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AQA · GCSE · Sociology

Free AQA GCSE Sociology
Practice Paper

8 mixed-difficulty practice questions in the style of real AQA GCSE papers — answers, mark-scheme-style explanations, and the official exam structure all on one page.

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What the real AQA GCSE Sociology paper looks like

Paper 1
Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification.
Paper 2
Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification.
Paper 3
Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions.
Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Grading: Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass.

Mini practice paper: 8 questions

Mixed-difficulty questions from across the Sociology syllabus. Tap "Show answer" after each to check yourself.

Q1 · Difficulty 1/3

Which of these questions is a sociologist most likely to investigate?

  1. How do nerve cells pass signals across a synapse?
  2. What chemical reactions take place during digestion?
  3. Why do children from poorer families leave school with fewer qualifications?
  4. Why do rock layers form over millions of years?
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — Why do children from poorer families leave school with fewer qualifications?
Award 1 mark. Sociology studies society and social behaviour, such as how class affects education. Nerve signals and digestion are biology, and rock formation is geology.
Q2 · Difficulty 1/3

What is a pilot study?

  1. A small trial run carried out before the main research
  2. A study that follows the same people for many years
  3. A detailed study of a single school or family
  4. A study that repeats someone else’s research exactly
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — A small trial run carried out before the main research
Award 1 mark. A pilot study tests the questions, timing and procedures so that problems can be fixed before the full study. Following people for years is a longitudinal study.
Q3 · Difficulty 1/3

In Marx’s theory, who are the bourgeoisie?

  1. The class that owns the means of production
  2. The class that sells its labour for wages
  3. The group of people with the highest status
  4. The group of people who run political parties
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — The class that owns the means of production
Award 1 mark. The bourgeoisie own factories, land and businesses. The class that sells its labour is the proletariat; high status and running political parties are Weber’s ideas of status and party, not Marx’s definition of class.
Q4 · Difficulty 1/3

Which of these is an example of formal education?

  1. Learning to cook by watching a parent at home
  2. Picking up slang from friends at the weekend
  3. Learning about a hobby from online videos
  4. A GCSE lesson taught in a school classroom
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — A GCSE lesson taught in a school classroom
Award 1 mark. Formal education is organised and assessed, usually in schools and colleges. Learning from parents, friends and videos is informal education, which is part of socialisation.
Q5 · Difficulty 1/3

Which four functions of the family did Murdock describe as universal?

  1. Sexual, reproductive, economic and educational
  2. Political, religious, legal and military
  3. Medical, financial, emotional and moral
  4. Social, cultural, geographical and historical
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Sexual, reproductive, economic and educational
Award 1 mark. Murdock claimed these four are found in families in every society; the specification lists them as the functions of families. Political, legal, medical and religious roles are carried out mainly by other institutions.
Q6 · Difficulty 1/3

According to Durkheim, what is a key function of education?

  1. Transmitting society’s shared norms and values
  2. Ensuring the bourgeoisie keep their advantages
  3. Allowing pupils to reject school rules
  4. Replacing the family as the main agent of care
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — Transmitting society’s shared norms and values
Award 1 mark. Durkheim said education creates social solidarity by passing on shared values. Keeping bourgeois advantage is a Marxist claim, rejecting rules describes counter-school cultures, and school does not replace family care.
Q7 · Difficulty 1/3

What is meant by cohabitation?

  1. Marrying someone from the same religion
  2. Living together as a couple without being married
  3. Living with grandparents to share childcare
  4. Separating from a partner without a divorce
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — Living together as a couple without being married
Award 1 mark. Cohabitation has become far more common and socially accepted since the 1970s, partly because of secularisation and changing attitudes.
Q8 · Difficulty 1/3

What is a sampling frame?

  1. The time period during which a survey is carried out
  2. The number of people the researcher wants to interview
  3. A list of all the members of the population from which a sample is drawn
  4. The set of questions used in every interview
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — A list of all the members of the population from which a sample is drawn
Award 1 mark. Examples include a school register or the electoral roll. It is not the time period of a survey, the number of people wanted (the sample size) or the set of questions (the interview schedule). A sample can only be representative if the frame covers the whole population.
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AQA GCSE Sociology FAQ

What does the AQA GCSE Sociology exam look like?
The AQA GCSE Sociology exam is structured across 3 components. Paper 1: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification. Paper 2: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification. Paper 3: Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions. Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Can I download a free AQA GCSE Sociology past paper?
Real AQA past papers are published directly by AQA on their official website. Kramizo doesn't redistribute copyrighted past papers, but we do generate free AI-written practice papers in the exact same style — same command words, same difficulty tier, same mark conventions. Use this practice paper as warm-up, then time yourself on official past papers before exam day.
How is AQA GCSE Sociology graded?
Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass. Kramizo's practice questions are tagged with difficulty 1-3 mapping roughly to the lower, middle, and top grade boundaries you'll encounter in the real exam.