Social Sciences pathway modules
CoSS
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Compulsory modules
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Credits
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Academic English and Study Skills (Term 1)
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20
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Academic English and Study Skills (Term 2)
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20
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Politics, Policy and Protest
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20
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Social Policy, Welfare and Society
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20
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How to Learn, Earn and Be Happy: An Introduction to Education
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20
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Business and the Market
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20
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Quantitative Methods for Business and Economics
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20
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The European Heritage
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20
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The Country and the City
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20
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Colonial Encouters
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20
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Module descriptions
Academic English and Study Skills modules are detailed here.
Politics, Policy and Protest
This module will introduce you to the main issues and debates in contemporary international and global affairs. The module will compromise four sections. The first section will focus on conceptual debates surrounding the nature of international and global politics. In the second section the development of the nation-state and its changing role and position in an increasingly globalised world will be considered, and this will be followed in the third and fourth sections by consideration of patterns of regional intergration as a response to globalisation and questions surrounding global security governance and co-operation. the key focus will be on how states are changing, and how they influence and are influenced by regional intergration and international organisations.
Social Policy, Welfare and Society
This module explores the potential to create the societies in which we would want to live through the development and implementation of policies, which include health, social care, housing and criminal justice. Focusing on the British setting, this highly contemporary and dynamic module analyses current social issues and asks questins about the role and contribution of the individual, the family and State in constructing societies for the future.
How to Learn, Earn and Be Happy: An Introduction to Education
Learning, and processes of formal and informal education, are widely held to be crucial components of a successful and happy life. This module introduces you to theories of learning, teaching and assessment, explores their impact on life chances in different areas of the world and reviews philosophical and empirical research on the relationship between education and happiness.
Business and the Market
This module focuses on the relationship between firms and markets. It looks at how markets work, how they differ and why these differences matter to the firm. It begins by introducing you to some underlying ideas that will help you think about the subject, before moving on to describe the operations of the market itself. After learning about the laws of supply and demand, you will also study the different types of market and how firms set about maximising their profits under different competitive conditions.
Quantitative Methods for Business and Economics
While this module has a mathematical foundation, it is not simply about developing your mathematical skills. Rather, the purpose of the module is to show you how you can use these skills to improve your understanding of business problems and to help you make business decisions more effectively.
The European Heritage
In this module you will learn about the history of the classical and Christian traditions that underlie European civilisation, as well as some of the most significant artisitic and literary works that these traditions have inspired. You will examine the development of European society, culture and its philosophical and religious underpinnings in the Classical, Renaissance and Modern eras, focusing on key deas and artefacts as examples.
The Country and the City
In this module you will learning about the variety of ways in which the rural and the urban have been conceptualised and imagined throughout history. This will involve the study of cities ranging from ancient Athens to modern New York, and will allow you to engage with such topics as industrialisation, nostalgia for the countryside, and environmental concerns. You will read widely and cover authors such as William Wordsworth, Emile Zola and Eça de Queirós. Working with the Barber Institute of Fine Arts you will also attend guided tours of exhibitions and be encouraged to think about the cities, and the countryside, that you inhabit.
Colonial Encounters
Here you will be looking at the overseas expansion of European powers and the legacies of imperialism, with particular emphasis on the British Empire. Initial sessions will establish a chronological and thematic outline, exploring the roles of slavery and anti-slavery in the establishment of empire, governance and violence in the maintenance of empire, and the role of anti-colonial nationalism in ending imperial rule. Later, you will encounter key concepts in the study of colonial encounter and its cultural legacies. You will explore orientalism, post-colonialism and hybridity through sessions on the representation of colonised peoples in metropolitan cultures (exhibitions, literature, ethnography and film), post-colonial challenges to these ways of knowing ‘the other’ and the place of English as a global language.