Social Studies
The Social Studies domain tests how candidates use social-science ideas to explain Maltese and wider social life, not merely to recall definitions. Questions typically ask you to interpret a short source, identify stakeholders and values, explain causes and consequences, and propose a reasoned response using concepts such as socialisation, culture, identity, inequality, citizenship, sustainability and interdependence.
Core concepts
- Socialisation is the lifelong process through which family, school, peers, media, religion and work transmit norms, values and roles. It shapes identity but does not fully determine behaviour.
- Social institutions - family, education, religion, economy, media and political institutions - meet needs and distribute power and resources. Local councils, Parliament and the EU are relevant Maltese political structures.
- Citizenship combines rights with responsibilities: voting, paying taxes, obeying law, participating in community life and protecting others’ rights.
- Sustainability requires balancing environmental, social and economic costs, not treating them as separate issues.
- Evidence skills matter: distinguish fact from opinion, identify bias and interest, check sample size, and recognise that correlation is not causation.
Worked example
A local council proposes closing a village square to cars. You are asked for two social effects, one economic effect, and which source is more reliable: a council consultation report or an anonymous social-media poll.
Reasoning: identify stakeholders first - residents, traders, commuters, visitors, people with disabilities. Social effects could be safer public space and stronger community interaction; an economic effect could be changed footfall for shops. For reliability, compare method, sample and interest: the consultation may state how participants were selected, while the anonymous poll may be self-selecting and unverifiable. Conclude that the report is likely more reliable, while noting that its commissioning body has an interest in the outcome.
Traps that cost marks
Describing a situation when the question says explain - always give a mechanism or consequence. Treating a source as neutral because it contains numbers. Confusing correlation with cause. Listing points without linking them to the question’s named concept or Maltese context. Ignoring groups affected by a decision.