobias, depression and OCD are developed and maintained.
In year 2 students will look at how a range of issues and debates can be applied to key topics that they have studied. The current options selected for year 2 are forensic psychology, relationships and schizophrenia.
Why are they learning these things?
Studying A-Level Psychology can help you understand the human mind and how people think and behave. It can also help you develop skills that are useful in many different careers. Psychology will enable students to understand mental health, criminology, child and human development, build empathy, explore different areas of Psychology and develop transferable career skills.
| Year 12 - Scheme of Learning Overview | |
|---|---|
| 3.1.1 | Social Influence |
| 3.1.2 | Memory |
| 3.1.3 | Attachment |
| 3.1.4 | Psychopathology |
| 3.2.1 | Approaches in Psychology |
| 3.2.2 | Biopsychology |
| Year 13 - Scheme of Learning Overview | |
|---|---|
| 3.2.3 | Research Methods |
| 3.3.1 | Issues and Debates in Psychology |
| 3.3.2 | Relationships |
| 3.3.5 | Schizophrenia |
| 3.3.9 | Forensic Psychology |
How do we provide Stretch and Support?
Stretch
Students are asked to engage in tasks that require analysing and evaluating rather than remaining at the comprehension level. Students are asked to use mark schemes and examiners reports to gain a detailed understanding of how to reach the higher levels in the mark schemes. Students are given examples of grade 8/9 essays to read and mark to support them in achieving the higher grades in their exams.
Support
Students are given sentence starters, key words and scaffolding resources to support them to formulate their ideas into coherent sentences and paragraphs so that they can develop a clear chain of reasoning.
| How can I find out more about what students are learning? | |
|---|---|
| Schemes of Learning | Over the course of this academic year, we will be sharing links to our schemes of learning. You can click on these links to see more about what your child is studying. |
| GCE Exam Board | See the exam board specification below for a full outline of how the course is structured. |
| GCE Specification | AQA AS and A-Level Psychology |
| Subject Contact | The name and email address of the subject leader can be found below. Please feel free to contact them if you have any further questions or would like to learn more about the curriculum students are following. |
| Subject Leader & Email | Ms Angela Miller amiller@northolthigh.org.uk |
