Politics is a lively and informative subject studied at AS/A2 level. Pupils who have studied the subject have successfully gone onto pursue university courses in law, journalism, teaching, media and criminology. Media watch is an integral part of this subject and all students complete regular ‘news for me’ sessions.

AS Government and Politics is a relevant and stimulating course. It aims to develop students’ skills and critical awareness of political ideas and institutions, including Northern Ireland, Britain and USA. It is thus relevant to students’ lives and provides opportunities for a wide range of third level courses.

A LEVEL SUBJECT CONTENT

AS

Module 1 Government and Politics of N. Ireland.

Module 2 The British Political Process

A2

Module 1 A comparative study of the Government and Politics of the UK and USA

Module 2 Political Power

METHOD OF ASSESSMENT

It comprises a variety of assessment methods, including:

Short questions based on sources

Short questions based on sources
Structured questions
Easy Assessment

CAREER POSSIBILITIES

Skills acquired can be applied to other situations with wider academic and vocational applications. Politics can be studied on its own or in combination with a range of subjects including:

Broadcasting	Charities and Teaching.	Civil Service
Criminology	International Studies	Journalism
Law	Local Government	Management Studies
NHS	Public Administration	Public Relations
Sociology

ANY OTHER INFORMATION

Pupils studying Government and Politics must be self-motivated and willing to articulate their ideas on a range of issues from devolution to electoral reform. An integral part of this course is Internet Research and Reading/Watching News on a daily basis. All modules require pupils to make reference to contemporary affairs.

Each year to mark Local Democracy week in N.I. students have the opportunity to meet and engage in workshops with their local elected representatives.

This year on the 16 November 08 the Government and Politics Department at Loreto hosted the first school based Local Democracy Event. Pupils and staff from eight local secondary and grammar schools attended the event in the school assembly hall. Participating schools were

Omagh Academy, St John’s Dromore, Dean Maguire Carrickmore, Omagh CBS, Omagh Integrated, Omagh College, Sacred Heart College and of course Loreto Grammar. The event was very successful and students enjoyed the opportunity to question local representatives on local issues. This was for many, their first experience of Politics at a local level.

To link with their study of Module 1 The Government and Politics of Northern Ireland, pupils also visit Stormont and this year had the experience of being at Stormont on the day that Dr Ian Paisley announced his decision to step down as First Minister. On past visits to Stormont, pupils have also been addressed in the committee room by local MLA’s and senior civil servants.

Outside agencies such as The Electoral Commission have also delivered presentations to students and classroom visits by the local MP for the area and party representatives from SDLP and the DUP have allowed pupils to engage in productive and lively debate.

A2 Politics pupils meeting with their local MP Mr Pat Doherty in the Politics classroom.