A Level Philosophy
What is it about at sixth form level?
What is real? How should we live? What can we really know? Questions as broad and deep as these have fascinated people for centuries. As a philosophy student, you will start thinking about them and explore ideas and thinkers from across the ages. In one lesson, you might be walking with Socrates in ancient Athens as he argues that we are born with knowledge; in another, you might be back in the modern day wondering whether computers could ever experience love or sadness. You will meditate with Descartes on what sort of thing you are and you will address in detail what philosophers have said about the perennial puzzle of whether God exists.
Philosophy attracts those who like journeys, not destinations. This does not mean that philosophical questions have no answers. For whether they do or do not is itself a philosophical question! The questions are fascinatingly simple yet profound and they invite us to explore what they mean and what the ‘philosophical landscape’ looks like in which we would hope to find the right path.
Why study it and what skills does it develop?
Philosophy is an old and much-respected discipline. It will introduce you to new ideas and new ways of thinking. You will quickly discover how it makes connections with almost every other subject you will be studying. For example, mathematicians assume we know mathematical truths but the philosopher will ask how, if numbers are not sensible things. Historians will look at the causes of past events and the philosopher will ask what it is for one thing to cause another. A physicist will talk of particles that cannot be seen with the naked eye. The philosopher will ask whether we are entitled to believe in such ‘non-observables’.
As you pursue the course, you will learn the important art of how to construct and analyse arguments. You will learn how to make your way through challenging texts. You will learn how to express difficult ideas clearly in both speech and writing. These are all invaluable skills for the study of any subject at university and beyond.
What prior knowledge and skills are required?
No particular qualifications are required. You should be aware that the course requires a lot of reading, a lot of writing and a capacity for logical thought.
How is the course assessed?
A level
The A level is assessed by two three-hour end-of-year examinations. The first is on the Epistemology unit and the Moral Philosophy unit. The second is on the Metaphysics of God unit and the Metaphysics of Mind unit. For each unit, there will be a set of compulsory questions requiring answers of different length: three short-answer questions, one medium answer question and one long-answer question. Each paper is worth 50% of the A level.
Reading
Philosophy for AS and A level: Epistemology and Moral Philosophy
By M. Lacewing
Published by Routledge, ISBN 978-1138690394
Philosophy for A level: Metaphysics of God and Metaphysics of Mind
By M. Lacewing
Published by Routledge, ISBN 978-1138690400
AQA A level Philosophy Year 1 and AS: Epistemology and Moral Philosophy
By J. Hayward, G. Jones, D. Cardinal
Published by Hodder Education, ISBN 978-1510400252
AQA A level Philosophy Year 2: Metaphysics of God and Metaphysics of Mind
By J. Hayward, G. Jones, D. Cardinal
Published by Hodder Education, ISBN 978-1510400269
Exam Board and Specification Codes
AQA 7172
Mat Carmody
Head of Department
Discover more at MPW
Success Stories
In their own words - testimonials from our past students and their parents.