A Level Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of people and what makes us human, contrasting our own society with vastly different cultures across the globe. Students should expect a highly academic subject comprising elements from the natural and social sciences. The biology, evolution, psychology and cultures of mankind will be studied.

Course content

At AS, the specification offers students the chance to grapple with fundamental questions of human life, and in the process to develop skills of critical enquiry, sensitivity and an appreciation of topical debates and issues: •Unit 1: Being Human: Unity and diversity •Unit 2: Becoming a Person: Identity and belonging.

• Being Human: Unity and diversity
• This divides into 4 topics: the body, ways of thinking and communicating, organising social relations and engaging with nature
• Becoming a person: Identity and belonging. Following on from the previous unit, the aim of this unit is to examine how human beings become socially defined persons.
• Themes introduced in Unit 1 will be developed and used to explore different perspectives on how ‘personhood’ is understood and how the process of becoming a person takes place.

Delivery & Assessment methods

Each unit will be assessed by an examination, which may be taken either in January or May. Your work in class will include discussions and debates. You will normally have four hours 30 minutes of lesson time each week. There will of course be substantial study required in addition to lessons.

Progression

A range of undergraduate courses value an A Level in Anthropology very highly and include: Anthropology, Philosophy or Social Science degrees, these degrees could lead to careers in social and market research, government, the civil service or international development.