Edexcel Government and Politics Course (A LEVEL)

Edexcel Government and Politics Course (A LEVEL)

1. Component 1

   • UK Politics
     • Democracy and Participation
       • Current systems of direct and representative democracy
       • Suffrage
         • Now: 16 - 18 Votes
         • Class, Women, Ethnicity...
       • Pressure groups and other influences
         • Case studies
         • How they get results
       • Lobbying
       • Rights in Context
         • HRA, Equality Act, etc
       • KEY TERMS: Legitimacy, Direct Democracy, Representative Democracy, Representative Democracy, Pluralist Democracy, Democratic Deficit, Participation Crisis, Franchise/Suffrage, Think Tanks, Lobbying
     • Political Parties
       • Functions of political parties
         • Funding
           • Debates on funding
       • Established parties
         • Conservative, Labour, Lib Dem, (+Ukip, Green, Independant Group/Change UK, Brexit Party)
           • The Idea/role of Minor/Emerging parties in the UK (+Their Importance)
           • How they shape(d) UK law + order, economy, social policy, welfare, health, education, foreign policy
       • The development of a multiparty system
       • Factors that explain success
         • Role of the media in this
       • KEY TERMS: Old Labour (Social Democracy), 'New' Labour (Third Way), One Nation, New Right, Classical Liberals, Modern Liberals, Party Systems, Left/Right wing spectrum
     • Electoral System
       • FPTP (First Past The Post)
         • Debates on reform (+2011 AV Referendum)
       • AMD (Additional Member System)
       • STV (Single Transferable Vote)
       • SV (Supplementary Vote)
       • KEY TERMS: Safe Seat, Marginal Seat, Minority/Majority Government
       • Referenda
         • How they have been used since 1997 (+In EU/EC Referendum 1975)
     • Voting Behavior + The role of the media
       • KEY TERMS: Class dealignment, Partisan dealignment, Governing Competency, Disillusion, Apathy, Manifesto, Mandate
       • Case Studies of the three Key general elections: 1989, 1997 and 2017
         • Reasons for winning
           • Includes... Manifestos, Campaign Techniques, Context, Class based votes OR gender, age, region, papers, national habits that year based votes
       • The Influence that the media had in election
         • Opinion Polls / Media Bias
     • Remember you need the advantages and disadvantages of all topics as well as the differences and similarities
   • PAPER 1: UK Politics and Core Political Ideas
   • Core Political Ideas
     • Socialism
       • Types (+Thinkers)
         • Revolutionary
           • Marxism (Karl Marx)
             • + Friedrich Engles
           • Rosa Luxemburg
         • Democratic
           • Beatrice Webb
         • 'Third Way'
           • Anthony Giddens
           • 'Revisionist'
           • Blair
         • Social Democratic + Revisionist
           • Anthony Crossland
     • Liberalism
       • Types (+ Thinkers)
         • Classical Liberals
           • John Locke
             • 'Father Of Liberalism'
           • Mary Wollstonecraft
         • Modern Liberals
           • Thomas H Green
           • Betty Friedan
           • John Rawls
         • John S. Mill
           • Bridge Between Classical and Modern Liberals
           • Also a: Utalitarianist
         • ECONOMIST: Adam Smith
       • Merged with 'Realism'
         • Hedley Bull
     • Conservatism
       • Types (+Thinkers)
         • One Nation
           • Edmund Burke
           • Micheal Oakeshott
           • Cameron + May
         • Traditional
           • Edmund Burke
         • New Right
           • 'Thatcherism'
           • 'Reaganism'
         • Neo-Liberal
           • Ayn Rand
           • Robert Nozik
           • +Neo-Conservatives
         • Thomas Hobbes
           • (Father of conservatism)
         • ECONOMIST: Keynesianism
     • Key terms and ideas to look at:
       • Conservatism
         • Pragmatism
         • Tradition
         • Human Imerfection
           • Anti-Permissiveness
           • Radical
           • Noblesse Oblige
         • Organic Society / State
           • Change to Conserve
         • Atomism
         • Paternalism
         • Hierarchy
         • Authority
         • Libertarianism
         • 'Laissez-Faire'
         • Minimum State Intervention
         • Neo-Conservatism
         • Empiricism
       • Liberalism
         • Individualism
         • Freedom / Liberty
         • State is a necessary evil
           • Limited Government
             • Liberal democracy
         • Rationalism
         • Equality + Social Justice + Tolerance
           • Foundational equality
           • Formal equality
           • Equality of opportunity
         • Liberal democracy
         • Egotistical Individualism
           • Individualism (Full stop).
         • Neo-Liberalism
         • Social Contract
         • Enabling State
         • Mechanist Theory
         • Harm Priciple
         • Veil of ignorance
         • Meritocracy
       • Socialism
         • Collectivism
         • Liberty, Equality, Fraternity
           • French Revolution
         • Communism v Capitalism
         • Dependency culture
         • Common Humanity
         • Co-operation
         • Common ownership
         • Class (consciousness)
         • Workers rights
         • Revolutionary
         • Dialectic
         • Proletariat v Bourgeoisie
         • Historic Materialsim
         • Historical Materialsim
         • Class conciousness
   • REMEBER TO: WRITE ABOUT THE RELIABIL OF THE SOURCE!!!

2. Component 2

   • PAPER 2: UK Government and Non-Core Political Ideas
   • UK GOVERNMENT
     • The Constitution
       • Key Terms: Un/entrenched, Un/codified, Parliamentary Sovereignty, Unitary / Federal, Parliamentary Sovereignty, Rule of law, Statute Law, Common law, Conventions, Authoritative works/texts, Treaties, Devolution
       • Nature + Sources of UK constitution
         • 'Twin Pillars' of parliamentary sovereignty
         • 5 Main Sources: Statute law, common law, conventions, authoritative works and treaties (inc. EU)
       • Historical documents influencing the constitution
         • Magna Carta (1215), Bill of Rights (1689), Act of Union (1707), Parlaiments Acts (1911 + 49), The European Communities Act (1972)
       • How has it changed since 1997
         • New Labour: Lords Reform, Electoral reform, devolution, HRA, UKSC
         • 2010-15 Cameron/Clegg: Fixed term parliament acts
         • Use of Referendums
       • Devolved bodies in the UK (Scottish Parliament + Government), Welsh Assembly (+ Government), NI Assembly (+ Executive)
         • EVEL (English Votes for English laws)
       • Debates on further reform
     • Parliament
       • KEY TERMS: HOC, HOL, Confidence and Supply, Parliamentary Privilege, Legislative bills, public bills, public bills committees, backbenchers, select committees, opposition
       • Structure and the role of the HOC and the HOL, Selection of members + different types of peers
       • The main functions of the HOC, how are they fulfilled
         • Debates about powers in HOC/L
       • HOC v HOL powers
       • Legislative process
         • Different stages a bill must go through
           • Commons + Lords interaction
           • Sailsbury Convention
       • The ways in which parliament interacts with the executive
         • Role of backbenchers in both houses
           • Parliamentary privilege
         • Role of the opposition (official + non)
         • The work of select comittees
         • Purpose of PMQs and ministerial QT
     • Prime Minister + The Executive
       • KEY TERMS Executive, Cabinet, Minister, Govt. Department, Royal prerogative, Secondary legislation, Individual responsibility, collective responsibility, presidential government
       • Structure Role and power of the executive
         • Structure: PM, Cabinet, Junior Ministers, Govt. Deps
           • Different structures - i.e. NI Assembly, etc
         • Roles: Legislate, budget, policy decisions,
         • Powers of Executive: Royal prerogative powers, initiation of legislation and secondary legislative powers
       • The concept of ministerial responsibility
         • Individual
         • Collective
       • The power of the PM + cabinet
         • Factors of selection of Ministers/Secretaries
           • Vice versa
         • To dictate events and determine policy
           • Context
         • Influences of PMs from years studying
     • Relationship between...
       • Branches of state
         • Judiciary
           • UKSC and its interactions with and its effect over the legislative process and influence on parliament
             • Role of UKSC
             • Composition of UKSC
             • Operating the UKSC: Judicial neutrality and Judicial independence
             • Judicial Review
         • Executive
           • The relationship between the executive and parliament
             • Effectiveness of parliament holding the executive to account
           • Exercising dominance over parliament?
             • The balance of power between the executive and parliament changed?
         • Legislative
           • + Sovereignty
             • Distinction between legal and political sovereignty
             • Sovereignty being moved to different government branches
             • Where sovereignty can now be said to lie
         • KEY TERMS: Supreme court, Judicial neutrality, Judicial independence, Judicial Review, Elective Dictatorship, EU, Four Freedoms in the EU, Legal sovereignty, political sovereignty, Ultra Vires
         • +
           • Role and impact of the EU on the UK
             • + This in the future (i.e. 'Brexit')
             • 4 freedoms of the single market
               • Freedom of movement for
                 • 1. Goods
                 • 2. Services
                 • 3. People
                 • 4. Capital
               • + Social political and economic union
                 • Role of EU in policy making
                   • Effect on the UK WITH at least 2 examples
                     • i.e. Tachographs + Prisoners Voting
   • Non Core Political Idea: ECOLOGISM
     • Core principles and ideas
       • KEY TERMS: Industrialism, Consumerism, Sustainability, Environmental consciousness, Green capitalism, Mechanistic world view, Eco Anarchism, Eco feminism
       • Ecology
       • Holism
       • Environmental ethics
       • Environmental consciousness
       • Post materialist and Anti-consumerism
       • Sustainability
     • Different types of Ecologism
       • Deep/Dark Green
         • Environmental consciousness, ecocentrism and strong sustainability
       • Shallow/Light Green
         • Enlightened anthropocentrism and weak sustainability
       • KEY TERMS: Limits to growth, Decentralisation, Ecocentric, Anthropocentric
     • Ecologist Thinkers and their ideas
       • Deep Green
         • Can be called DARK GREEN
         • Aldo Leopold
         • 'Revolutionary'
       • Shallow Green
         • Can be called LIGHT GREEN
         • Rachel Carson
         • E.F. Schumacher
         • 'Reformist'
       • Social Ecology
         • Has 3 catergories within it
           • Eco-Anarchism
             • Murray Bookchin
               • 'Anarchocommunism'
           • Eco-Feminism
             • Carolyn Merchant
           • Eco-Socialism
             • John Bellamy Foster
         • 'Phrase was coined by' - Murray Bookchin
         • Environmental degradation can be linked to existing social structures and sustainability is linked to radical social change
       • KEY TERMS: Biodiversity, Buddhist economics, Biocentric equality

3. Component 3

   • The state and globalisation
     • KEY TERMS: Sovereignty, Nation state, Non-state actors, Globalisation, Economic globalisation, Political globalisation, Cultural globalisation, Homogenisation and monoculture, Interconnectedness World government, Global governance
     • Characteristics/differences of a nation state and of national sovereignty
       • What is a nation state
         • Types of state
       • What is national sovereignty
     • The process of globalisation
       • Impact on the state system
         • + Debates on this
         • Interconectedness
           • Interlinking Of: People, Social, countries, institutions, culture, economics, technology and politics)
             • Widening interconectedness and interdependance
               • Challange of states law
               • International law and Development
               • Humanitarian (and forceable) intervention
               • Debates of the:
                 • Hyperglobalisers
                 • Sceptics
                 • Transformationalists
                 • + Realists and Liberal views
     • Interdependency, Interconnections
     • International law
       • Humanitarian and forceable intervention
       • Adressing: poverty, conflict, human rights and the environment.
     • Hyperglobalisers, Globalisation sceptics and Transformationalists, Including the Realist and Liberal views.
     • Advantages and Disadvantages of Gloablisation
   • PAPER 3: Global Politics
   • Global governance
     • Political
       • KEY TERMS: The United Nations, Security Council, NATO
       • The UN
         • 1945 charter
           • Origin
         • Security council
           • + Economic and Social Councils
           • UN deals with membership/structure and the use of Veto
         • General assembly
         • ICJ (International Court of Justice)
         • Role and significance
       • Nato
         • Changing role since the end of the cold war
         • Strengths and Weaknesses
     • Economic
       • KEY TERMS: International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank, World Trade Organization (WTO), G7(8)/G20, North-South divide (Brandt), Dependency theory
       • Role and significance of the:
         • IMF
           • Pressure for reform/criticisms, (inc SAPS),
             • Role of global economic crisis
         • World Bank
         • WTO
         • G7/8/20
         • +Strengths and Weaknesses
         • +Role of NGOs/NSAs
       • How global economic institutions deal with poverty
         • The North/South Divide
         • World System Theories
         • Dependency
         • Orthodox and Alternative measures of poverty
         • Classical economic development theory
         • Structural theory
         • Neo-classical development theory
         • Global issues
           • Conflict
           • Poverty
           • Human Rights
           • The environmnet
       • Role of global civil society
     • Human Rights
       • KEY TERMS: International law, International Court of Justice (ICJ), International Criminal Court (ICC), International tribunals, Human rights/Universal human rights, Humanitarian intervention
       • Origin of institutions
         • ICJ, ICC, Special UN tribunals, ECtHR
           • & The Sources of authority
             • 1948 Declaration of HR
       • Impact on:
         • State Sovereignty
         • Humanitarian intervention use rise in 1990's
           • Interventionism
           • R2P: Responsibility to protect
             • Western hypocrisy examples
     • Environmental
       • KEY TERMS: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Global commons, Tragedy of the commons, Sustainability/ Sustainable development
       • Role and significance of:
         • All the key words = Topics:
       • Competing views on how to tackle world enviro issue
         • Light Green v. Dark Green
         • Sustainable development theory
           • Tragedy of the commons
       • Environment Continued
         • +/- of International Agreements
           • High Profile ones:
             • Kyoto, Rio, Copenhagen, Paris
         • Obstacles to international co-operation/agreement
           • Sovereignty
           • Developed v developing world Divisions
           • Disagreement over responsibility and measurement
         • Role and significance of global civil society and NGOs in adressing all enviro issues
     • KEY TERMS: NGOs, Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP)
   • Power and Developments
     • Hard power, Soft power, Great power, Superpower, Emerging power, Polarity/Unipolarity/Bipolarity/Multipolarity, Democratic state, Semi-democratic state/nondemocratic state, Autocratic state, Failed states, Rogue states
     • Conflict, Poverty, Human Rights, The Environment
       • Contemporary Global Issues:
         • International law + State sovereignty
         • Performance of the international courts+Controversies
     • Power and developments cont...
       • Different Types of power
         • The use and effectiveness of the following types of power
           • Hard Power
             • Military and Economic
           • Soft Power
             • Cultural and Diplomatic
       • Differing significance of states in global affairs
         • How + Why a state is classified
         • State power Classifications
           • Great Power
           • Super power (Inc. USA)
           • Emerging powers (BRICS/s)
       • Polarity
         • Unipolarity / Hegemony
           • + The Changing nature of world order - i.e. rise of china/middle east...etc
         • Bipolarity
         • Multipolarity
         • + Implications the polarity has on world order / structure
       • Different systems of government
         • The characteristics and examples (consequences) for the global order of states classified as...
           • Democratic
           • Semi-democratic
           • Non-democratic
           • Autocratic states
           • Failed states
           • Rouge states
       • The development and spread of...
         • Liberal (western style) (Capitalist) economies
         • Rule of law
         • Democracy
         • Role of Washington Consensus in this:
           • Liberalise, Privatise, Democratise/Globalise
             • CFA/SAPs
       • + Changing relationships and actions of states in realtion to power and developments adressing and resolving contemporary global issues
         • Again inc:
           • poverty
             • conflict
             • environmnet
               • human rights
   • Regionalism and the European Union
     • Regionalism, European Union (EU), European integration, Sovereignty, Supranationalism, Intergovernmentalism, Federalism, Global actor, Widening-deepening
     • Regionalism
       • Different Forms
         • Economic
         • Security
         • Political
       • Growth of Regionalism
         • Reasons for this...
         • Significance of it...
         • Relationship between
           • Regionalism
           • Globalisation
           • v
         • Impact on state sovereignty
           • Prospects for political regionalism and regional governance
     • Development of Regional organisations
       • NAFTA (North Atlantic Free Trade Association)
       • AU (African Union)
       • AL (Arab League)
       • ASEAN (Asso. South-East Asian Nations)
     • Factors that have fostered European intergration and major developments through which this has occured
       • + The significance of the EU as an international body/global actor (inc its obstacles affecting)...(Global politics of)
         • + The ways in which and to what extent regionalism has addressed and has resolved (the usual) contemporary global issues
           • Comparative theories
             • Realism, Liberalism, International anarchy, Security dilemma, Complex interdependence, Global governance, Anarchical society, Society of states
             • Main Ideas of realism
               • States as key actors in global affairs
               • Balances of power
                 • With states sovereignty
               • International anarchy
                 • + its implications
               • Inevitability of war
               • The security dilemma
             • Main ideas of liberalism
               • The significance of morality and optimism on human nature
               • Possibility of harmony and balance
               • Complex interdependence
               • Likelihood of global governance
               • Impact and growth of international organisations
             • Divisions between liberalism and realism in relation to...
               • Human Nature
               • Power
               • Order and security
               • The likelihood of conflict
               • Impact of international organisations and the significance of states
             • Main Ideas of Anarchical society and society of states theory
               • Acceptance that there is anarchy in the global system
                 • Absence of overreaching authority
               • States have an informal understanding that ensures a degree of co-operation - based on norms and rules that increase levels of trust and reciprocal behaviour
             • An Evaluation of the extent to which realism and liberalism explain recent developments (Since 2000) in global politics
               • This should be done through the study of relevant case studies that you've covered on each of the other content sections:
                 • The state and globalisation
                 • Global governance
                   • Political
                   • Economic
                   • Human rights
                   • Environmental
                 • Power and developments
                 • Regionalism and the EU
           • FINALLY ON COMP: 3
         • Its influence in...
           • Political
           • Economic
           • Structural
           • Military
       • EU
         • Formation
         • Role
         • Development
         • Odjectives
       • Establishment and Powers of its institutions
         • Institutions
           • Council
           • Parliament
           • Commissions
           • Court
         • Process of enlargement
         • Key treaties and agreements
         • Economic and Monetary union
       • Supranational vs. Intergovernmental approaches

4. Component = Unit

5. Ideas = 'ologies

6. Case Studies of the three Key general elections: 1989, 1997 and 2017