Undergraduate Module Descriptor

POL1001B: State of Britain

This module descriptor refers to the 2016/7 academic year.

Module Aims

Through both lectures and seminars, this module aims to:

  • Provide you with a detailed examination of trends, actors, institutions and agenda-setting in UK public policy;

  • Provide academic grounding for you to progress onto a more detailed understanding of public policy processes in stages two and three;

  • Draw together aspects from other level one modules that explore theory and practice in politics; and

Encourage you to bring together lessons learned on the course as a whole and apply them to the policy process in the UK in order to understand how the British State functions.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here – you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills1. Demonstrate awareness of key processes, institutions and actors in British Public Policy
2. demonstrate awareness of the agenda-setting process and way in which different political actors attempt to influence the content and trajectory of public policy.
3. Demonstrate awareness of the complexities of policy implementation, including the tools used and the actors involved
4. Demonstrate an understanding of the changing approaches to public policy and management used by successive governments over the past 20 years, from the Blair Administration onwards
Discipline-Specific Skills5. Extrapolate from large amounts of descriptive material contained in newspaper reports and government publications to general academic understanding
6. Engage critically with material and obtain a degree of academic impartiality on the prevailing trends in UK public policy
Personal and Key Skills7. demonstrate an understanding of theory, moving from the abstract to the concrete.
8. demonstrate essay writing techniques and seminar presentation skills.
9. Work independently, within a limited time frame, and without access to external sources, to complete a specified task.