Undergraduate Course: Introduction to Social Science (Credit Plus) (SSPS07006)
Course Outline
| School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 7 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Credits | 10 |
| Home subject area | School (School of Social and Political Studies) |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | This course is designed for students on the HSS International Foundation Programme. It is not available to undergraduate students.
Introduction to Social Science (Credit Plus) will provide an introduction to sociology, social policy, politics, economics and government in an interdisciplinary way through a thematic approach. A study skills component will be offered alongside the main course content to enable students to develop skills to progress to further study. |
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | None |
Course Delivery Information
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| Delivery period: 2012/13 Semester 1, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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WebCT enabled: No |
Quota: 0 |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| No Classes have been defined for this Course |
| First Class |
First class information not currently available |
| No Exam Information |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
&· explain the role of the social sciences, and the specific contributions of the component disciplines;
&· explain the problem of defining and measuring poverty, and evaluate different approaches to poverty and government policy, including liberal economic and welfare based approaches;
&· define the concepts of politics and power;
&· explain the notions of political obligation and obedience to moral codes;
&· exemplify instances of justifiable law breaking; and
&· discuss the issues around $ùscientific method&© in studying people (in social science).
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Assessment Information
&· Stage 1: students will undertake a Summarising Exercise in week 4, aimed at note-taking and identifying key issues in a set document, from which a brief account of the argument will be written, of no more than 250 words (formative exercise).
&· Stage 2: students will produce an Essay Plan for the final essay by week 9, covering a list of contents, key sources to be used and an outline of their argument (20%)
&· Stage 3: students will undertake a Referencing Correction Exercise in week 10, where they have to spot missing references and correct errors on a sample document (10 %)
&· Stage 4: students will submit a 1000 word essay by the published due date (70%)
To pass, students must achieve a minimum of 30% in each assessment and an overall combined mark of 40% minimum.
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Special Arrangements
| Students must only be enrolled by the Office of Lifelong Learning |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
1. Modernity, Complexity & Science
a. Why a science for society
b. A car accident and act of terror
c. Social responses to problems
2. Societies across Time and Space
a. Love and marriage
b. Health and illness
c. Crime and punishment
3. Investigating Human Nature
a. Can humans adapt themselves?
b. Cultural variations
c. Humanity in common
4. Study Skills Review
a. Note-taking from classes
b. Reading for classes
c. Finding and using readings
Practice summarising exercise due
5. Allocating Resources
a. Identifying resources
b. Need, consumption and scarcity
c. A global problem?
6. The Transition to Urban Life
a. Pre-capitalist markets
b. The $ùbest&© universal system?
c. Negative externalities
7. Poverty and Inequality
a. Defining poverty
b. Debating the causes of poverty
c. The social effects of inequality
8. Working on Assessments
a. Doing your essay plan
b. Handling the set tables/graphs
c. Doing the referencing exercise
9. The Impacts of State Welfare
a. Who supplies welfare?
b. Welfare changes in the UK
c. The rise of state intervention
Essay Plans due
10. Power and Decision Making
a. Aristotle&©s modes of rule
b. Four dimensions of power
c. Knowledge, authority and order
Referencing Exercise due
11. Disobedience and Disorder
a. Is disobedience disorder?
b. Sophocles&© Antigone
c. Nazism and total war
Final Essay to be submitted by the published due date.
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| Transferable skills |
Students will have developed skills for independent learning, including reading texts critically; taking notes; debating ideas and contributing to discussion both individually and in groups; and planning and writing essays. They will also have developed skills in reflective strategies to tackle unfamiliar challenges and tasks. |
| Reading list |
Essential
Haralambos, M. and Holborn, M., 2008. Sociology: Themes & Perspectives. 7th edition. London: Collins.
Northedge, A., 2005. The Good Study Guide. New edition. Milton Keynes: OUP.
Recommended
Giddens, A., 2006. Sociology. 5th edition. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Hinchliffe, S. and Woodward, K., 2004. The Social & the Natural: Uncertainty, Risk, Change. London: Routledge.
Web sources
http://www.polity.co.uk/giddens6/
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| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Mr James Mooney
Tel: (0131 6)50 3077
Email: |
Course secretary | Dr Caroline Bamford
Tel: (0131 6)50 4322
Email: |
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