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  • Cambridge International AS & A Level Hinduism (9487)

Cambridge International AS & A Level Hinduism (9487)

Syllabus overview

Cambridge International AS & A Level Hinduism helps learners gain a better understanding of the religious writings, history and current affairs of Hinduism. As a result, they are able to think and argue intelligently about the subject.

The syllabus is broad and ranges from the Vedic age to Hinduism in contemporary society. Learners develop knowledge about sacred texts, philosophical ideas and spiritual/religious beliefs and reflect on the role played by Hinduism today.

Syllabuses

The syllabus year refers to the year in which the examination will be taken.

  • 2021 - 2023 Syllabus (PDF, 317KB)
  • 2024 - 2025 Syllabus (PDF, 659KB)
    • 2024 - 2025 Syllabus update (PDF, 144KB)

Syllabus updates

  • Summary of the changes
    • We revise qualifications to make sure that they continue to meet the needs of learners, schools and higher education institutions around the world. 

      We have made some changes to Cambridge International AS & A Level Hinduism for examination in November 2021, 2022 and 2023. Please see the 2021-2023 syllabus above for full details. This syllabus replaces Cambridge International AS Level Hinduism (8058) and Cambridge International A Level Hinduism (9014) from 2021 onwards.

      How has the syllabus changed?

      • This syllabus now includes a list of key concepts to deepen students' understanding. These are essential ideas, theories, principles or mental tools that help learners to develop a deep understanding and to make links and connections across the subject. The key concepts are:
        • Beliefs, faith, teaching and sources
        • Practices, application and ways of life
        • Expression
      • The syllabus content now includes new topics at A Level such as Contemporary Hinduism and Ethical debates in Hinduism.
      • We have revised the assessment objectives and increased the proportion of AO2 Analysis and evaluation at both Cambridge International AS Level and A Level.
      • To help learners know what’s expected of them in the exam, we have added a list of command words and their meanings.

      How has the assessment changed?

      • The assessment now includes four papers (two at AS and two at A Level). We have also added different question styles to help learners demonstrate what they know and can do.
      • Learners will answer two questions from each paper, one from each section. There will be a choice of questions.
      • The generic marking grids for questions have been revised in line with the assessment objectives.

      When do these changes take place?

      The updated syllabus will be assessed in the November exam series. Please see the 2021-2023 syllabus above for full details.

  • Teaching and learning resources
    • Coming soon

      We are developing support to help you plan and teach the 2021-2023 syllabus.

      Support

      Look out for a scheme of work to support this syllabus from June 2019 available from our School Support Hub.

Subscribe to syllabus updates

Important notices

  • Syllabus availability
    • From 2021 this syllabus will only be available in administrative zones 3 and 4. Check the administrative zone for your school.

  • Withdrawal of Cambridge International AS & A Level Hinduism (9487)
    • We are withdrawing Cambridge International AS & A Level Hinduism (9487) from the November exam series. This syllabus has previously used the codes 8058 and 9014. The last November exam series will be in 2023. From 2023, we will only offer this syllabus in the June exam series within administrative zones 3 and 4. Check the administrative zones for your school. We communicated this series withdrawal decision to schools in June 2021.

  • Grade descriptions
    • For some subjects, the syllabus states that Grade Descriptions will be made available after first assessment in 2020, 2021 or 2022.

      Publication of grade descriptions was paused in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the temporary changes to the grading standard that have been in place for 2020, 2021 and 2022. We are currently working on producing these grade descriptions. This work will make sure that grade descriptions reflect examination outcomes appropriately and are based on the more stable grading standard that we expect to have in place for June 2023 onwards.

  • Front covers
    • From 2020, we have made some changes to the wording and layout of the front covers of our question papers to reflect the new Cambridge International branding and to make instructions clearer for candidates - learn more.

School Support Hub

We provide a wide range of support so that teachers can give their learners the best possible preparation for Cambridge programmes and qualifications. For teachers at registered Cambridge schools, support materials for specific syllabuses are available from the School Support Hub (username and password required).

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