Mr Sociology

AQA Specification the role and functions of the education system, including its relationship to the economy and to class structure https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/sociology/as-and-a-level/sociology-7191-7192/subject-content-a-level/education-with-theory-and-methods The Functionalist Perspective on Education Let's remind ourselves of some words and concepts associated with Functionalism value consensus organic analogy macro perspective structural perspective consensus Activity Let's get thinking! In pairs, write down 5 functions that the education system could have for wider society.  Think carefully and write them down clearly after discussing as you will be asked to explain! Durkheim - Solidarity and Skills Functionalist Sociologist Emile Durkheim identified two main functions of the education system - Social Solidarity - Specialist Skills Social Solidarity Durkheim claims that education helps to build social solidarity (meaning a sense of community and shared values) and with

Let's use the GRAVEE and SODA models to remember points for evaluation in our essays.  Remember that in a 16 mark essay 10 marks are award for AO3 so it is important to remember the strengths and limitations of theories and ideas. G Generalisability - can the findings be generalised to the wider population? R Reliability - if the study were to be repeated, would it get the same results? A

The AQA Specification says; "Stages of attachment identified by Schaffer. Multiple attachments." Schaffer and Emerson studied the attachment behaviours of babies and that lead them to develop their theory there are four stages of attachment that develop as a baby ages. Stage 1 - Asocial stage In the first few weeks of life a babies attachment towards various people and objects is similar, hence the term "asocial", meaning that babies are largely indifferent to who or what they are around, but they did show a preference for certain people and are more easily comforted by them, e.g. when a mother or caregiver is able to get a baby to settle and sleep or stop crying. Stage 2 - Indiscriminate attachment From 2 - 7 months babies show a much stronger preference to be with humans rather than objects (like teddy bears) and will accept cuddles from almost anyone without showing separation anxiety or stranger anxiety, hence the term, 'indiscriminate'. At this stage th

Coding Information is stored in different forms - this is referred to as 'coding'. It is almost the minds method of applying labels to information and placing it in the correct cupboard. Research by Alan Baddeley found that short term memory is coded acoustically and long term memory is coded semantically.  Baddeley divided lists of words into four groups and asks participants to remember them. When trying to recall from short term memory participants did worst on acoustically similar words and when recalling from long term they did worst with the semantically similar words. See the video below for  a simple explanation. It seems counterintuitive to think that because participant did worse on acoustically similar words for short term memory that indicates that short term memory codes acoustically. For your exam please try to remember that short term memory is coded acoustically and long term memory codes semantically . That is a chunk of AO1 that you need to recall if asked in

Participant Observation To see participant observation in action, follow the links below. Hooligans Donal Macintyre and the chelseas headhunters https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBI-2N-9-rk Participant observation involves a researcher becoming involved with the group he/she is studying by joining them, integrating gaming them, working and/or living with them. Participant observation is typically used by interpretivist Sociologists as it allows them the opportunity to see and understand people as they go about their daily business acting naturally. It allows the researcher to better understand their point of view (verstehen - Weber) and gain an in-depth detailed knowledge of the subject groups actions.  Many studies into criminal gangs and subcultures are done through participant observation as seen in the above documentary. Other investigative journalists who often gets up close and personal with their subjects are Louis Theroux and Reggie Yates -  feel free to look up their documentar

Structured (Formal) Interviews   Structured interviews (and interviews in general) are a widely used research method in gathering data in Sociology. They involve an interviewer asking a number of closed questions that can be pre-coded - this coming allows answers to be put into quantitative data and statistical form (suitable for Positivists - Can you name a Positivist Sociologist?). Advantages  - Structured interviews can be seen as more reliable as the study can be repeated using the same questions and this can allow for comparisons with other studies - pre-coded questions and answers can be turned into quantitative data (positivists) - they are a better way of getting questionnaires completed - postal questionnaires have a low response rate Disadvantages  - answers are limited ("yes, "no") as the interviewer imposes limits with closed questions  - they are more time consuming and costly than closed questionnaires - possibility of interviewer influence and interviewer

Many large scale surveys such as the census use a questionnaire.  Researchers take time to carefully design the questionnaire with clear instructions and questions that often can be answered with a ‘yes’, ‘no’ or ‘don’t know’. Leading questions should be avoided, E.g. “why do you think homework is bad”. This is an example of a bad, leading question because it assumes homework is bad!  Questions should be clear and written with neutral language.  Confidentiality of participants should be assured meaning that their answers will be kept private and anonymous.  Activity! Design a 5 question questionnaire on a topic of your choosing with “yes”, “no” or “don’t know” answers.  Topic suggestions - school policies such as homework or discipline, school life, school experiences. Give the questionnaire to 5 people in the class. Collect answers and see what issues arised from questionnaire such as wording of questions. Closed Questionnaires Closed questionnaires are highly structured, containing a