Health and Social Care is a vocationally orientated subject. The Health and care sector encompasses professionals involved in direct care, as well as specialists such as health scientists, technicians, support staff, supervisors and managers. Job opportunities exist in the statutory, private and voluntary provision of care services.
The qualification we offer can provide a springboard to a university degree or Foundation degree or employment.
You will study a wide variety of areas within Health and Social Care including human development, the physiology of illness, equality, diversity and rights, health and safety in care settings, caring for children and young people, sociological and psychological aspects of health care and more, making it an interesting and very diverse course.
If you have an enquiring mind, empathy with other people, good research skills and are able to manage your own time and learning effectively in order to meet deadlines, then you will benefit from studying Health and Social Care.
Skills
Through their study of HSC at Bishop Challoner Sixth Form College students will be encouraged to develop a number of important transferable skills. The department aims to:
- Develop the confidence of students and their ability to distinguish between fact and opinion so that they can make informed judgements about topical issues
- Actively encourage their use of ICT
- Provide students with the opportunity to learn through their own direct and practical experiences of the world around them
- Build on students’ previous success and encourage them to have high expectations of themselves
- Encourage students to adopt positive values and attitudes towards their work, their working environment and those they are working with
Key Stage 5 Health and Social Care Qualification
The Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Certificate in Health and Social Care is equivalent in size to 1 A Level. It is for students interested in learning about the health and social care sector alongside other fields of study, probably with a view to progressing to a wide range of HE courses, not necessarily in the health or social care sector.
The Extended Certificate involves studying three compulsory units and one optional unit over the course of two years.
Units of work are assessed through a combination of externally marked examinations and internally marked coursework assignments where you will be expected to work on a variety of research tasks and produce portfolios of completed work to deadlines set by your teachers.
Subject Specific Aims
The aims of these specifications are to encourage candidates to:
- Develop and sustain an interest in health, early-years care and education, social care and issues affecting the care sector
- Acquire knowledge and understanding of health, early-years care and education and issues affecting the health and social care sector
- Develop skills that will enable them to make an effective contribution to the care sector including skills of research, evaluation and problem-solving in a work-related context
- Apply knowledge, understanding and skills
- Prepare for further study and training.
For more detailed information please feel free to speak to Mrs Moon, Curriculum Head, or any of the other Social Science staff.
Useful Websites
http://www.nhs.uk/Pages/HomePage.aspx
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health/
More detailed information about the course is available by following the link below. This will take you directly to the EDEXCEL website where you will find a copy of the specification which you can download as well as other more summarised information about the content and structure of the courses. When looking at the specifications available please make sure you select the Extended Certificate specification.