Welcome to Belfast High School Government and Politics department
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We are currently working in collaboration with the following teachers and schools. Mr F. McGuckin, Lagan College, Belfast. Mr P. Taggart Sacred Heart, Newry. Mr P Smith, St Joseph's, Derry. Mr S Westcott, Our Lady's Grammar, Newry. Mrs L Boyd, Glenlola Collegiate, Bangor, Miss Jocelyn Sturgeon, Mr P. Mulligan, Strathearn Grammar and Mr J. Chalmers. 

What's New?

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Government and Politics is becoming one of the most popular A Level courses in Belfast High School.

I have tried to design this website to help YOU maximize YOUR learning potential. 
There is nothing to stop you succeeding in Politics and getting the highest grade possible... with the right effort. 
 
On this site you can find a range of online material, notes, presentations, interactive glossaries, quizzes, YouTube videos, useful web links and news. You will also have your own chance to contribute.  In order to learn from each other, some of the best assignments will also be uploaded. 

As always, we welcome any suggestions to make this site better and your learning more productive.

If you have missed a lesson, want to check your notes or want to read ahead, simply look on this site and download at your convenience.

Enjoy!!                                                 Mr J. Wishart

 HIGHLY RECOMMENDED AS1 INVESTMENT: 

RECOMMENDED - NI Government and Politics for CCEA by Lesley Veronica. This book is the essential course guide and is full of key information, guidance and plans. It was published in 2018 so may lack some events since then but it is still invaluable insight and has good exam information as well.   It is usually about £10.99, which is a superb investment. Click on link below
NOW AVAILABLE

Don't forget Belfast High Politics on Instagram @belfasthigh_politics
CLICK HERE : BHS POLI YOUTUBE

WHAT 
IS POLITICS?
WHY SHOULD I STUDY IT? 

YOUTUBE LINK :
WHY POLITICS MATTERS
There are few subjects you can study at A-Level and truly say you can change the world. Politics, however, is all about changing the world.

Our society has business, culture, entertainment and creativity but without a sound political system to govern things, these will not and cannot work effectively. 

Politics is about effectively managing our relationships in the world and trying to make the world a better place for all. 

Our news is often filled with tragedy, conflict and massive issues which affect us globally. This can include conflict in the Middle East or Ukraine. The potential for conflict in the Far East. It could also include global issues like the environment, global warming, human rights and equality. Our knowledge of Politics helps us understand these issues. In Politics we aim to make sense of the world around us. We develop a sound knowledge of how we are governed - in Stormont, Westminster, the United States or globally. We look at ideas which have shaped the world. We look at the concept of power - Who has it and who has not. 
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Each year more and more students at Belfast High School come to find out what Politics is all about
POLITICS PROVIDES YOU WITH A MYRIAD OF SKILLS WHICH YOU CAN PUT TO GOOD USE
  • You will learn to build a sound understanding of the world around you 
  • You can develop your debating, presentation and negotiating skills
  • Learn to research effectively.
  • Use information technology in a creative way.  There are possibilities to build your own website ; Use podcasts ; Organise your own  political campaign
  • You will have the possibility to potentially travel to London and experience the Houses of Parliament as well as participate in Political meetings, class events, visits to the Northern Ireland Assembly and frequently visits to or from Politicians.
  • Many Students get work experience places in local political parties or for PR firms. 
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Introduction

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We begin by looking at the Northern Ireland Assembly. Before we look at Britain and the United States we have to look at how 'our own wee country' is governed. 
We look at its troubled past, its new beginnings in the Good Friday agreement and how the political settlements have produced a new way of dealing with Politics and our daily life in Northern Ireland.

AS1 NI Course guide Downloads
This part of the course is very enjoyable with several key features often incorporated:


  • Class Debates
  • Troubles tour
  • Meetings with MLA's
  • Tour and workshop at the Northern Ireland Assembly with the chance to ask questions
  • Cinema outings
  • Often Year 13&14 students have the chance to meet important visitors. 

Introduction

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Following Christmas we study the British Political system. We look at how Britain is governed, looking in particular at key parts of the political system.                          
We investigate :
  • The British Legislature (Parliament). 
  • The British Judiciary (Legal system)
  • The British Executive (Government)  
  • We look at how these three branches of Government INTERACT with each other. 
  • We do a sub topic on Judiciary and its role in British Politics
This part of the course is usually started just before Christmas. It will run up until your AS exams in the Summer term. It too has several integrated elements:

  • Debates 
  • Class Elections 
  • Possible trip 
  • University lecture day. 

AS2 course guide downloads
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Introduction

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The Focus in this module is on the comparing the Political systems of the USA and UK.

FOCUS : 
  1. On the comparison between the LEGISLATURE and EXECUTIVE in each system
  2. On the Extent to which the Executive in each system dominates the Legislature
  3. The extent to which the Chief Executive (PM / President) dominates executive power both domestically (at home) and abroad
images from Philip Martin- for non commercial use

Introduction

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We look over the theories of Power.  This will investigate who has power in society and who does not. 
It will investigate theories of Elitism, Feminism, Marxism and Pluralism and create a debate about which system works best- if any 

It will also look at how states hold and maintain power both legitimately and illegitimately looking at things such as authoritarianism, coercion legitimacy, dictatorship and authority. 

NI POLITICAL PARTIES

NEWSPAPER RESOURCES & OTHER MEDIA

BRITISH POLITICAL PARTIES

NEWSPAPER RESOURCES

A NOTE ON IMAGES USED

© J Wishart 2024 In the course of producing this website I have used many images to appeal to the students of the college. I have tried, where possible, to attribute photos. This site is solely educational and is of non commercial use. It is aimed at Belfast High School and Lagan College students and is password protected to ensure only they can see content. One set of images in particular is widely used and that is Philip Martin's amazing images primarily for use with Young people. These are acknowledged under his license agreement for non commercial use:  Phillip Martin is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License 

Copyright Disclaimer
www.bhspolitics.com has posted the material on this website solely for educational and non commercial use and only for Belfast High and Lagan college politics pupils. The site contains material extracted from various sources. I am trying to credit all sources used where possible and gaining permission to use the material sought from copyright owners, including any individual or group that may own rights therein where applicable.

Commercial use of any material contained on this site may not be made without permission. Please contact jwishart786@c2ken.net  if you have any concern, objections or issues with respect to any material contained therein. Due to the nature of the material www.bhspolitics.com cannot always guarantee the accuracy of the extracted material.


© J Wishart 2024
Understanding your Politics starts here Welcome to the Belfast High School Politics website.