Psychology

Curriculum Intent

Psychology has increasingly become popular as an A Level option and interests many students. It has excellent connections to most subjects and is now considered as a science when applying to university due to its’ academic rigour. This allows for a range of students to join the subject and go on to study further in the scientific field. Psychology encourages students to respect people from all walks of life and be empathetic when communicating in real world situations. Students will look at topics such as mental health and gender, allowing them to consider how their interactions have an impact on the relationships they build through tolerance and understanding of peripheral psychological and social issues. While Psychology is a highly interesting subject, it does require commitment and students taking responsibility to progress their learning. Through the use of essays, short answer exam questions and practical projects, students will learn to challenge themselves and become resilient learners. Through appropriate support, such as workbooks and utilising a number of learning styles, students, when pushing themselves, can achieve well and take multiple skills with them for their next steps in life.

AQA A Level Psychology offers an engaging and effective introduction to the subject. The course is varied in the topics students will study and will give them a wealth of cross-curricular knowledge such as mathematics, biology and other humanities/social science subjects. Students will learn the fundamentals of the subject and develop skills valued by Higher Education and employers, including critical analysis, independent thinking and research. These skills make the difference not only to academic achievement but also for students’ future interactions as they learn to develop their social skills.

AQA is the most popular choice for A-Level Psychology and by choosing them, we are part of the country’s largest community of psychology teachers. There is also access to a wide network of support to aid teaching including through social media and specialist teams providing resources and lectures that run alongside the specification.

Curriculum Implementation

We believe that learning should be placed within a dynamic framework of discussion and debate and should involve a high level of independent learning from the students.  This will, in turn, foster an environment for students to develop self-mastery and engagement in self-regulated learning. The course will be delivered in a linear fashion and students will be required to take three two-hour exams at the end of the second year of the course. The course is synoptic and therefore, teaching linearly allows for students to link all of the topics together when considering issues and debates such as nature versus nurture or The subject area aims to assess and support the progression of its students through a combination of independent learning tasks, short weekly knowledge assessments, weekly written assessments and weekly written homework. The students will also be given the opportunity to carry out a number of research projects throughout the course, which will be written-up to professional research standards.

Curriculum Impact

Traditionally Southborough has had outstanding outcomes with BTEC Applied Psychology, including 100% at merit or distinction (A*-C) last year.  Many of these students achieved above target, showing the strength of the department.

Students will develop comprehension skills in listening and reading to a level where they are able to understand psychological terms and concepts. In writing, students will develop a working knowledge of how to structure answers to meet the AQA specification examination requirements, in topic areas such as: approaches, biopsychology, psychopathology, research methods, social influence, memory, attachment, issues and debates, schizophrenia, forensic psychology and gender. Psychology can therefore lead to any occupation that involves working with or caring for others. More specifically, one can specialise in many areas and become: a teacher, lecturer, educational psychologist, counselling psychologist, therapist, clinical psychologist, criminal or forensic psychologist, sports psychologist or an occupational psychologist, to name a few professions.

Through the study of Psychology, the students are offered a scientific and rigorous education in how we develop, learn and behave. In addition, an appreciation of ‘how science works’ in conjunction with the application of the empirical method will be central to all lessons. Students will become critical thinkers, engaging with academic literature, which develops their cultural and academic capital in order to participate fully in society. Promoting academic success is crucial to the study of Psychology, broadening student horizons and opportunities in their future careers.