Sociology
Daily-habit recall for GCSE Sociology — key concepts, named theorists, research studies and sociological perspectives. Taught at fewer schools than History or Geography but the content is highly fact-dense: named sociologists, studies, and specific supporting evidence.
AQA · Eduqas · OCR · WJEC
~55k
GCSE entries / year
A smaller but stable GCSE cohort — largely offered in schools that run it as an option alongside Psychology or History. Student uptake is growing as social literacy becomes a soft-skills priority. AQA takes ~75% of the market.
4/4
Boards in scope
AQA 8192 is the dominant spec (primary authoring target). Eduqas C566, OCR J411 and WJEC C200QS share the bulk of the content — family, education, crime, stratification. Per-card boards tagging handles board-specific topics.
High
Fit for spaced repetition
Sociology is built on named theorists (Parsons, Marx, Goffman, Merton, Bowles & Gintis), specific studies (Willis's Learning to Labour, Sutherland's differential association), and precise definitions (anomie, meritocracy, labelling theory). Exactly what the recall card mechanic is built for.
What's covered
Sociologists, studies and concepts — spec-anchored.
GCSE Sociology rewards students who can cite named theorists and match studies to perspectives. Educator's recall mechanic turns 'vaguely know Marxist theory' into 'Bowles & Gintis, hidden curriculum, correspondence principle — correct every time'.
Sociological perspectives
- ✓Functionalism — Parsons, Durkheim, manifest vs latent functions
- ✓Marxism — Marx, Bowles & Gintis, base/superstructure, ideology
- ✓Feminism — liberal, radical, Marxist, intersectional
- ✓Interactionism — labelling theory, Becker, self-fulfilling prophecy
- ✓New Right — family values, underclass, welfare dependency
Family
- ✓Family types — nuclear, extended, reconstituted, lone-parent, same-sex
- ✓Functions of the family — Parsons, Marx, feminist critiques
- ✓Changing patterns — divorce rates, cohabitation, birth rates, empty nest
- ✓Gender roles and domestic division of labour
- ✓Child-centredness, childhood and changing attitudes to children
Education
- ✓Role of education — functionalist, Marxist, feminist perspectives
- ✓Class, gender and ethnicity — attainment gaps and explanations
- ✓Hidden curriculum, myth of meritocracy, labelling, streaming
- ✓Pupil subcultures — pro-school, anti-school (Willis, Mac an Ghaill)
- ✓Educational policy — comprehensivisation, marketisation, privatisation
Crime & deviance
- ✓Defining crime vs deviance — social construction
- ✓Functionalist theories — Durkheim, anomie, Merton's strain theory
- ✓Interactionist theories — labelling, moral panics (Cohen), deviancy amplification
- ✓Marxist theories — white-collar crime, corporate crime, selective policing
- ✓Crime statistics — dark figure, bias in reporting, victim surveys
Social stratification & research methods
- ✓Types of stratification — class, gender, ethnicity, age, disability
- ✓Social mobility — vertical, horizontal, absolute vs relative
- ✓Research methods — surveys, interviews, observation, experiments
- ✓Positivism vs interpretivism — quantitative vs qualitative data
- ✓Research ethics — consent, confidentiality, harm avoidance
Spec-faithful, authoring in progress. Cards will cover: sociological perspectives (functionalism, Marxism, feminism, interactionism, New Right), family (types, functions, changing patterns, divorce, domestic violence), education (attainment gaps, subcultures, hidden curriculum, labelling), crime & deviance (theories, policing, victimology), social stratification (class, gender, ethnicity, age), research methods (positivism vs interpretivism, surveys, interviews, observation, ethics), and media (ownership, representation, effects).
Want it sooner?
Sociology launches once a qualified Sociology teacher signs off on the corpus. Schools that join the early-access list help us prioritise which board ships first — leave your details and we'll get in touch the moment it goes live.