AQA A-Level Sociology Active Recall Guide (7192)
AQA · A-Level
AQA A-Level Sociology Active Recall Guide
A question-and-answer revision guide for AQA A-Level Sociology, built to be worked in three passes rather than read.
- AQA
- A-Level
- Specification 7192
- 12 topics
The 3-step active recall method
Re-reading notes is a futile process when your aim is to remember the information and successfully apply it in exam settings. Active recall is the method you use to ensure the information sticks for a long period of time. But even active recall can be futile unless you have a structured way of implementing it. This is where the 3-step active recall method comes in, a structured method that is signature to the Levo Learning guides.
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Step 1
Answer up to 10 questions cold, closed book, even if you are unsure on the topic.
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Step 2
Answer the same questions again, but open book. Write the correct answer down even if it seems pointless.
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Step 3
Repeat as step 1 and answer the questions closed book again.
Worked across the AQA A-Level Sociology specification, one subtopic at a time.
The subject, and what is assessed
AQA A-Level Sociology (specification 7192) is assessed by three written papers taken at the end of the two-year course, each lasting 2 hours and carrying 80 marks. Paper 1 covers Education with Theory and Methods. Paper 2 covers Topics in Sociology, where a student answers on two of the eight optional topics. Paper 3 covers Crime and Deviance with Theory and Methods. Theory and Methods is examined on both Paper 1 and Paper 3, so it is worth returning to whichever options are being sat.
| Paper | Covers | Length | Marks | Weighting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 | Education with Theory and Methods Education; Methods in Context; Theory and Methods |
2 hours | 80 marks | 33.3% |
| Paper 2 | Topics in Sociology Two topics chosen from Culture and Identity, Families and Households, Health, and Work, Poverty and Welfare; and from Beliefs in Society, Global Development, The Media, and Stratification and Differentiation |
2 hours | 80 marks | 33.3% |
| Paper 3 | Crime and Deviance with Theory and Methods Crime and Deviance; Theory and Methods |
2 hours | 80 marks | 33.3% |
Memorisation, then application
Marks are given for applying content to the question that has been set, which cannot happen while the content is still being looked up. Step 1 shows what is actually held. Step 2 puts the correct wording in front of you while the gap is still fresh. Step 3 repeats the cold test, and the difference between the first and third attempt is the part that has moved.
Every question in the guide is paired with its answer in the same document, so step 2 is done from the guide itself rather than from a separate set of notes.
What is inside the guide
Questions are grouped by topic and then by subtopic, following the AQA specification. Open a topic to see its subtopics.
Education8 subtopics
Education is examined on Paper 1, alongside Theory and Methods. It covers what sociologists say education is for, why achievement differs by class, gender and ethnicity, what happens inside schools, and the policies that have reshaped the system since the tripartite years.
- The role and functions of education14
- Class differences in educational achievement9
- Labelling, subcultures and processes within schools15
- Gender and educational achievement15
- Ethnicity and educational achievement15
- Selection and marketisation13
- Privatisation and vocational education8
- Educational policy, equality and globalisation9
Methods in Context3 subtopics
Methods in Context is examined on Paper 1. It asks how the standard research methods behave when the setting is a school and the participants are children, which is where questions of access, consent and validity become sharpest.
- Access, gatekeepers and research ethics in schools8
- Choosing methods for research in schools9
- Data, theory and validity in educational research11
Theory and Methods7 subtopics
Theory and Methods is examined on both Paper 1 and Paper 3. It covers research design and the full range of methods, the positivist and interpretivist positions behind them, the main theoretical traditions, and the debates about science, values and social policy.
- Research design and choosing a method12
- Sources of data and types of data14
- Positivism, interpretivism and research ethics10
- Consensus, conflict, structural and social action theories11
- Modernity and post-modernity13
- Is sociology a science?11
- Objectivity, value freedom and social policy12
Culture and Identity5 subtopics
Culture and Identity is one of the optional topics on Paper 2. It runs from the different meanings of culture through the agencies that socialise us, to how identity is caused and constructed, and how consumption and globalisation have changed it.
- Conceptions of culture15
- Socialisation and the agencies of socialisation11
- The self, identity and difference13
- Identity, age, disability, ethnicity, gender and class17
- Identity, production, consumption and globalisation12
Families and Households11 subtopics
Families and Households is one of the optional topics on Paper 2, and the largest of them. It covers the competing theories of the family, the changing patterns of marriage, divorce and diversity, roles and power inside the household, childhood, and the demographic trends behind it all.
- Functionalist views of the family12
- Marxist and feminist views of the family12
- The New Right, postmodernism and family policy12
- Marriage, cohabitation and divorce14
- Family diversity and the personal life perspective18
- Conjugal roles and domestic labour13
- Power relationships and domestic violence8
- The social construction of childhood13
- Birth rates and death rates17
- Family size and the ageing population8
- Migration and globalisation16
Health5 subtopics
Health is one of the optional topics on Paper 2. It treats health, illness and disability as socially constructed, then works through the unequal distribution of health chances, access to care, mental illness, and the power of medicine.
- The social construction of health and models of illness10
- Class and gender inequalities in health10
- Ethnic and regional inequality, and access to health care11
- Mental illness and the power of the medical profession14
- The sick role and the globalised health industry11
Work, Poverty and Welfare5 subtopics
Work, Poverty and Welfare is one of the optional topics on Paper 2. It covers how poverty is defined and explained, who bears it, the welfare arrangements that respond to it, and how work itself is organised, controlled and increasingly globalised.
- Poverty: definitions, explanations and distribution15
- The welfare state and welfare provision10
- The division of labour and the control of work14
- Work, worklessness and life chances10
- Globalisation and the global division of labour9
Beliefs in Society10 subtopics
Beliefs in Society is one of the optional topics on Paper 2. It sets religion beside ideology and science as a belief system, works through the theories of religion and religious organisations, examines who is religious and why, and closes on secularisation, fundamentalism and religion worldwide.
- Ideology and science as belief systems11
- Functionalist views of religion10
- Marxist and feminist views of religion10
- Religion as a force for social change11
- Churches, sects, denominations and cults10
- New religious movements and New Age movements11
- Religion, gender, ethnicity, age and social class11
- Secularisation13
- Believing without belonging and postmodern religion12
- Globalisation, fundamentalism and religion worldwide17
Global Development5 subtopics
Global Development is one of the optional topics on Paper 2. It sets the competing theories of development against each other, then examines globalisation, the agencies that shape development, and the aid, trade, environmental and demographic questions that follow.
- Theories of development and underdevelopment16
- Globalisation, transnational corporations and aid agencies10
- Aid, trade, industrialisation and urbanisation9
- Environment, conflict and human development9
- Population, gender and postcolonial critiques10
The Media6 subtopics
The Media is one of the optional topics on Paper 2. It covers the arrival of new media, who owns and controls the industry, how news is selected, how social groups are represented, and what all of that does to audiences.
- The new media and its significance9
- Ownership, control and media globalisation14
- The selection and presentation of the news15
- Media representations of social groups9
- Media effects and models of the audience10
- Reception analysis and selective filtering9
Stratification and Differentiation5 subtopics
Stratification and Differentiation is one of the optional topics on Paper 2. It covers the theories of why societies are unequal, how inequality falls across class, gender, ethnicity, age and disability, the problem of measuring class, and how much movement between positions actually happens.
- Theories of stratification11
- Life chances and dimensions of inequality12
- Defining and measuring social class12
- Changing structures of inequality and globalisation9
- Social mobility15
Crime and Deviance19 subtopics
Crime and Deviance is examined on Paper 3, alongside Theory and Methods. It works through the major theories of why crime happens, who is recorded as offending and why, the newer questions of globalisation, green and state crime, and how societies try to control crime and treat victims.
- Functionalist, strain and control theories of crime22
- Subcultural theories of crime13
- Interactionism and labelling theory14
- Marxist and critical theories of crime9
- Left and right realism18
- Gender and crime8
- Social class, white-collar and corporate crime10
- Ethnicity, policing and the criminal justice system10
- Globalisation and crime9
- The media, crime and fear of crime15
- Moral panics and the deviancy amplification spiral11
- Green crime19
- State crime and human rights11
- Denial, neutralisation and prosecuting state crime11
- Situational and environmental crime prevention10
- Realist crime control, surveillance and the panopticon8
- Punishment, sentencing and the criminal justice system16
- Victims and victimology12
- and 1 more subtopic in this topic
Sample questions
Taken from the AQA A-Level Sociology guide. Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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Education
According to functionalists, what essential functions does education perform for society?
Show the answer
Socialisation into shared norms and values, and creating social solidarity. -
Methods in Context
Who are the key gatekeepers that researchers typically need permission from to access schools for educational research?
Show the answer
Headteachers, governors, and local authorities. -
Theory and Methods
What is the key difference between quantitative and qualitative methods in terms of the type of data they collect?
Show the answer
Quantitative methods collect numerical data that can be statistically analysed, while qualitative methods collect non-numerical data that explores meanings, experiences and interpretations. -
Culture and Identity
What is meant by the term 'culture' in sociology?
Show the answer
Culture refers to the shared norms, values, beliefs, customs, language and practices of a social group that are learned and transmitted across generations. -
Families and Households
According to functionalists, how does the family contribute to primary socialisation?
Show the answer
The family teaches children the basic norms, values, and culture of society, enabling them to become functioning members of society. -
Health
What does the social construction of health mean?
Show the answer
It means that definitions of health and illness are not purely biological but are shaped by cultural, historical and social factors. -
Work, Poverty and Welfare
What is the key distinction between absolute and relative poverty?
Show the answer
Absolute poverty is based on fixed subsistence needs, while relative poverty is based on comparison to prevailing social standards in a particular society. -
Beliefs in Society
What is ideology in sociological terms?
Show the answer
A set of ideas and beliefs that serve the interests of a particular social group, often presented as common sense or natural truths while obscuring power relations.
Questions about this guide
How do you use active recall for AQA A-Level Sociology?
Answer up to 10 questions cold and closed book. Answer the same questions again open book, writing the correct answer down. Then answer them closed book one more time. The difference between the first and third attempt is what has moved into recall.
How is AQA A-Level Sociology assessed?
AQA A-Level Sociology is assessed by 3 components: Paper 1, education with theory and methods (2 hours, 80 marks, 33.3%); Paper 2, topics in sociology (2 hours, 80 marks, 33.3%); Paper 3, crime and deviance with theory and methods (2 hours, 80 marks, 33.3%).
What topics does the AQA A-Level Sociology active recall guide cover?
It covers Education, Methods in Context, Theory and Methods, Culture and Identity, Families and Households, Health, Work, Poverty and Welfare, Beliefs in Society, Global Development, The Media, Stratification and Differentiation and Crime and Deviance.
Is the AQA A-Level Sociology guide a PDF?
Yes. It is a digital PDF sent to the email address on your order after purchase. Check the address is correct at checkout, and check junk or spam if it has not arrived.
Does the guide include the answers?
Yes. Every question has its answer in the same document, grouped by topic, so step 2 of the method is done from the guide.
AQA A-Level Sociology Active Recall Guide
Every question paired with its answer, grouped by topic, ready to work in three passes.