Government and Politics

Course summary

Amid an enormously turbulent few years heaving with political change and crisis, both here in the UK and across the world, the relevance of Government and Politics to the lives of each of us could not be clearer. Government, and the political sphere which encompasses it, are not just accountable for the socioeconomic structure which surrounds us, but it is also how we can reform that structure. As such, it is of critical importance that we understand the concepts behind the current system in the West – liberal democracy – and the workings of the political machine that is the state. Government and Politics is an exciting course which enables students to develop an insight into the political beliefs and systems which are central to our understanding of the modern world. The course centres on contemporary politics and current areas of constitutional concern, putting the UK in the context of its changing relationship with the European Union and the wider world. Students engage with contemporary political issues through lively class debates which encourage critical thinking and the construction of effective and coherent arguments. They will learn about political procedures and institutions such as democracy, political participation, party policies, and the values and ideas of the Western world. In the Lower Sixth students will study the politics of the United Kingdom, covering the various branches of government and their functions, but also the role played by ordinary citizens in the political process. Students will develop the analytical abilities required to critique the successes and failures of our system whether it be the weaknesses of ‘First Past the Post’ and the alternative electoral systems such as proportional representation, or the future of our Supreme Court, still finding its place within the political structure of Britain. In the Upper Sixth students progress onto the study of the ideologies which have dominated Western political thought for centuries as well as those threatening to reimagine the socio-political landscape. The conflicts which form the basis for political disagreement today – liberalism and conservatism; socialism and capitalism – are explored and placed in the context of contemporary policy. This is a course which will equip students with the tools they need to fully understand the world around them, and their place within it.