AICE Sociology
School website featuring resources for Introductory Sociology, Research Methods and Family Life.
Research Methodology: Neo-Positivism
As Jurgenson (2014) notes, positivism reflects the idea that, “if enough data can be collected with the “right” methodology it will provide an objective and disinterested picture of reality” and it is, in this respect, based upon two fundamental beliefs about the social world: 1. It involves patterns of behaviour that are capable of being […]
Revision Mapping Research Methods
While I’ve previously posted a Revision Map on Sociological Perspectives I never, for some reason, got around to posting further Maps (at least, not in pdf format – there have been Flipbook versions). Until now. In order to remedy the omission, therefore, I thought I’d start with a range of Maps dedicated to Research Methods. […]
Even More A-level Sociology Organisers
A little like the iconic red buses of yore, you wait a couple of years for a new batch of a-level sociology knowledge organisers and then two come along at once. Or a few days later at any rate. Bit like red buses when you come to think about it. Still, a gift horse is […]
Sociological Stories: Sociology and Science
The next Presentation in the Sociological Stories season is built around the relationship between Sociology and Science and covers four main areas: What is science? Is sociology a science? Value-freedom Types of data Included in these 4 sections are stories about various sociological methodologies (Positivism, Neo-Positivism, Interpretivism, Realism), types of data (primary, secondary, quantitative, qualitative) […]
Research Methods Booklet
This Booklet was created by Steven Humphrys, based on one of Ken Browne’s many Sociology textbooks. I don’t know which one but since the Booklet’s dated 2018 I chose the most recent. Probably. I can’t keep up. Also, when I say “guessing”, the Word version has a bank page that says “Ken Browne Scan”, which […]
Of Methods and Methodology 6 | 3: Theoretical Research Considerations
Theoretical research considerations – from methodological perspective to questions of reliability and validity – form the third part of the P.E.T. (Practical, Ethical, Theoretical) triumvirate of research considerations and they represent an important counterweight to the idea that sociological research simply involves choosing the right tool for the job. In everyday life, when faced with […]
Of Methods and Methodology: 2. Interpretivism
A methodology is a framework for research that focuses on how it is possible to collect reliable and valid data about, in this instance, the social world. It’s shaped by two main considerations: 1. Our beliefs about the fundamental nature of the social world (ontological concerns). 2. How we believe is possible to construct knowledge […]
Sociology Video Tutorials
These short video tutorials are basically a variant on “podcasts with pictures”: a talking head tutor in one corner of the screen explains something while the occasional picture or real-time whiteboard illustration is displayed. In other words, the 40+ films available here are relatively simple video lectures of the “listen and learn” variety – which […]
Sociology Flipbooks
A Flipbook is a way of displaying a pdf document online so that it has the look-and-feel of a paper-based magazine, one whose pages you can turn using a mouse (desktop) or finger (mobile). That’s it, really. I could talk about stuff like whether this creates a greater sense of engagement among students than the […]
Sociology Revision Booklets: 2. Theory and Methods
The second batch of a-level revision booklets covers that ever-popular topic, theory and methods. As with previous offerings, both design and content can, at times, be a little variable and for this I take no responsibility whatsoever. Because I neither designed nor wrote any of the content. I am technically distributing it for your revision […]
More Learning Tables: AS Research Methods
Today’s Table offering is everyone’s favourite revision topic (research methods in case you actually need to ask) and all of the Tables were written / assembled by Miss K Elles, except for those that weren’t. The Tables cover the major research methods plus a little bit of research methodology (positivism and interpretivism plus stuff on […]
9 | The Research Process: Part 2
The focus here is quantitative data and research, with the free chapter split into three discrete, but necessarily related, parts. The first part outlines a selection of primary quantitative research methods (questionnaires, structured interviews and content analysis) and evaluates their strengths and weaknesses. The second part does something similar for secondary quantitative methods (official and […]
Clarke and Layder: Let’s Get Real
Continuing to clear-out the filing cabinet that is fast-assuming legendary status in both my life and the sociological world (pretty much the same thing, actually) I came across a copy of an article by Clarke and Layder originally published in the November 1994 issue of Sociology Review called “Let’s Get Real: The Realist Approach in […]
Sociology Shortcuts: NotAFactsheets
Over the past few weeks I’ve published a small selection of Curriculum Press Sociology Factsheets and the response to these set me thinking about creating some of my own, using a similar format – although I’ve decided not to call what I’ve produced “Factsheets”, mainly because they aren’t. Anyway, I posted my first attempt at a […]