A Level Economics
Why Study This Subject?
You will have heard the term “economics” but you may be unsure as to what it involves. When you follow the news you are presented with economic events every day. These include issues such as Brexit, National Health Service waiting lists, the destruction of tropical rain forests, ‘Trumponomics’ and the search for sources of energy in the future. Essentially, the basic economic problem involves how to allocate limited resources between unlimited wants for those scarce resources. If it involves money or resources and how to use them, then it is Economics!
The Russell Group of Universities considers Economics to be a useful A Level for a range of degrees including Accountancy, Finance, Business, Maths, History, Politics and of course Economics.
Economics equips you with:
- An understanding of how the economy works, applied to moden day problems and current affairs
- Skills to construct a logical and analytical argument
- The ability to interpret and manipulate data. This includes reading graphs, using formulae and calculating percentages and percentage changes.
During the course, you will calculate: unemployment rates, inflation rates, income per head for a country’s population, a firm’s profit and revenue etc.
The maths involved is no harder than GCSE and we teach you everything you will need to know.
About the department
As one of the largest departments in the country, with five dedicated Economics teachers, we offer all students an incredible experience, involving:
- Economics A Level Results in the top 25% of the country for 2019. See our results table below.
- Last year, nearly half of our Economics students went on to study Economics, or related degrees, at university and 43% go on to study at a Russell Group university – well above the national average.
- A well-resourced Economics Help Room, so you can drop in and ask for help.
- Visiting speakers from the Bank of England, European Central Bank, the Treasury and various universities.
- Enrichment opportunities including: a Bank of England competition, personal finance, Student Investor Challenge, trips to New York and London’s financial centre.
| 2019 | Economics at Greenhead | National Average |
|---|---|---|
| A*-A | 37.4% | 28.7% |
| A*-B | 73.16% | 57.6% |
| A*-C | 92.6% | 80.7% |
| Pass | 99% | 99% |
Topics you will cover
You will cover the Edexcel specification.
Theme One
Microeconomics – Year One
Will the new sugar tax be effective? What can be done to reduce pollution levels? Why are property prices in London so much higher than elsewhere? Should there be a minimum pricing policy for alcohol? Why are cities polluted and congested? Should plastic straws and bags be banned?
Theme Two
Macroeconomics – Year One
Why do we spend more on buying foreign products than we raise from exporting British goods? Why might a 6.5% pay rise for NHS workers not be as high as it sounds? What causes unemployment and what can be done about it? What will technological advancements mean for the future of the labour market?
Theme Three
Microeconomics – Year Two
Why were Sainsbury’s and Asda not allowed to merge? How does supermarket power affect farmers? Why can Amazon sell products more cheaply than other firms? Why do some occupations earn more than others? Should the minimum wage be increased further? Why are rail fares you book in advance cheaper than ones you book on the day?
Theme Four
Macroeconomics – Year Two
Will the UK leaving the EU be a good or bad thing? Why did the Financial Crisis of 2008 occur and could it have been prevented? Why are some countries rich and others poor? Why is there income inequality within the UK and is this a good or bad thing? What policies can be used to encourage economic development? Why do exchange rates fluctuate and why does this matter? What is globalization and who wins and loses out from it? Is free trade a good thing or is the recent global move to restrictions on trade e.g. tariffs (taxes on importing goods and services from abroad) better?
Please note, the vast majority of our students have never studied Economics before so don’t feel you need to come with any prior knowledge of the subject.
What our students say
From our end-of-course questionnaire:
- 99% of students agree the quality of teaching is high
- 99% of students felt they had the opportunity to get help and advice
- 98% found the topics interesting and relevant
- 98% of students would recommend the course to others
Quotes from our students:
I love it when we relate the syllabus to things happening in the wider world that directly affect me. I feel like I have a wider understanding of how the government works. I also enjoyed learning about historical aspects like Adam Smith and Karl Marx, as I don’t take history but have a passion for learning about it and the course allows me to learn snippets.
The one major thing I would say about Economics is that when I started I was slightly nervous because I thought it was going to be very maths based (not my strongest point), but now I realise that in fact maths is just a small part of the subject and that is one of the reasons it fast became my favourite subject.
I enjoyed how interesting and engaging lessons were and the pace we worked through the packs was good as I was able to understand everything but it never got boring or tedious.
I really enjoyed practical activities, like doing Kahoots, using paper airplanes to show ceteris paribus and eating units of a good to demonstrate maginal utility. These activities really help me to remember things. Things like this (and videos) I feel stimulate my other senses so I have an anchor with which to remember the topics when revising.
Economics is an interesting subject that I think links well with my other subjects (Business and Geography). My teacher is really helpful and goes through the work at a good speed. I enjoy lessons and would definitely recommend to anyone that has an interest in economics or business. My teacher has also supported me with answering questions by going through some of the work in smaller groups.
I have enjoyed the opportunity to improve my economics knowledge throughout the year whilst doing engaging activities such as card sorts and whole class challenges.
I thoroughly enjoyed learning about application skills and how we use different countries in essays to refer back to. Thoroughly enjoyed the developmental topic of economics because it relates to the whole global economy and learning about causes of poverty and development.
I found the course fascinating in its application to the real world, having an interest in current affairs it was especially useful. Also my understanding of my other subjects like history was furthered by economics.
I like the fact that each piece of homework has had a purpose, rather than it just being set for the sake of it, such as doing the summaries to create revision materials which have come in very useful later, and practicing exam questions. It’s been really easy to get help whenever i’ve needed it too and I love the way there’s the sign on the office door saying to just walk in because it shows that the teachers are always willing to offer help and support if we are struggling with a topic, even outside of lesson time.
Economics is a subject that opens your eyes and allows you to see the reality in the business and economic world. If you have ever been ninterested in government’s decisions and what are the impacts on individuals in the society or certain industries or markets? then economics might be the subject for you.
I have found economics to be an enthralling subject – some of my favourite teachers and best friends I met in economics classes. It is a brilliant subject for those wishing to learn more about the way the world around them works, and I have found it goes hand in glove with Government and Politics. I urge any student considering it to give it a go.
Entry Requirements
Grade 5s in both GCSE English Language and GCSE Mathematics.
Want to know more?
Useful links
Visit our deparment’s twitter page @gcupdates:
https://twitter.com/gcupdates?lang=en
Visit BBC economics news to get a flavor of topics we might cover:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business/economy
Have a look at the edexcel economics webpage to see our specification and example papers:
https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/qualifications/edexcel-a-levels/economics-a-2015.html