RI 2024 Y5 GP Infopack Social Issues

RI GP Y5 2024 | Social Issues FOR INTERNAL CIRCULATION ONLY 1 of 85 RAFFLES INSTITUTION YEAR 5 GENERAL PAPER - STUDENTS’ INFORMATION PACKAGE 2024 SOCIAL ISSUES EUs Pages • Enduring Understandings and Essential Questions • Past Year Examination Questions 2 3-8 Section A: Gender Issues 1 To hope or doubt: The state of women’s progress in the world 2-6 9-12 2 How the fight for gender equality is changing 1-4, 6 13-14 3 The unequal, unnoticed life of a female worker 1-4, 6 15-18 4 Do transgender athletes have an unfair advantage? 1-4 19-22 5 Only half of women in developing world in charge of their own bodies 1-4 23-24 Section B: Issues to do with Family, Marriage & Parenting 6 The nuclear family was a mistake 3 & 6 25-28 7 The nuclear family is no mistake 3 & 6 29-31 8 Government does not encourage single parenthood as a lifestyle choice 1 -3, 5-6 32-34 9 Paternity leave has long-lasting benefits. So why don’t more American men take it? 3 & 6 35-37 10 Family members should not have to bear burden of looking after dementia patients alone 1-4 & 6 38-40 Section C: Issues to do with Social Mobility & Inequality 11 Rethink governance and institutions to tackle poverty and inequality 2, 5 & 6 41-45 12 Inequality and social good: A new culture of shared wellbeing requires reforming a system that promotes individualism 3-6 46-51 13 Soul searching required to solve Singapore’s foreign workers problem 2, 3, 5 & 6 51-56 14 America’s Cities Are Staggeringly Unequal 2 & 3 56-59 15 Education reforms, and more, needed to fix inequality 2-4 59-63 16 ”Good enough”: The risks and responsibilities of choosing a primary school 3-6 63-68 Section D: Inter-Generational Issues & Ageing 17 Many Millennials are worse off than their parents – a first in American history 2, 4-6 68-71 18 Pandemials – Youth in an Age of Lost Opportunity 2-4 & 6 71-75 19 What is ‘lying flat’, and why are Chinese officials standing up to it? 2, 5 & 6 76-79 20 South Korea is No Country for Young People 1-4 & 6 80-82 21 The faces and insecurities of Singapore’s elderly working poor 1-3, 5-6 83-85

RI GP Y5 2024 | Social Issues FOR INTERNAL CIRCULATION ONLY 2 of 85 SOCIAL ISSUES Enduring Understanding(s): What will students understand as a result of this unit? 1. What is defined as a social problem differs by context (e.g. time, place, political and legal systems). 2. Social problems are sociocultural, political and economic phenomena that prevent a significant number of societal participants from developing and using their full potential. 3. Social and political structures and arrangements determine the underlying features of the social world and play a role in perpetuating or mitigating social problems. 4. The politico-economic system of a society, from which social problems emanate, is a result of historical events and conscious choices by those with power and influence. 5. There may be a discrepancy between what a country is supposed to stand for and the actual conditions in which many of its people live. 6. Individuals are products of their social and political environment. Who they are, what they believe, what they strive for, and how they feel about themselves are all dependent on other people, the society in which they live, and the politics that govern their lives. Essential Questions: What are the essential questions of this unit? 1. What are the causes and consequences of social problems? 2. How significant is human agency in shaping, resisting, challenging and sometimes completely changing the social structures and institutions that affect their lives? 3. Why do governments prioritise some social problems to address over others? 4. Can social problems be effectively mitigated or eliminated?

RI GP Y5 2024 | Social Issues FOR INTERNAL CIRCULATION ONLY 3 of 85 Essay Questions on Social Issues (2010 – 2023) FAMILY & MARRIAGE Cambridge 2019 Should both parents take equal responsibility for raising their children? Cambridge 2015 ‘Parents have no right to impose their own values and beliefs on their children.’ Discuss. Cambridge 2014 ‘Traditional marriage is an outdated concept.’ To what extent is this true of your society? Y6 CT 2023 ‘It is harder than ever to keep children safe in today’s world.’ Comment. Y5 CT 2023 ‘The family no longer plays an influential role in raising teenagers.’ How true is this of your society? Y6 Timed Practice 2023 ‘Young people today have little interest in traditional marriage.’ How true is this of your society? Y5 CT 2022 ‘The traditional family has lost its importance today.’ Discuss. Y6 Timed Practice 2021 Is the traditional family still relevant in your society today? Y5 Promo 2021 ‘Modern parenting does not prepare children for the future.’ How far is this true? Y5 CT 2021 Is marriage still an attractive option in today’s world? Y5 Promo 2020 ‘Parents have too much control over their children’s lives.’ How far is this true of your society today? Y5 CT 2018 ‘The idea of marriage is outdated in modern society.’ Discuss. Y5 Promo 2015 In the family, should the most important role of a man be that of a breadwinner? Y6 CT2 2014 ‘Good parenting has little to do with how children turn out.’ Comment with reference to your society. Y6 CT2 2013 Is marriage still relevant in modern society? Y6 CT1 2013 ‘Modern life is not conducive to the survival of the family.’ Comment. Y6 CT2 2012 “The traditional institution of marriage is in decline.” Is this a cause for concern? Y5 CT 2011 ‘The family has suffered at the expense of economic growth in Singapore.’ How far do you agree? Y6 Prelim 2011 ‘An unhappy marriage is best resolved with a divorce.’ Comment. Y5 CT 2010 Is monogamy unrealistic in modern society? GENDER Cambridge 2016 Evaluate the claim that equality of opportunity for females is a desirable, but unrealistic, goal. Cambridge 2014 Consider the view that some careers are more suited to one gender than the other. Cambridge 2011 The world would be a better place if women had a greater say in politics. To what extent do you agree? Y6 CT 2023 To what extent is gender inequality a significant issue in the world of science? Y5 CT 2023 To what extent are different genders valued equally in today’s society? Y6 Timed Practice 2022 Consider the view that we are moving further away from, rather than moving closer to, achieving gender equality. Y6 Timed Practice 2021 How far would you agree that technological progress has done more harm than good for gender equality? Y5 CT 2021 ‘It is a woman’s world today.’ How far do you agree? Y5 Common Essay Assignment 2021 ‘We can never close the gender divide.’ Do you agree? Y5 Timed Practice 2020 Consider the view that gender equality is a desirable but unrealistic goal. Y6 CT1 2019 ‘Success comes more easily to men than women.’ To what extent is this true of your society?

RI GP Y5 2024 | Social Issues FOR INTERNAL CIRCULATION ONLY 4 of 85 Y5 Promo 2018 Can we ever achieve gender equality in sport? Y6 CT 2018 Assess the view that women have been unfairly treated today. Y6 Prelim 2018 “Women have never had it better.” How true is this? Y5 Promo 2017 “It is increasingly difficult to be a man today.” Discuss. Y6 CT1 2014 ‘No country can really develop unless its women are educated.’ Do you agree? Y5 Promo 2013 ‘Women are a decorative sex.’ (Oscar Wilde) How far is this still an issue today? Y6 CT2 2012 Does it matter that the leaders of most countries are men? Y6 Prelims 2012 ‘Women are not suitable for politics.’ To what extent is this true? Y5 CT1 2012 ‘The pursuit of gender equality will do more harm than good.’ Discuss. Promo 2011 ‘It is increasingly challenging to be a man today.’ Do you agree? Y6 CT1 2011 ‘A nation cannot really progress until it empo