Programmes & Qualifications

Cambridge O Level Sociology (2251)

Syllabus overview

Available in Administrative zones 3 and 4

Through the Cambridge O Level Sociology syllabus, learners explore aspects of social relationships, processes and structures and develop a greater understanding of human societies and the role of continuity and change in social life.

The syllabus:

develops learners’ critical evaluation of different social, economic and political structures
builds understanding of sociological research methods
develops learners’ ability to assess different forms of information and evidence
can be related to schools’ local context, helping learners to use the knowledge and understanding acquired to analyse their own lives.

Syllabuses

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

Syllabus updates

Syllabus changes
- We have revised and rewritten the subject content to bring it up to date for our global schools.
  
  The new content descriptions are more specific, making it clearer what teachers need to cover.
  
  We have updated the assessment to better meet the needs of our schools and learners, with changes to the number of marks, the style of some questions and the mark schemes.
  
  For full details of the changes, please see the 2025-2027 syllabus above.
Teaching and learning resources
- Coming soon
  
  We are developing a comprehensive range of resources to help teachers deliver this updated syllabus.
  
  We aim to provide a scheme of work and other relevant classroom resources. Example Candidate Responses will be available following the first examination in 2025. Visit the School Support Hub from June 2025 onwards for details.
  
  Endorsed resources
  
  View the latest resources that are being developed by our Endorsement Partners for the Cambridge IGCSE Sociology syllabus (0495).
  
  Cambridge IGCSE™ and O Level Sociology 2nd Edition (Cambridge University Press)
  
  Introduce learners to a wide range of sociological concepts to get them thinking like sociologists. Global case studies on topics such as identity and culture help learners develop key skills. Digital teacher’s resource also available.
  
  Read more on the Cambridge University Press website

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Important notices

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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