Psychology at Ousedale School
Qualification |
AS and A2 Level |
Examining Board |
OCR |
Head of Department Teacher |
Mr A Price Ms S Leinster |
What is psychology?
Psychology is often defined as the study of behaviour, brain and mind. Psychologists study a huge variety of behaviours and phenomenons such as hypnosis, stereotyping, memory and forgetting, sleeping, aggression and relationship formation.
For more information on what psychologists do click here
What can you expect from psychology at Ousedale?
Psychology is distinctive through the content of the syllabus and through the manner in which learning is approached and undertaken. We aim to develop independent learners who are self-motivated, knowledgable, critical and caring.
AS Level
In year 12 students examine 15 psycholological studies in detail.
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Area of psychology
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Studies investigating:
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Cognitive
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Eye-witness testimony; Autism; Use of sign language by pygmy chimpanzees |
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Physiological
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Hemishere specialisations of the brain; Sleep and dreaming; Structural changes in the brains of taxi drivers |
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Social
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Obedience; Helping behaviour on a New York subway; BBC prison study |
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Developmental
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Freud; Imitation of aggression; Development of conservation skills in children |
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Individual differences
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Multiple personality disorder; Sane in insane places; Cognitive bias in fruit machine gambling |
Students will also study psychological research methods.
Assessment for AS Level takes place in May. Assessment takes the form of short answer questions, data response questions and essay style questions.
A2 Level
The second year of the course is applied psychology i.e. how psychology can be used in real life settings. Two areas are covered with eight modules in each.
Assessment for A2 Level is modular. Students sit their psychology and crime module in January and psychology and the environment module in June. They also have to complete their own piece of coursework and an assignment, both of which are marked externally.
| Module | Studies and theories investigating; |
Psychology and Crime
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Explanations of criminal behaviour Crime-victim interaction Offender profiling Criminal thinking patterns The police and crime Psychology of testimony Psychology of the courtroom Offender punishments and treatments, and preventing crime
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Psychology and the Environment
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Environmental stress - noise Climate and weather Density and crowding Crowds and collective behaviour Environmental disaster and technological catastrophe Personal space and territory Architecture and behaviour: housing design and urban renewal Environmental cognition
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Coursework |
A written practical report based on an investigation students have completed |
| Assignment | This is more like an essay based on a magazine or newspaper article. The aim is to explain the article in terms of some relevant psychological research or theory |
University Courses
Students who take psychology can continue their studies in many fields at university, these include:
- Educational Psychology
- Criminal Psychology
- Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
- Teaching
- Social Studies
- And many more....
Psychology courses on UCAS website
Psychology courses on BPS website
Careers
Psychologists are currently working in areas as diverse as:
- Personnel selection
- Industrial design
- Education
- Health
- Social work
- Prison service
- Police
- Marketing and advertising
- Clinical/ psychiatric care
For more information on careers click here
If you want to understand a bit more about why we act, think and feel, psychology is the course for you.