Politics

"Why Study A Level Politics?" Video | tutor2u

Why study this subject?

• Studying A Level Government and Politics will provide insight into political beliefs central to an understanding of the modern world.

Here are students top five reasons for studying politics:

1. Politics Helps You to Know Your Rights -The course has allowed us to see beyond our initial belief that we have no real say in the running of our country. It has truly educated us to understand, that if we engage in political processes, using the pressure points built into the system, then every individual does have the opportunity to change the world.

2. Politics Clarifies What You Yourself Believe- Studying politics has given us the opportunity to discover our own political beliefs and to see in greater detail the benefits and disadvantages of the vast array of political ideologies that are present in the world today. Being able to express what you believe accurately and concisely is extremely useful and forces you to really look at yourself!

3. Politics is a Living, Breathing Subject – Politics textbooks go out of date the day they are published. Why? Because the political landscape changes every day, with new examples appearing constantly in the media. Picking which examples to use in your answers to essay questions is really exciting an event that happens on the day you of your A Level exam can appear in your response!

4. Politics Helps You to Understand Our Nation's Parties -After just one term of the subject we have learnt about democracy and our rights, ideologies and party policies, the constitution and parliament. With knowledge gained from the classroom, we have been able to watch events unfold worldwide, seen our leaders' reactions to these events and come to understand these reactions as demonstrations of what we have learned.

5. Politics Prepares You for Adult Life -The world of UK and Global politics really opens up after our eighteenth birthdays when we get the vote, giving us the ability to change our nation and allow the principles we hold dear to thrive. It could easily be said that Government and Politics is a subject that students should be encouraged to take, if for no other reason that it helps prepare you better to enter the adult world.

What skills will you develop?

• Studying this subject will develop your understanding of structures of authority and power, how political systems differ, and enable you to interpret, evaluate and comment on the nature of politics and government. You will also develop a range of transferrable analytical, debating and communication skills - all of which are valuable in a wide range of careers.

• These skills help to prepare you for careers in politics, business, law, social services, the charity sector, public relations, journalism, education, banking, campaigning and management.

What are the key elements to the course?

1. UK Politics

The key topics

• Democracy & participation • Political parties • Electoral systems • Voting behaviour and the media • The constitution • Parliament • Prime Minister and the executive

2. Political ideas

• Liberalism • Conservatism • Socialism • Nationalism

3. EITHER Global Politics

• The state and globalisation • Global governance: political and economic • Global governance: human rights and environmental • Power and developments • Regionalism and the European Union • Comparative theories- Realism and liberalism

4. OR Government and Politics of the USA

• The US constitution and federalism • US Congress • US presidency • US Supreme Court and US civil rights • US democracy and participation