Key Stage 5
A Level Religious Studies at Nottingham Free School
Key Information
- A Level Religious Studies is made up of three components.
- Each one of these three components are equally weighted.
- There are three exams at the end of year two and each of these are two hours long.
- There is no coursework in this subject.
- We will be following the Eduqas exam board, which is part of the exam board WJEC (Welsh Joint Education Committee).
- https://www.eduqas.co.uk/qualifications/religious-studies-asa-level#tab_keydocuments
Component Information
- Religious figures and sacred texts
- Religious concepts and religious life
- Significant social and historical developments in religious thought; (E.g. gender in Islam, media, Islamophobia)
- Religious practices and religious identity
- Arguments for the existence of God
- Challenges to religious belief including the problem of evil and suffering and psychological and sociological arguments against God
- Religious Experience including case studies and miracles
- Religious language including mythical language and symbolic language
- Ethical Thought including issues such as whether being a good person is better than just doing good deeds
- Deontological Ethics applied to abortion, voluntary euthanasia, immigration and capital punishment
- Teleological ethics applied to homosexual relationships, polyamorous relationships, animal experimentation for medical research and the use of nuclear weapons as a deterrent
- Determinism and Free will including the extent to which an individual has free choice
Is Religious Studies compatible with my other options?
In Philosophy we look at Freud’s views on religion and in Ethics we look at how free we really are, are actions really our choice?
As part of the development of Religious Thought we will analyse texts in the Bible and examine the way meaning and purpose has been applied to them.
In Philosophical and Ethical language we look at the meaning of words, how people use language to influence society and actions.
Over 20% of students admitted to Oxford to study maths in 2012 had RS A Level. This is more than had Economics, Physics or Business Studies A Level!
In the Ethics portion of the course we study about free will and decision making.
The Religious Studies: Philosophy and Ethics course looks at the development of thought throughout history. The analysis skills needed are very similar and students often find the subjects complement each other.
As part of the Health and Social Care specification students will study medical ethics, including Kantian Ethics and Utilitarianism.
The ethics part of the specification looks at euthanasia and medical ethics.
In Sociology the course covers changing attitudes towards the family; this overlaps with the RS specification section on gender roles. Secularism and the increasing impact of society on religious thought is a key part of this A Level.
What do I need to study this course?
College Entry Requirements are a Grade 5 in GCSE Religious Studies or English. You don’t have to study Religious Studies GCSE to do the A level.
Where can this A level lead you?
Many students go on to study Philosophy, Theology, Law, Criminology, Medicine, Sciences, Philosophy, Politics and Economics, English, History and Social sciences.
Career paths could be Doctor/other medical professional, Lawyer, Journalist, Teacher, Police Force, Politics and Business Management.