| Unit name | Criminal Justice System: Law, Policy and Practice |
|---|---|
| Unit code | LAWD20051 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Torrible |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
LAWD10014 Criminal Law |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | University of Bristol Law School |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Why is this unit important?
This unit will challenge your understanding of the function and impact of the criminal law, by focussing on the criminal justice system and the complex legal, policy and social factors that influence how it operates in practice.
You will:
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
The substantive elements of this unit provide knowledge and understanding of the criminal justice system which is directly relevant for students interested in work in the area of criminal justice. The unit also develops a critical and socio-legal approach to legal scholarship that will increase students’ research, reading, evaluation and analytical skills in a way that is transferrable to other units (and a broad range of employment settings). Specifically, across the programme the research, evaluation and analysis skill sets developed by the unit will assist students in their FYRP or dissertation in the final year.
The learning outcomes of this unit reflect the description given above. At the end of the unit you will be able to:
Teaching will be delivered through a variety of asynchronous and synchronous activities.
To support the intended learning outcomes and prepare students for the assessments on this unit, seminars will include a range of learning approaches. Group exercises in seminars will encourage critical appraisal of the criminal justice system and the law, policy and practices associated with it. Questions alongside the unit reading in preparation for seminars will direct students to evaluate and reflect on the materials. In seminars students will discuss and probe each other’s understanding of the material to develop critical awareness of, for example, competing methodologies and their value in different settings and the claims they can reasonably make. Seminars will also include reflection on how each newly addressed aspect of the CJS impacts on or is impacted by the ones already studied to allow students to build an overall understanding of complex socio-legal processes. As noted above you will be set a formative exercise which will receive written feedback, for example, evaluating a source and explaining how it contributes to the understanding of one of the areas of study.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Lectures and seminars will introduce you to the key issues and themes in the unit and each of the parts of the criminal justice system under study e.g. policing, prosecution etc. You will be given reading for each seminar addressing the relevant area. In addition, you will be set research and evaluation exercises on a regular basis throughout the unit, which will be discussed and appraised in seminars. You will be set a formative exercise to develop these skills, for example, requiring you to evaluate a source and explain how it contributes to the understanding of one of the areas of study. Seminars will also include a range of tasks and discussions that prepare you for the assessments in the portfolio.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Students will be expected to work in groups in seminars but none of the assessments in the portfolio is based on group work. Your summative portfolio will contain a variety of tasks that each student completes individually, such as research, reading, evaluation and critical engagement exercises, reflections on the criminal justice system (in which, for example, you focus on a particular aspect of the criminal justice system that you consider would benefit from reform) and producing a blog exploring areas where additional research into a particular aspect of the criminal justice system is required.
This will assess all of the intended learning outcomes for this unit.
When assessment does not go to plan
Reassessment on this unit will take the same form as the original assessments. However, if students have submitted an element of their original portfolio on one part of the criminal justice system (and are required to resubmit), their reassessment for that element of the portfolio will have to be based on a different part of the criminal justice system.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. LAWD20051).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
