2204 COMBINED HUMANITIES O LEVEL SOCIAL STUDIES ELECTIVE SYLLABUS (2015)

SOCIAL STUDIES
GCE ORDINARY LEVEL
(Syllabus 2204)

AIMS
The syllabus is organised around two core ideas Being Rooted and Living Global. Through these two
ideas, the syllabus aims to develop our students into well-informed, responsible citizens with a sense of
national identity and a global perspective. The aims of the syllabus are to enable students to:

understand issues that affect the socio-economic development, the governance and the future of
Singapore

learn from the experiences of other countries to build and sustain a politically viable, socially cohesive
and economically vibrant Singapore

develop thinking and process skills which are essential for lifelong and independent learning

have a deep sense of shared destiny and national identity

develop into citizens who have empathy towards others and will participate responsibly and sensibly in
a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-religious society

develop into responsible citizens with a global perspective.

To achieve these aims, it is important that students develop competence in three areas: knowledge and
understanding, skills and processes, values and attitudes. The specific abilities to be developed are:
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING

to study the past through varied socio-cultural perspectives over time and space, and understand its
relevance to the present through lessons learnt

to understand the structure of government and its functions in a contemporary society and recognise the
importance of good governance and the roles and responsibilities of effective citizens

to understand the dynamics of living in a multi-ethnic environment and recognise the significance of
social cohesion within a diverse society

to understand that the scarcity of resources affects the ways in which resources are allocated and
managed, and recognise that informed decisions are made based on the choices available

to understand the global interconnectedness and interdependence among world societies and
recognise the need to adapt to the changing world environment.

2204 COMBINED HUMANITIES O LEVEL SOCIAL STUDIES ELECTIVE SYLLABUS (2015)

SKILLS AND PROCESSES

to imbue students with the skills of critical enquiry, investigation and reflection

to develop critical and creative thinking in students. Critical thinking skills essentially refer to the skills of
constructing explanation, and evaluating and interpreting information through making inferences,
analysing evidence, comparing and contrasting views, and drawing well-reasoned and substantiated
conclusions. Creative thinking skills refer to identifying unique connections among ideas and suggesting
insightful approaches to questions and issues

to develop students to be information-literate and adept in process skills so that they will be able to
acquire, manage and use information creatively and effectively

to envisage possible and preferred futures and evaluate alternatives.

VALUES AND ATTITUDES

to examine issues in society, locally and globally, so that students will:

appreciate the implications of various decisions, actions and relationships
respect and value diverse perspectives and cultural and historical backgrounds of people, and work
towards peaceful relationships
appreciate the importance of living in an interdependent community with increasing global
connections
recognise the value of participating as ethical, active and informed citizens in a democratic society
within a global community
experience and appreciate their ability to influence the present and the future.

2204 COMBINED HUMANITIES O LEVEL SOCIAL STUDIES ELECTIVE SYLLABUS (2015)

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF THE UPPER SECONDARY

GCE O LEVEL SOCIAL STUDIES SYLLABUS

Facing
Challenges
and Change

Sustaining
Economic
Development

Managing
International
Relations

STUDENTS

Conflict and
Harmony in
Multi-Ethnic
Societies

Understanding
Governance

Singapore as a
Nation in the
World

1. At the heart of the framework is the student, the focus of the syllabus. Encircling the student are
two core ideas Being Rooted and Living Global, around which the syllabus is built. These core
ideas are derived from the aims and objectives of the syllabus which are aligned with the six National
Education (NE) messages.
2. The twin core ideas are delivered through six themes reflecting the topics from disciplines such as
History, Geography, Political Science, Sociology and Economics. The three themes that deliver the
idea of Being Rooted are positioned in the lower half of the circle. The first theme, Singapore as a
Nation in the World, gives an overview of the challenges faced by newly independent nations. This
theme provides a backdrop for the discussion of the inherent challenges faced by small nations like
Singapore. It also sets the stage for understanding the subsequent themes. This theme is flanked by
the other two themes, Understanding Governance and Conflict and Harmony in Multi-Ethnic
Societies, which examine the importance of good governance in sustaining a socially cohesive,
multi-ethnic nation.

2204 COMBINED HUMANITIES O LEVEL SOCIAL STUDIES ELECTIVE SYLLABUS (2015)

3. The three themes that develop the core idea of Living Global are positioned in the upper half of the
circle. Using Singapore as an example, the two themes Managing International Relations and
Sustaining Economic Development address issues such as providing for the defence and security of
nations and how friendships are cultivated among nations of the world, to build a politically stable
and economically vibrant global community. The final theme, Facing Challenges and Change,
reviews and integrates the topics in the other five themes. This theme looks at how nations
overcome challenges to survive through the study of the rise and fall of Venice.
4. For each of the six themes, learning outcomes are defined in terms of knowledge, skills, values and
attitudes. The intended learning outcomes shown in the outermost circle frame the syllabus content
and the six themes of the syllabus.

ASSESSMENT OBJECTIVES
The assessment objectives are:
Objective 1: Knowledge
Candidates should be able to:

demonstrate relevant factual knowledge.

Objective 2: Constructing Explanations

Candidates should be able to:

demonstrate an understanding of concepts and terms appropriate to the syllabus

select, organise and apply the concepts, terms and facts learnt

make judgements, recommendations and decisions.

Objective 3: Interpreting and Evaluating Sources/Given Information

Candidates should be able to:

comprehend and extract relevant information

draw references from given information

analyse and evaluate evidence

compare and contrast different views

distinguish between fact, opinion and judgement

recognise values and detect bias

draw conclusions based on reasoned consideration of evidence and arguments.

2204 COMBINED HUMANITIES O LEVEL SOCIAL STUDIES ELECTIVE SYLLABUS (2015)

O LEVEL ASSESSMENT SPECIFICATION GRID FOR SOCIAL STUDIES

Assessment Objective

Weighting

AO1 + AO2

15%

AO1 + AO3

35%

Total

50%

Note: Objective 1 is inevitably part of the testing of Objectives 2 and 3.

ASSESSMENT FORMAT
O LEVEL SOCIAL STUDIES

One paper of 1 hour 45 minutes.

Paper comprises 2 sections:

Section A: (35 marks)
One source-based case study testing Assessment Objectives 1 and 3
Section B: (15 marks)
Structured-essay questions testing Assessment Objectives 1 and 2
Candidates answer 1 out of 3 questions set

Candidates are required to answer the compulsory source-based case study from Section A and
1 structured-essay question from Section B.

Note: Theme One, Singapore as a Nation in the World, is non-examinable. No questions will be set on
this theme in the examinations.
Source-Based Case Study
The compulsory source-based case study can be set on any of the following three themes:

Understanding Governance

Conflict and Harmony in Multi-Ethnic Societies

Managing International Relations

Candidates will be expected to have an understanding of the ways in which sources may be evaluated.
Questions could be set on case studies and examples covered in the syllabus content as well as case
studies and examples not covered in the syllabus content, but related to these three themes in the syllabus
and requiring the skills and concepts taught during the course. For case studies and examples not covered
in the syllabus content, sufficient background information will be provided to candidates.
Various types of sources such as textual, statistical/numerical and graphical/pictorial may be used.
Candidates are expected to use their knowledge, skills and conceptual understanding developed during the
course to help them use the given sources to answer the questions.

2204 COMBINED HUMANITIES O LEVEL SOCIAL STUDIES ELECTIVE SYLLABUS (2015)

Construction of O Level Source-Based Case Study

No more than six sources may be set for the source-based case study. One or more differing accounts of the
same topic or issue might be set, showing different views as time progresses or in communicating to different
audiences, or one or more accounts on the same theme.
No individual source will exceed 150 words. Sources may be simplified where necessary. Obscure terms
(other than those which should be known to those who have studied the syllabus) will be annotated.
Each case study will have five questions testing Objectives 1 and 3. Each question will be worth between 5
and 8 marks. No more than two questions will be worth 8 marks each. The weighting for each question will
be indicated in brackets. Questions will involve higher-order thinking skills as defined in the Assessment
Objectives. Answers to the open-ended questions will be graded according to the coherence and
consistency of the argument. Credit will be given to points offered by candidates that are not on the
suggested marking schemes as long as the points are logical and sufficiently substantiated. A Levels of
Response Marking Scheme (LORMS) will be used to assess candidates answers.
Construction of O Level Structured-Essay Questions
Three structured-essay questions will be set, each on a different theme in the syllabus. The questions set
may be on the same theme as the source-based case study, but not on the same topic. Candidates have to
answer one structured-essay question which tests Objectives 1 and 2. Each structured-essay question
comprises two sub-questions:

SubQuestion

Skills Tested

Mark Allocation

Constructing explanation of a given factor of a/an topic/issue

Constructing explanation of two other factors (of candidates own

choice) of the same topic/issue as in part (a)

10

Making judgement on the relative importance of the two chosen

factors

The weighting for each sub-question will be indicated within brackets. A Levels of Response Marking
Scheme (LORMS) will be used to assess candidates answers.