SOAS teacher CPD workshop for A-Level politics teachers

This CPD workshop for A-level Politics teachers will focus on political ideas and concepts, specifically the sub-topics of "Rights, Liberty and Equality" as well as "Power, Authority, Legitimacy."  

Primarily this will help teachers with the (OCR) A-Level Politics curriculum modules 'Political Ideas and Concepts in Practice' but can also support the teaching of 'Political Ideas' (AQA).  

Throughout the workshop, SOAS academics will be locating these ideas and key concepts in different contexts - historically and in global politics - and will discuss different meanings and their political relevance. Using their expertise from a range of thematic specialisms and across the fields of international relations, comparative politics, and political theory, they will share their pedagogical approaches and experiences of teaching these topics to undergraduate students.  Academics will engage in discussion with teachers over strategies to implement inclusive teaching of these topics through the curriculum.

Dr Felix Berenskötter will cover the concepts of Power and Authority, also touching on how they are expressed in and through the state, nation, sovereignty, and globalisation. He will discuss the importance, and the challenges, of understanding these concepts as both categories of analysis and categories of political practice (a central theme of his forthcoming textbook 'Concepts in International Relations', SAGE 2025).

Dr Manjeet Ramgotra and Dr Alexej Ulbricht will cover the concepts of Right, Liberty, and Equality, also making connections to democratic theory. In addition to addressing the link between ideas and practices, they will focus on how to deal with the Eurocentric legacy of those concepts, how to teach this legacy critically, and how to make space for non-Western approaches. Dr Mangotra will also draw on her experience as editor of the textbook 'Rethinking Political Thinkers' (Oxford University Press 2023).

The session will take place at SOAS campus. However any teachers unable to come to SOAS may join online. To register your interest for this event, please complete the application form by 9am on Tuesday 25 June.