BA Politics(For students entering from September 2024 onwards)

Year 3

(Award available for year: Bachelor of Arts)

Learning outcomes

At the end of L3 you will be able to:

1. Demonstrate a critical appreciation of the core concepts and processes of Politics, as well as demonstrate competency with specialist theories and literatures relevant to specific areas of study.
2. Appreciate and critically evaluate the appropriateness of different theoretical approaches used to understand the processes and dynamics of Politics.
3. Evaluate and critique the roles and practices of various political actors, such as states, parties, and non-state groups; as well as themes and concepts such as gender, violence, identity, and culture.
4. Evaluate and choose between generic and subject specific intellectual tools in order to evaluate empirical material and case studies examples from politics.
5. Critically appraise a range of research techniques used by different development actors to produce and assess data and information, and apply relevant research skills for assignments.

Skills Learning Outcomes

At the end of L3 you will be able to:

1. Plan and execute a self-guided piece of research.
2. Communicate complex information, ideas, problems, and solutions in a variety of ways to a variety of audiences.
3. Marshal an argument and communicate it clearly and persuasively.
4. Work with others in a collaborative way and have well developed strategies for overcoming the challenges such collaboration.
5. Evaluate your own achievement and that of others. In addition, you will be able to evaluate and act upon the feedback of others.
6. Use a range of digital technologies to find, retrieve and process data, and to produce outputs such as presentations, summaries, reports, and discussions. In addition, you will understand the role that these technologies play in contemporary forms of communication.

Competence Standards

1. Identifies and evaluates relevant knowledge, theories, debates, in the study of Politics and can explain own viewpoint.
2. Makes and justifies decisions about choice of materials, components, and methods in Politics and can identify and reflect on their own positionality.
3. Plays a role in the field by communicating knowledge and opinions about Politics to others and respond to the same.

Assessment

Achievement will be assessed by a variety of methods in accordance with the learning outcomes of the modules specified for the year/programme and will include: (1) demonstrating the knowledge and application of standard themes, concepts, and theories relating to International Development; and (2) demonstrating emerging abilities, skills and competencies in a variety formats. These formats may include: essays, reports, learning logs, blogs, literature reviews, presentations, policy briefs, poster-presentations, and podcasts. At L3 you will be required to write a self-guided piece of research in the form of a dissertation. Assessment will be both formative and summative, and will be supported with feedback.