AS/A2 LEVELS ECONOMICS
Why study Economics? Economics is the study of how an economy operates and how individuals and firms make economic decisions. It looks at the use of the world’s resources and gives you an understanding of the causes and consequences of inflation, unemployment and balance of payment deficits. It considers levels of taxation, whether government spending should be raised or lowered, the effects of changes in interest rates and the consequences and solutions of economic development on individuals, societies and the environment.
What do I study? AS Economics comprises two units, both are externally assessed.
Unit 1: Competitive Markets: How They Work and Why They Fail
Unit 2: Managing the Economy A2 Economics comprises two externally assessed units, adding an international context
Unit 3: Business Economics and Economic Efficiency
Unit 4: The Global Economy
Where does Economics take me? This course is suitable for Higher Education in Economics or related subjects such as Accountancy, Finance, Management or Business. Students are also able to progress into employment in the City, working in financial institutions or other banking, accounts or management related careers.
What do I need? Minimum GCSE grade C or above in Maths and English.
ELECTRONICS (AS only – does not progress to A2)
Why study Electronics? Well, it’s fun for one thing! You get to build and test circuits almost from the first lesson and you will gain an insight into the workings of many electronic devices that we take for granted. You will also gain some valuable knowledge (e.g. how information is stored,
processed and transmitted) and skills (e.g. how to find and fix a fault in a circuit). We live in an electronic age, so can you afford not to study Electronics?
What do I study? Starting with the basics such as current, voltage, resistance and power, you will soon be using resistors, capacitors, light-emitting diodes and operational amplifiers to make simple sensors. You will learn how audio signals are amplified and how to make oscillators. You will also learn how to analyse and build logic (decision-making) circuits, counters and timers and how many of these circuits can be constructed from programmable integrated circuits.
Unit 1: Provides you with the basics – resistors, capacitors, diodes, operational amplifiers, logic gates.
Unit 2: Deals with more complex systems such as amplifiers, counters and memory.
Unit 3: Assessed practical work. In order to gain full marks you will need to build, test and analyse circuits, and produce written reports on your work.
Units 1 and 2 are examined and are each worth 36.5% of the AS marks; the coursework accounts for the remaining 27%.
Where does Electronics take me? It combines well with subjects such as Computing, Maths, Physics and 3D Design, providing excellent background knowledge for technical careers and degrees. While some students have taken up well-paid apprenticeships offering further training, others have progressed to university courses such as Electronic Engineering, Control Technology and Robotics.
What do I need? You will need to be able to work independently (with guidance of course) and you will need to enjoy solving problems, because very few circuits work first time! You do not need to have studied Electronics before, but you do need grade B or above in GCSE Science or Physics, and grade B or above in GCSE Maths.
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Why study English Language? English Language provides students with the opportunity to ask questions they may never have asked about the language which they speak and write on a daily basis. How and why do men and women speak differently? How can language be used as a means of control and power? How do we learn to talk and write in the first place? The study of English Language also allows you to explore your own ability to write creatively for different audiences and purposes.
What do I study? Year 1 (AS) Unit 1: Categorising Texts This covers the introductory aspects of the study of language, using a variety of texts for the basis of this study. In addition it focuses on three specific social contexts: Language and Power, Language and Gender, Language and Technology. This unit is assessed by a two hour examination.
Unit 2: Creating Texts In this unit you are encouraged to develop your own writing skills, producing writing in different genres and for different audiences and purposes. This unit is internally assessed by coursework.
Year 2 (A2) Unit 3: Developing Language Builds on the knowledge and skills developed in Year 1, as well as having an additional focus on two specific areas of language study: Child Language Acquisition and Language Change. This unit is assessed by a two hour examination.
Unit 4: Investigating Language In this unit you apply your knowledge of linguistic methods and concepts to an investigation of your choice. This unit is assessed by the completion of an extended essay.
Where does English Language take me? English Language is recognised as an important area of academic study and combines well with a whole range of other subjects for entry into Higher Education. The career opportunities are vast and include working in the Media, Advertising, Teaching and most areas of Administration or Management.
31
PALMER’S COLLEGE PROSPECTUS
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76