Philosophy & Ethics

The AS and A2 Philosophy & Ethics course is an invaluable opportunity to gain cross transferable skills for careers and courses demanding analysis, evaluation and clarity of expression.

This A Level course is aimed at those who are prepared for an open-minded exploration of the big questions, in particular the medical, legal and moral issues that affect the lives of humans today.

The course is designed for anyone to undertake and previous knowledge from GCSE is not a requirement. An open mind to often controversial and complex issues is required as is the understanding that we are required more often than not to discover the questions and a number of solutions but not a definitive answer. Those who wish to ask the impossible questions about life, the world and the universe and explore some of the answers offered by the philosophers and scholars are likely to feel at home being challenged and challenging others on this course.

An A Level in Philosophy & Ethics is a highly regarded qualification for anyone proceeding to University in the Arts and the Sciences. The ability to think clearly and to evaluate contrasting philosophical, ethical and moral views as well as possession of an understanding of the history of ideas from Socrates onwards are valued by both universities and employers.

Those studying A Level in the past have gone on to study in such diverse fields as PPE and Law at Oxford and Cambridge, Medicine at London, English at Durham, History at St Andrew’s, Journalism at Bristol and Sports Science at Loughborough – as well as Theology and Philosophy and Ethics at all of the above!

In the first year students follow three modules. In Philosophy, the relationship between science and religion is explored, examining the Big Bang, steady state and evolutionary theories and comparing them with the ontological, cosmological and teleological arguments about the existence of God. In Ethics, three ethical theories are applied to a number of contemporary issues. Natural Law, Utilitarianism and the Categorical Imperative are applied to issues such as cloning, abortion, euthanasia and environmental ethics. The Human Experience paper has a synoptic element and as such we draw upon the other two modules to tackle the psychology of the competing philosophies, religious and ethical issues. We study the claims of authority in religion, philosophy and ethics and compare them with the way in which individual experiences have contrasted and often contradicted such traditional structures of authority.

In the Upper Sixth, three A2 modules are studied mirroring the lower sixth studies. These expand the topics already begun at AS Level and develop the students’ ability to contrast and evaluate for themselves the strengths and weaknesses of each of the other ethical and philosophical theories.

The big issues in such areas as legal ethics, medical ethics and the environment as well as sex and relationships provide the opportunity to explore how we know what has been traditionally seen as right and wrong and how we apply these ideas in practice. The big questions like, “if there’s a God why doesn’t (s)he prove it?” In addition to euthanasia, cloning, IVF and social justice are investigated through the writings of the philosophers and scholars, always requiring pupils to evaluate for themselves the relative strengths and weaknesses of the contrasting evidence.

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Subjects on offer

A Level Subjects:
Art & Design
Biology
Business Studies
Chemistry
Classical Subjects
Economics
English Literature
French
Geography
German
History
Mathematics
Maths with Further Mathematics
Music
Music Technology
Philosophy & Ethics
Physics
Politics
Spanish
Sport Studies
Theatre Studies

AS Level Subjects:
Electronics
ICT
Italian (GCSE/AS)