
- UCAS course code
- LL23
- UCAS institution code
- M20
Course unit details:
Policing and the Police
Unit code | CRIM20051 |
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Credit rating | 20 |
Unit level | Level 2 |
Teaching period(s) | Semester 1 |
Offered by | School of Social Sciences |
Available as a free choice unit? | Yes |
Overview
This course provides students with a critical, research-based appreciation of the police, police-work and policing.
Indicative content: (1) Introduction to the course; (2) Police reform; (3) Discretion, discrimination, diversity; (4) Understanding police powers; (5) Street policing; (6) Police occupational culture; (7) Covert policing; (8) Police misconduct & complaints; (9) Public order policing & human rights; (10) Course overview and assessment preparation.
Aims
The unit aims to (1) introduce students to the area of police, police-work and policing; and, (2) provide students with a critical understanding of research as applied to these topics.
Learning outcomes
On completion of this unit successful students will be able to: (1) understand the contested dynamics of police-work and policing; (2) appreciate classic and contemporary research on policing; (3) develop a clear understanding of the nature of contemporary debates on policing and the police.
Teaching and learning methods
Teaching methods will be flexible and allow us to adapt to changing conditions, however, the common intention across units is to provide a blended offer of the best in online and on-campus teaching that includes: (1) whole-class sessions used for a range of exercises and activities; (2) high quality online learning materials; (3) a tutorial; (4) 1:1 support via a subject-specific contact hour.
Employability skills
- Other
- (i) analyse, critique and (re-)formulate a problem or issue; (ii) rapidly and thoroughly review/rate argument and evidence from targeted bibliographic searches; (iii) plan, structure and present arguments in a variety of written formats and to a strict word limit, (iv) express ideas verbally and organise work effectively in small teams for a variety of written and oral tasks; (v) obtain, manipulate and (re-)present different forms of data; (vi) manage time effectively; (vii) reflect on and improve performance through feedback.
Assessment methods
Method | Weight |
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Written exam | 100% |
Feedback methods
Formative feedback (both individual and collective) will be given on (1) on tasks and contribution in class, (2) the mock exam essay. In addition to individual marks, class-level feedback will be given on the exam.
Recommended reading
Bowling, B, Reiner, R. and Sheptycki, J. (2019) The Politics of the Police, Oxford: Oxford University Press is an excellent text and you are advised to obtain a copy.
The library also has earlier editions of The Politics of the Police.
Study hours
Scheduled activity hours | |
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Lectures | 20 |
Tutorials | 10 |
Independent study hours | |
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Independent study | 70 |
Additional notes
Across their course units each semester, full-time students are expected to devote a ‘working week’ of around 30-35 hours to study. Accordingly each course unit demands around 10-11 hours of study per week consisting of (i) 3 timetabled teacher-led hours, (ii) 7-8 independent study hours devoted to preparation, required and further reading, and note taking.
Information
Assessment
Students will be provided with a preliminary examination paper at the end of teaching (mid-December) containing eight questions. When candidates sit their examination in January, three of these questions will have been removed from the Examination Paper and they will be required to answer three of the remaining five questions. SUBJECT TO COVID19 DELIVERY. SO ANY EXAM WILL BE ONLINE WITH AN EXTENDED COMPLETION
Restricted to: BA (Criminology) and LLB (Law with Criminology) students for which this subject is compulsory, Law School students, BA (Econ) students (all pathways) and BA Social Sciences (BASS).
This course is available to incoming study abroad students university wide.
Pre-requisites: None.
Timetable
See Law School timetable