course specification (undergraduate) part a: course definition · race relations amendment act...

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Course Specification (Undergraduate) Part A: Course Definition

School (For integrated joints this should be the managing School)

Faculty of Social Sciences (FoSS)

For Integrated Joint Courses only State the subject areas and schools involved.

Course Code

GK008T01UV

Name of Final Award / Course

BA(Hons) Law and Social Sciences

Name(s) of any Intermediate Award(s)

BA Law and Social Sciences DipHE Law and Social Sciences CertHE Law and Social Sciences Foundation Year Law and Social Sciences

Course type (Please tick )

U/G Specialist HND / HNC

U/G Integrated Joint Integrated Masters

Foundation Degree Other

Previous Course Title (if this replaces a course)

BA (Hons) Law, Social Sciences and Communication Studies

UCAS/other agency code(s)

ML91

Closed course

No

Source of Funding (Please tick or name other)

HEFCE NHS TTA

Other:

Mode of delivery

Tick all that apply:

Full-time Part-time (evening)

Sandwich Part-time (day/evening)

Block Delivery Distance Learning

Part-time (day) CPD

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Location of delivery

Tick all that apply:

City Burton

Compton Collaborative (complete next section below)

Walsall

Telford

Name of Collaborative Institution

Type of Collaborative

Institution (Insert appropriate code from below)

Collaborative arrangements

(Choose from the three options

below)

Proposed start date

None

Collaborative arrangements options:

1. Off-site delivery by UoW staff 2. Off-site delivery by Partner staff (UK only)

3. Support delivery by UoW and Partner staff

HESA codes for type of Collaborative Institution(s):

Large private company 1000 NHS 6000

Small or medium enterprise (SME) 2000 Other public sector organisation 7000

Overseas education provider 3000 Charity 8000

Other UK education provider - private 4000 Other 9000

Other UK education provider – public sector

5000 Multiple collaborators of different types

9900

Dates for student intakes for non-standard semester dates Complete the following table for proposed intakes - N.B. e.g. Intake 1: Nov. 2010.

Start date End date Location of delivery Notes

Intake 1: Sept 14

Intake 2: Jan 15 Intake 2 to join intake 1

Intake 3: Sep 14

Academic Regulations

Where it is proposed that the course be exempt from any University Regulations, include the details here (please note: If the proposed course regulations deviate in any way from current University Academic Regulations then a rationale must be presented to the Academic Registrar for approval by Academic Regulations Sub-Committee before validation proceeds).

Assessment Board & External Examiner arrangements

Name the Award Board for this Course To be confirmed

Name the Module Results Boards that will consider module results from this Course

Are you proposing to use existing external examiner arrangements? If so, state the name of the External Examiner and the names of the assessment boards to which they are currently appointed.

No

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New and/or additional external examiner required (include any implications for existing module results and award board structures)

Yes, for Foundation Year/Level 3 modules.

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Course Specification (Undergraduate) Part B: Course Specification

1 Title of Course (Final award title)

BA(Hons) Law and Social Sciences

Course Code GK008T01UV

2 Awarding Institution University of Wolverhampton

3 Educational aims of the course This section is to be written for students and potential students as it will be used in marketing materials and course guides.

The course is designed to offer, to applicants who do not have the required qualifications, a programme which will equip them with a robust toolkit of the academic, digital and personal skills required for successful study in higher education, and also with an understanding of, and an insight into, a range of disciplines in the social sciences and law. In the Foundation Year (Level 3) they will develop their ability to gain the most out of structured in-class study, and also to manage and evaluate their own independent learning. This wide range of transferable skills is of immense value in both undergraduate study and graduate employment. Students will study and research the social, legal and cultural environment and notions of identity and social engagement at a local, national and global level. Successful completion will allow progression onto the BA(Hons) Law and Social Sciences, focusing on study of two disciplines, or alternatively onto one of the other specialist or integrated joint undergraduate courses offered by the Faculty of Social Sciences.

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Reference points To include consideration of professional body requirements and QAA Subject Benchmarks. This section is to inform students of the national reference points for their course and will be made available through the Course Guide.

Framework for Higher Education Qualification (2008) – “FHEQ” DCSF - Information for Higher Education: Extended Project QAA Subject Benchmark Statements Law Sociology Politics University Learning and Teaching Strategy University Blended Learning Strategy Other reference points:

Special Educational Needs Disability Act 2001 (SENDA)

Race Relations Amendment Act (RRAA)

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Professional, Statutory & Regulatory Bodies (PSRB) This section is to be written for information of the student and should be made available through the Course Guide. Give name of PSRB and outline the level of accreditation and relationship with the PSRB and any specific details relating to the implications of Professional requirements that students need to be informed of, such as requirements for attendance and professional practice; or state NOT APPLICABLE.

NOT APPLICABLE

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6 Entry requirements To include any provision for APL and English competency standards.

There are no formal entry requirements for this course. However, applicants will be expected, through an interview and written description of their previous experience and study/career goals, to demonstrate an ability to benefit from, and a commitment and motivation for, higher education.

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Employment and further training opportunities Explain the range of potential careers or further study that may be accessible to successful students. This information should reflect that published in the prospectus and on UCAS.

Students will benefit from the opportunity to evaluate their own strengths and weaknesses in both an academic and workplace environment, and gauge their readiness for study, prior to embarking on Level 4 (undergraduate) study. You will gain advice from the university's specialist Careers and Employment Service advisors on career planning. In consultation with academic staff you will identify a suitable study route to achieve your personal and career goals With progression onto BA (Hons) Law and Social Sciences or another suitable undergraduate programme, successful students will gain graduate level qualifications from which graduates have gone on to a variety of destinations. Some have taken up a career in teaching, local government or the private sector, some have set up their own business, others have pursued further studies at Masters level.

8. Course Learning Outcomes (Maximum of six) – Complete the sections below as appropriate. If the course also has interim awards either accept the generic learning outcomes listed or delete them and write course specific learning outcomes. If this course does not include some or all of the interim awards listed, they should be noted as N/A.

Foundation Year

At the end of the Foundation Year you, the student, will be able to:

1. develop and apply the research, writing, numerical, digital and personal skills to embark on an undergraduate course and effectively manage your studies

2. evaluate your own strengths and weaknesses as a learner, in order to make decisions

about your continued learning and career development, and feel confident that you can make those choices and carry them through

3. demonstrate a basic understanding of the perspective that each academic discipline

in the brings to a range of social issues at a local, national and global level, and identify those disciplines which are of greatest interest to you.

4. Demonstrate an awareness of educational and employability developmental

opportunities open to you as a potential undergraduate, not only for academic skills development and career planning but also including Erasmus exchange, volunteering and work-placement, and partnerships with employers

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Certificate in Higher Education

For the award of CertHE you, the student, will be able to:

1. Demonstrate knowledge of the underlying concepts and principles associated with your area(s) of study

2. Demonstrate an ability to present and interpret information, in order to develop lines of argument and make sound judgements in accordance with basic theories and concepts of your subject(s) of study

Diploma in Higher Education

For the award of DipHE you, the student, will be able to:

1. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the well-established principles of your area(s) of study, and of the way in which those principles have developed with an understanding of the limits of your knowledge, and how this influences analyses and interpretations based on that knowledge.

2. Demonstrate the ability to apply underlying concepts and principles outside the context in which they were first studied, including, where appropriate, the application of those principles in an employment context

3. Use a range of established techniques to initiate and undertake analysis of information, and to propose solutions to problems arising from that analysis

4. Effectively communicate information, arguments and analysis in a variety of forms.

BA Non-Honours Degree

At the completion of 60 level 6 credits you, the student, will be able to:

1. Demonstrate a systematic understanding of the main concepts, theories and research approaches utilised in this field of study, and how they relate to current issues and scholarship.

2. (Under guidance, and independently) employ established techniques of research, analysis and problem-solving, and provide reasoned argument and evaluation for your position.

BA Honours Degree

At the end of level 6 you, the student, will be able to:

1. Demonstrate a systematic understanding of the main concepts, theories and research approaches utilised in this field of study, and how they relate to current issues and scholarship.

2. (Under guidance, and independently) employ established techniques of research, analysis and problem-solving, and provide reasoned argument and evaluation for your position.

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Indicative Course Structure Each box represents a 20 credit module unless you indicate otherwise. Module titles should be meaningful and indicate the focus of the module. Try to avoid numbering modules e.g. Research 1, Research 2 etc. Within each row include the module code, module title and credit value of each module. Add an additional row for each option module.

Level 3 (0)

Semester 1 Semester 2

C 3GK003: Academic Skills 20 C 3GK004: The World at Work: Careers & Personal Development

20

C 3GK005: Critical Thinking

20 C 3GK006: Extended Project 20

C 3GK007: Wolverhampton and its people

20 C 3GK008: Culture and nationality in conflict

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*Please note that following L3 study, it is intended that students will transfer onto their chosen course of study.

Level 4 (1)


O 4GK006 Success in Higher Education

20 O 4SL011 Volunteering in the Community

20

O 4GK001 Raising Inter Cultural Awareness

20 O 4HU002 Popular Culture 20

O 4PO005 Campaigning and Citizenship

20 O 4PO006 Contemporary Capitalism

20

O 4MZ001 Media, Culture and Society

20 O 4MZ009 Key Concepts in Media, Communication and Cultural Studies

20

O 4EN001 Reading Literature 20 O 4EN004 Literature and Identity

20

O 4PO003: British Politics 20 O 4PO002: Introduction to International Relations

20

O 4LW005 Law of Torts 1 20 O 4CJ002 Criminal Justice 20

O 4CJ003 Thinking about Crime

20 O 4LW001 Advanced Law of Torts

20

O 4SA007 Introduction to Social Policy

20 O 4SA008 Contemporary Social Policy

20

O 4WL002 Basic Language 20 O 4WL002 Basic Language 20

O 4WL003 Elementary Language

20 O 4WL003 Elementary Language

20

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Level 5 (2)


O 5HU002 Popular Texts 20 O 5MZ006 Research Methods

20

O 5PO006 Contemporary Britain

20 O 5SL008 Volunteering in Action

20

O 5MZ003 Investigating Culture

20 O 5MZ005 British Cultural Experiences: Unity and Diversity.

20

O 5EN001 Critical Theory/ Textual Practice

20 O 5EN003 Women’s Writing: Reading Gender

20

O 5SA007 Paying for Welfare 20 O 5SA009 Communities in Policy

20

O 5PO003 Contemporary Political Ideologies

20 O 5PO004 World Politics 20

O 5LW002 Criminal Law 20 O 5CJ005 Punishment and Society

20

O 5CJ002 Theories of Crime 20 O 5LW004 Advanced Criminal Law

20

O 5WL001 Basic Language

20 O 5LW007 Professional Skills and Ethics

20


20 O 5WL001 Basic Language

20


20

Level 6 (3)


O 6SA004 Independent Project Social Policy

20 O 6EN013 Independent Study

20

O 6PO004 Independent Project Politics

20 O 6MZ002 Independent Study - Written Project: Media, Communications, Cultural Studies, Broadcast Journalism and Public Relations

20

O 6LW002 Research Methods and Project in Criminology, Criminal Justice or Law

20 O 6SA004 Independent Project Social Policy

20

O 6PO004 Independent Project Politics

20

O 6LW002 Research Methods and Project in Criminology, Criminal Justice or Law

20

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O 6MZ012 Global Media / Global Culture

20 O 6CJ002 Prisons and Prisoners

20

O 6SA005 Policy Making in Britain

20

O 6MZ017 Exploring Experience

20 O 6MZ015 Television Soap Opera

20

O 6EN004 Victorian Literature, Art and Culture

20 O 6EN002 The 1960s:Subculture, Pop Culture, Counter-Culture

20

O 6SA003 Approaches to Poverty and Social Exclusion

20 O 6PO003: Political Theory 20

O 6CJ006 Controlling Crime 20 O 6SA001 Participation and Policy

20

O 6SA002 Children and Families in UK Social Policy

20 O 6CJ005 Contemporary Issues In Criminology

20

O 6PO001 Democracy and Terrorism: Conflict Resolution in Northern Ireland

20 O 6LW004Contemporary Issues in EU Law

20

O 6WL001 Intermediate/Advanced Language

20 O 6WL001 Intermediate/Advanced Language

20

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Learning Activities Please list the learning activities that will support the achievement of the learning outcomes. You should address the three graduate attributes and include employability skills and work-based learning where appropriate. (Some of these activities will be covered in section 11 below.)

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Assessment methods Describe the types of assessment (formative and summative) students will experience to demonstrate achievement of the learning outcomes. Show how the assessment tasks progress in terms of the challenge they experienced at each level.

The assessment strategy for level 3 places an emphasis on students’ ability to adapt and strengthen their learning, writing and analytical skills for a university context. Typically, modules mix formative assessments to develop concise and precise expression (such as short, structured writing tasks, seminars, in-class tests, paragraph structuring and focus, note-taking and summarising web-based forum discussions), with longer, more complex analytical writing tasks, e.g. essays, case study analyses and the extended research project. Together, the modes of assessment enhance students’ communication skills, critical thinking, digital literacy and ability to work with others. Students will also receive guidance on exam preparation in 3GK003, and undertake a time-constrained assessment under controlled conditions in either 3GK007 or 3GK008 as part of their portfolio of tasks for the module. Extensive use is made of Portfolios of smaller developmental tasks, to allow students to produce a range of documents and performances over an extended period (thus avoiding assessment overload at key points, while still requiring them to manage their study and learning) and to benefit from the feedback on one task in the performance of the next. For Level 4-6 study different subject areas employ a tailored strategy to best meet the needs of that body of knowledge and their students. More detail is available in Course Guides for each Subject, based on Subject Learning and Teaching Strategies.

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Support for Learning Explain what kinds of support will be available for learning. Include examples of generic support and any specific support available through the course. How are academic study skills developed in the curriculum?

In the Foundation Year (Level 3) the programme provides the support and guidance to assist students in developing the skills which will allow them to become more efficient and successful learners, to utilise correctly a range of information sources (thus avoiding plagiarism), and so prepare them for undergraduate study. The learning support which it offers to students, delivered by both academic skills tutors and staff teaching on undergraduate programmes of their destination subject area, includes individual tutorials, in-class test preparation sessions, group work (preceding individual presentations and written assignments), research skills training, and extensive written and oral feedback. Furthermore, students are able to make use of the student support and guidance mechanisms which are provided by the standard University and Faculty systems. Several of the staff on the programme teaching team are study skills advisers in the Centre for Academic Skills, and students can also request one-to-one tutorials and workshops outside module hours through them. Students will be shown how to make the most of the University's Sharpen Up Your Skills website and the Study Skills section in the Harrison Learning Centre, to develop further the academic skills they will need to apply to their chosen subject area in the various Foundation Year modules, and as part of the programme members of the Learning Centre will provide students with guidance about accessing printed and electronic resources, to support their classes and their research tasks. Each module also provides a focused reading list and suggestions for web-based and other electronic resources. The University intranet system is widely used in all modules for a

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variety of pedagogical and more practical purposes relating to the dissemination of information and the submission of student work. Careers guidance in relation to programme choices and further learning opportunities which may enhance employability and career satisfaction (e.g. volunteering, Erasmus exchange) will be provided. These resources continue to be available to all students as they progress to Levels 4-6, and in addition all programmes include specific Research Methods input to prepare students for the Final Year Project at Level 6.

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Any Distinctive Features of the course This section should be used to explain to a student the unique or special aspects of this course. Why should a student study this course as opposed to a similar one at another institution?

You can develop the skills and knowledge that you need to study at undergraduate level, building on your strengths and working on your weaknesses, so that you can feel confident that by the end you are ready to commence a degree course, and to apply the skills to undertake the directed and independent learning which will help you to achieve your potential. You can study the skills required for work-based learning, and identify your future aims and how to achieve them through career advice and discussion with tutors. You can experience the content and approach of the vast majority of the different subjects offered in the Faculty, interact with the members of staff who will deliver that subject in following years, shadow current undergraduates for short periods, and undertake further research on a topic that reflects your interests, so that you are fully confident of your choice of subject(s) before committing yourself to enrolment. This will allow you to embark on Level 4 study in BA (Hons) Law and Social Sciences, confident that you have developed the skills and chosen the two most relevant subject areas to specialise in, which will allow you to perform strongly at degree level and enhance your career aims. It is also possible, in consultation with an Admissions Tutor, to transfer to another programme at the end of Level 3 if, after consideration of the various subjects/courses available, you wish to specialise in a different discipline. Please note that some highly specialised programmes have additional entry requirements.

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14. Overview of Course Learning Outcomes in core and option modules

Level 3 Module Codes

FYLO 1 FYLO 2 FYLO 3 FYLO 4 FYLO 5 FYLO 6

3GK003

3GK004

3GK005

3GK006

3GK007

3GK008


CertHE CLO 1

CertHE CLO 2

CertHE CLO 3

CertHE CLO 4

CertHE CLO 5

CertHE CLO 6

4GK001

4HU002

4SL011

4PO005

4GK006

4PO006

4WL002

4WL003

4MZ001

4MZ009

4EN001

4EN004

4PO002

4PO003

4LW001

4LW005

4CJ002

4CJ003

4SA007

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4SA008


DipHE CLO 1

DipHE CLO 2

DipHE CLO 3

DipHE CLO 4

DipHE CLO 5

DipHE CLO 6

5SL008

5HU002

5PO006

5WL001

5WL002

5MZ003

5MZ005

5MZ006

5EN001

5EN003

5PO003

5PO004

5LW002

5LW004

5LW007

5CJ002

5CJ005

5SA007

5SA009


BA (H) CLO 1

BA (H) CLO 2

BA (H) CLO 3

BA (H) CLO 4

BA (H) CLO 5

BA (H) CLO 6

6MZ002

6MZ012

6MZ015

6MZ017

6EN002

6EN004

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6EN013

6PO001

6PO003

6PO004

6LW002

6LW004

6CJ002

6CJ005

6CJ006

6SA001

6SA002

6SA003

6SA004

6SA005

6WL001

Learning and teaching methods

HEFCE requires that the University’s Key Information Set (KIS) indicates the proportion of time in each year of study that students can expect to engage in the following activities (express as a percentage for each level).

Scheduled learning and teaching activities (including lectures, seminars, tutorials, dissertation meetings, demonstration, practical workshops, fieldwork, external visits, work-based learning);

Guided independent learning;

Placement and study abroad

Course code :

GK008T01

Scheduled learning and teaching activities

Guided independent learning

Placement and study abroad

Level 3 24 76 0

Level 4 24 76 0

Level 5 24 76 0

Level 6 24 76 0

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Assessment methods

HEFCE requires that the University’s Key Information Set (KIS) indicates the proportion of summative assessment in each year of study that will derive from the following:

Written exams

Practical

Coursework

Course code :

GK008T01

Written exams Practical exams Coursework

Level 3 0 0 100

Level 4 33 0 67

Level 5 50 0 50

Level 6 21 3 76

course specification (undergraduate) part a: course definition · race relations amendment act...

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