Religious Studies AS/A Level

Religious Studies offers an academic approach to the study of religion and is designed to appeal to students of any religious persuasion, or none. Students will have the opportunity to study aspects of one or more religions, including textual, theological, historical, ethical and philosophical perspectives. It is an excellent subject to combine with any other AS/A Level. The course does not require students to have taken GCSE in the subject.

At AS, there are two units: Religion and Ethics and World Religions (Christianity). In the Religion and Ethics unit, you will study two major philosophical approaches to ethics and how current issues are dealt with by the Christian Churches and other main world religions. The World Religions unit gives you an introductory study into the history of Christianity and overall development as well as central concepts/beliefs and practices. These aspects will be compared and contrasted with Judaism and Islam.

The AS examination consists of two one and a quarter hour papers, with a choice of questions.

In the second year, you will be able to develop your analytical skills and acquire a greater range of knowledge and depth of understanding. There are two units of study, the first being Religion and Ethics, where you will consider the religious and ethical perspectives on some complex contemporary issues such as cloning, genetic engineering, and human relationships. In the second unit Religious Experience you will study the range of occurrences that are described by the term religious experience. We will explore how these experiences have influenced people and lead to the foundation of religious movements and establishment of moral behaviour. Examples for this will be drawn from Christianity, Judaism and Islam.

The A2 examination consists of two one and a half hour papers, with a choice of essay questions.

The Examination

At AS Level, you will sit two written papers of 1¼ hours each. For each paper, candidates answer two structured essay questions (from a choice of four). It is anticipated that the exam for unit A will be taken in January of the first year.. For the A2 examination you have two 1½ hour examinations, consisting of a choice of two structured essay questions for unit 3A and one extended essay question for unit 4C. There is no coursework.

Compatibility with other subjects

Religious Studies AS and A2 have some overlap with AS and A2 Philosophy but students are allowed to take both subjects. Religious Studies can compliment and contrast any combination of subjects and develops skills which are useful in a wide range of situations. The syllabus provides a suitable foundation for study of Religious Studies or related courses in further and higher education. The syllabus also provides a coherent, satisfying and worthwhile course of study for students who do not progress to further study after AS or A2 Level.