Social Studies O'level

The study area SEC Social Studies is informed by the National Curriculum Framework (NCF).

Social studies is the integrated study of the social sciences, humanities, and history. The primary purpose of social studies is to help young people develop the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions for the public good as citizens of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an interdependent world. 

At the end of the programme, the student will be able to: 

• understand, explain and critically reflect on the concepts of self, identity and culture, the intersection between them and associated sociological concepts, perspectives and schools of thought
• understand, critically appraise and reflect upon myriad facets of human ecology and the main demographic trends in contemporary society on both a global and local level
• understand, critically appraise and reflect upon social groups and social institutions through the lens of diverse social science perspectives and with special emphasis on the family and education
• understand, critically appraise and reflect upon social groups and social institutions through the lens of diverse social science perspectives and with special emphasis on religion, the economy and leisure and health
• understand and critically reflect on the factors related to social stratification (such as class, age, ethnicity and gender) and power in society and apply the important sociological and social science concepts at stake to examine the processes at play in fostering and combatting social exclusion both in Malta and on a wider global societal level
• understand the term youth and reflect on the role of youth and youth culture in society, how youth may be misrepresented and problematized by the mass media and the potential of youth for social change
• differentiate between crime, deviance and delinquency, their causes and critically reflect on diverse methods of crime prevention and control
• understand and critically engage with pivotal concepts in political studies – including democracy, active citizenship, political parties and sovereignty and apply these concepts to appraise socio-political developments in both the global and the local scenario