IGCSE Sociology: Family, Education and Crime — Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, in the style and at the standard of the examination. They are not reproduced past-paper questions — examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers available free from your board.

Related: Family, Education and Crime revision notes

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Section A

1. Name four family structures identified in the syllabus. [4]

2. Define the “hidden curriculum” and give one example. [3]

Section B

3. Explain two differences between the New Right and Postmodernist views of family diversity. [6]

4. Explain three ways an ageing population is changing family life. [9]

5. Distinguish between crime and deviance, giving one example of behaviour that is deviant but not criminal. [6]

6. Explain three material, cultural or in-school factors used to explain differences in educational achievement. [9]

Section C

7. Explain the functionalist and Marxist views of the family’s role in society, and identify one criticism of either view. [8]

8. Distinguish between formal and informal agencies of social control, and explain two ways an informal agency may prevent deviance. [8]

9. Explain how feminist sociologists have analysed gender and the hidden curriculum in schools. [6]

10. Explain two reasons why white-collar crime may be under-recorded compared with other crime types. [6]

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Answers

1. Any four: nuclear, extended, reconstituted, lone parent, empty nest, childless [1] [1] [1] [1].

2. The hidden curriculum is the set of norms, values, attitudes and behaviours (such as punctuality and conformity) that schools teach without naming them as formal lessons [1] [1]. Example: school uniform policies, which teach conformity and acceptance of authority without being taught as a subject [1].

3. The New Right treats family diversity as a sign of social dysfunction, arguing the traditional nuclear family is the ideal structure and that alternatives weaken social stability [1] [1]. Postmodernists treat diversity positively, viewing the variety of family forms as evidence of greater individual choice and freedom rather than decline [1] [1]. (Accept any two clearly contrasted points to this effect, 3 marks each.)

4. Any three, 3 marks each: falling birth rates combined with rising life expectancy produce an older population overall, changing the balance of family generations alive at once [1] [1] [1]. This creates the “sandwich generation” — adults caring simultaneously for ageing parents and their own children [1] [1] [1]. It also creates “boomerang children” who return to the family home as adults, and changes grandparent roles, with grandparents increasingly providing regular childcare [1] [1] [1].

5. Crime is behaviour that breaks the law [1]; deviance is behaviour that breaks social norms [1]. The two overlap but are not identical, and both are relative across societies, cultures and time periods [1] [1]. Example of deviant but not criminal behaviour: any reasonable example, such as not queuing when expected to, or unconventional dress — behaviour that breaks a social norm without breaking any law [1] [1].

6. Any three, 3 marks each, correctly categorised: Material — e.g. unequal access to digital technology or study resources at home, disadvantaging lower-income students [1] [1] [1]. Cultural — e.g. cultural capital, where some families possess knowledge, vocabulary and values that align more closely with what schools value and reward [1] [1] [1]; or linguistic factors, where the type of language used at home may or may not match the “elaborated code” schools expect. In-school — e.g. teacher labelling, where expectations placed on a student shape their subsequent performance, and pro-school or anti-school subcultures, where peer groups reinforce or resist academic engagement [1] [1] [1].

7. Functionalism views the family as performing essential functions for society and its members, including emotional stabilisation of adult personalities (the “warm bath” theory), alongside socialisation of children into shared norms and values [1] [1]. Marxism views the family as a unit of consumption that sustains capitalism, both by consuming goods and by reproducing a compliant workforce for the next generation [1] [1]. Criticism (either view, 4 marks): functionalism can be criticised for assuming the nuclear family benefits all members equally, ignoring conflict and inequality within families (e.g. an unequal domestic division of labour) [1] [1] [1] [1]; or Marxism can be criticised for underestimating the genuine emotional and supportive functions families provide that are not reducible to economic interests [1] [1] [1] [1].

8. Formal agencies of social control are official bodies with the power to punish, such as police, courts, the armed forces, government and the penal system [1] [1]. Informal agencies exert control through socialisation and social pressure rather than legal punishment, such as family, education, the workplace, peer group, media and religion [1] [1]. Any two ways an informal agency prevents deviance, 2 marks each: the family socialises children into shared norms and values from an early age, reducing the likelihood of later rule-breaking [1] [1]; peer group disapproval discourages deviant behaviour through fear of social exclusion or reputational damage [1] [1]; religion provides a moral code reinforced by community expectation rather than legal sanction [1] [1].

9. Feminist sociologists argue schools historically transmitted a patriarchal curriculum, channelling girls and boys toward different subjects and reinforcing traditional gender roles through both curriculum content and everyday classroom interaction [1] [1] [1]. This is linked to gendered subject choice, where girls remain under-represented in some STEM subjects and boys in some humanities/language subjects, a pattern feminists argue reflects socialisation rather than innate ability [1] [1] [1].

10. Any two, 3 marks each: white-collar crime is often committed by individuals in positions of trust or authority, making detection harder since there is less direct oversight of their actions [1] [1] [1]. Such crimes are frequently complex or technical, making them difficult for both the public and investigators to recognise as crime in the first place, and offences may be dealt with internally by an organisation rather than reported to police, further reducing official statistics [1] [1] [1].