The VCE Sociology Study Design outlines the nature and sequence of learning and teaching necessary for students to demonstrate achievement of the outcomes for a unit. The areas of study describe the specific knowledge and skills required to demonstrate a specific outcome. Teachers are required to develop a program for their students that meets the requirements of the study design including: areas of study, outcome statements, key knowledge and key skills.
Teachers should take note of the introductions at the beginning of each area of study. These comprise an integral part of each area of study and aid in the understanding of the key knowledge and key skills.
The revised study design continues to focus on the study of human behaviour and social interaction, referring to a range of sociological perspectives and theories that offer different ways of understanding human society. By applying a sociological imagination, students draw on key theories and concepts related to the study of youth, family, deviance, crime, Australian Indigenous culture, ethnicity, community and social movements.
Key features of the study design in Unit 1 includes an introduction to the sociological imagination in Area of Study 1, with an emphasis on the evolution of key definitions over time and the links between sociological theories and key concepts.
The study of sociological theories and perspectives in Unit 1: Area of Study 2 provides an opportunity to develop a course where students learn about theory in an applied rather than abstract way that is, applying sociological perspectives to the analysis of social behaviours and interactions within the Area of Study 2 context of the family.
In Unit 2, students are required to study deviance including the concept of positive deviance. Deviance is a concept relative to social norms and student pre-assessment could be undertaken to determine whether learning activities on understanding social norms are required, as this understanding forms the wider context from which to build a study of deviance. In Area of Study 2, crime is studied, including the concept of reintegrative shaming and how other nations deal with crime. This provides teachers with the opportunity to engage students in learning activities that will further develop their ability to evaluate methods of punishment. The teaching program should account for this area of study being the first across Units 1 and 2 to explicitly develop the skills of evaluation.
Teachers are advised to introduce research elements for Units 3 and 4 at the start of the school year so that students are able to conduct primary and/or secondary research for an ethnic group, community and a social movement throughout the school year and refine their research once relevant content has been covered in class. A separate detailed example case study for each Area of Study could form the basis of teaching and learning activities to prepare students for analysis of their own research. Each area of study should also be supplemented by a range of brief examples that help to illustrate sociological concepts, theory and other aspects of the key knowledge and give an opportunity for application of key knowledge and skills.
In Unit 3, Key features of Area of Study 1 include an emphasis on the sociological imagination as described by C. Wright Mills and the exploration of common public misconceptions regarding Australian Indigenous culture. There is also the opportunity for autonomy for students to explore one particular issue that has impacted on the public awareness and view of Australian Indigenous culture. The concept of multiculturalism is introduced in Area of Study 2, as students are required to examine a range of barriers and enablers that affect belonging and inclusion in Australia’s multicultural society.
In Unit 4,
Area of Study 1, Students investigate changes to the concept of community over time by exploring the theories of Ferdinand Tonnies and Michel Maffesoli. In Area of Study 2 - Outcome 2, students are required to have a general understanding of the nature and purpose of a range of different types of social movements, however they now only need to investigate one social movement in detail.
The VCE Sociology study provides students with the opportunity to engage in a range of learning activities. In addition to demonstrating their understanding and mastery of the content and skills specific to the study, students may also develop employability skills through their learning activities.
The nationally agreed employability skills* are: Communication; Planning and organising; Teamwork; Problem solving; Self-management; Initiative and enterprise; Technology; and Learning.
The table links those facets that may be understood and applied in a school or non-employment-related setting to the types of assessment commonly undertaken in the VCE study.
| Assessment task | Employability skills selected facets |
|---|
Case study |
Communication (writing to the needs of the audience; persuading effectively)
Problem solving (testing assumptions taking the context of data and circumstances into account)
Planning and organising (planning the use of resources including time management; collecting, analysing and organising information) |
Extended response |
Communication (writing to the needs of the audience; persuading effectively)
Problem solving (testing assumptions taking the context of data and circumstances into account)
Planning and organising (planning the use of resources including time management; collecting, analysing and organising information) |
Film analysis |
Communication (writing to the needs of the audience; listening and understanding)
Problem solving (testing assumptions taking the context of data and circumstances into account)
Planning and organising (planning the use of resources including time management; collecting, analysing and organising information) |
Media analysis |
Communication (writing to the needs of the audience; listening and understanding)
Problem solving (testing assumptions taking the context of data and circumstances into account)
Planning and organising (planning the use of resources including time management; collecting, analysing and organising information) |
|
Multimedia presentation |
Communication (sharing information; speaking clearly and directly)
Technology (having a range of basic information communications technology (ICT) skills; using ICT to organise data; being willing to learn new information communication technology skills) |
|
Representation analysis: text-based, visual |
Communication (writing to the needs of the audience; listening and understanding; reading independently)
Problem solving (testing assumptions taking the context of data and circumstances into account)
Planning and organising (planning the use of resources including time management; collecting, analysing and organising information)
Technology (using ICT to organise data) |
|
Research report |
Communication (writing to the needs of the audience; reading independently)
Problem solving (testing assumptions taking the context of data and circumstances into account)
Planning and organising (planning the use of resources including time management; collecting, analysing and organising information)
Technology (using ICT to organise data)
Initiative and enterprise (generating a range of options) |
|
A selection of structured questions requiring short-answer responses |
Problem solving (applying a range of strategies to problem solving) |
*The employability skills are derived from the Employability Skills Framework (Employability Skills for the Future, 2002), developed by the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Business Council of Australia, and published by the (former) Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training.