Psychology at Ousedale School
Qualification |
AS and A2 Level |
Examining Board |
OCR |
Head of Department |
Mr. A. Price |
This page is currently being updated 19/06/08.
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.
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
Forensic psychology
Environmental psychology
Coursework.
Assessment for A2 Level is modular, students sit their forensic psychology exam in January and Environmental psychology in June. They also have to complete their own piece of coursework which is marked externally.
University Courses
Careers
Students who follow a Psychology course can continue their studies in many fields at university, these include:
- Educational Psychology
- Criminal Psychology
- Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
- Teaching
- Social Studies
- And many more....
If you enjoy questioning motivation, behaviour and analysing responses, then Psychology may be the course to consider.