School Funding Cuts Likely to Affect the Poorest Children
News of recent budget cuts by the Conservative party including to the education system has drawn criticism from teaching unions and charities.
Emma Watson and the HeForShe Campaign
One of the difficulties that students can often experience when studying sociological theory is making contemporary links; some theories can appear quite abstract and even outdated.
International Women's Day
It is International Women’s Day today with events planned around the world to raise awareness of gender inequality in all areas of society.
British Schools Explained
For some students learning some of the structures of the British education system can be confusing, there are a complex web of policies involved and it can seem as if things change from year to year.
Breaking Up Is Hard To Do: The Divorce Hotel
It is estimated that over 40% of all marriages in England and Wales will end in divorce. This figure has risen with various legal changes in the UK over the course of the 20th century that have...
Useful Videos for Teaching Theory and Methods
Theory and Methods can be one of the more challenging topics for students to understand, as the ideas can be incredibly abstract. In many ways students are also examining key political, economical...
Video: Are Children Taking Over?
This short clip from a BBC documentary entitled ‘The British Family’ could act as a great introduction to one of the key areas in the AQA Sociology specification, which focuses on the changing...
The Price of Benefits
What should people on welfare spend their money on? This is a question raised from an interview with a woman who spent her Christmas bonus from her benefits (of £10) on two bottles of Prosecco.
The March of Progress View: The Family and the Role of Children (Part 2)
This post is a continuation of The March of Progress view: The Family and Gender EqualityMarch of progress supporters would also argue that the role and position of children has changed over time.
The March of Progress View: The Family and Gender Equality (Part 1)
In the scientific world, the March of Progress refers to how humans have evolved over 25 million years. This view has also been adopted by some sociologists and it has been used to describe some of...
Meet the Perspectives: Functionalism (Part 2)
The Organic Or Biological Analogy Herbert Spencer (1820-1903) developed the body analogy (also known as the organic analogy) to describe how society works. The various parts are interrelated and...
Meet the Perspectives: Functionalism (Part 3)
Out-Dated Or Still Relevant? Does functionalism still have a place in modern society? Can it still be relevant considering how much has changed in society in the last 60 plus years? Strengths
The...
Meet the Perspectives: Functionalism (Part 1)
The following post forms part of an introductory theory unit for Sociology. In many ways, functionalism can be seen as one of the first sociological perspectives, being traced back to a Frenchman...
What is Sociology?
I am often asked this very question, usually at open evenings from inquisitive students and parents. And even after nearly ten years of teaching, I still find myself a little surprised by the...
What You Can Learn from Your A Level Results
Often the analysis requires comparisons of this year v last year, girls v boys, FSM v non- FSM, my centre v the rest of the country, my centre v similar institutions, actual grade v minimum target...
Hit the Ground Running: A Great Induction Activity for New Students
Over the years I have experimented with various induction activities that all have the same central goal - get new students comfortable with each other and with you. Some have involved blowing up...
5 Top Tips for New A Level Sociology Students
So the start of the new academic year is nearly upon us and young people up and down the country are about to embark on A level study. The first entry of this new blog is designed to give sociology...
Slavery in London
Every years thousands of overseas workers come to London to work for their rich employers. The result, some might argue, is modern-day slavery on the streets of one of the world's richest cities.
Societal Change and Caesarean Sections
Caesarean section rates have increased dramatically around the globe in recent years and they have proven controversial. The reasons for the increase use of Caesarean sections is partly...
Growing Old in America's Prisons
A fascinating insight here into the life of elderly prisoners who make up an increasing number of America's 2 million+ inmates.