Putney High School
Government & Politics
'Politics is interested in you, even if you are not interested in politics' - Pericles
The Government and Politics department teaches students about the relationship between political ideas and political institutions. It also gives them a good grasp of the nature of politics and political ideas in the UK with comparisons to the political systems of other countries.
In the second year, the focus will be on the major ideologies that formed the 20th century.
There are currently two members of the department, and the course is supplemented by visits to the Houses of Parliament and talks from visiting political commentators.
The course will provide students with key skills of analysis and investigation. They will learn how to present a well turned argument, orally and on paper, and how to defend their point of view.
AS and A Level
We will follow the Edexcel specification.
At AS we offer 3 examined units:
Unit 1: People and Politics – this introduces the principles behind politics; what is democracy and citizenship? The course examines the reasons for and the workings of the political process in the UK.
Unit 2: Governing the UK – this introduces the major institutions of UK government and looks at their relationship to each other & to the European Union.
Unit 3: The changing UK system – this looks at issues like devolution and relations with the EU and considers the impact of political change.
At A2 we will offer 3 examined units:
Unit 4: Introducing Political Ideologies - we look at the major ideas in the 20th century – liberalism, conservatism & socialism.
Unit 5: Other Ideological Traditions – this unit looks at ideologies that have evolved in response to the above. These include fascism, feminism, anarchism & nationalism.
Unit 6: Ideological development in the UK – this unit draws all the ideas together and looks at how ideals are carried out in practice in the UK.
This is a new course in 2007 and we are looking forward to establishing a strong and exciting department.
