Unit information: Risk, Danger and Disaster in 2021/22

Unit name	Risk, Danger and Disaster
Unit code	SOCI30098
Credit points	20
Level of study	H/6
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12)
Unit director	Dr. Downer
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	none
Co-requisites	none
School/department	School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies
Faculty	Faculty of Social Sciences and Law

Description including Unit Aims

How probable is an accidental nuclear war? Why do men drive more dangerously than women, and 20 year-olds more dangerously than 30 year-olds? How seriously should we take climate change? Do crowds panic in disaster situations? Why do western societies see sex on tv as more ‘corruptive’ than violence? This course will look at all these questions and many more. Risk, danger and disaster are contested ideas, yet they frame everything from our relationship to modernity to our choice of breakfast food — we draw on them to construct our identities just as we invoke them to justify our state security policies. The course reflects this diversity; each week draws on a different literature around the theme of risk, danger and disaster to offer a window into the uncertainties and insecurities of modern life.

Unit aims:

• To introduce students to a critical examination of risk, danger and disaster, and their role in western society and socio-political thought.
• To outline different academic perspectives on the study of risk danger and disaster, and their relationships to each other.
• To enable students to make detailed and appropriate use of these insights to develop an informed perspective on risk danger and disaster and apply it to a case study with contemporary relevance.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the unit, students will be able to:

• critically examine the notions of risk, danger and disaster, and their role in western society and socio-political thought.
• articulate and engage with different academic perspective on the study of risk, danger and disaster and analyze their relationship to each other.
• Demonstrate ability to make detailed and appropriate use of these insights to develop an informed perspective on risk, danger and disaster and apply it to a case study with contemporary relevance.

Teaching Information

The unit will be taught through blended learning methods, including a mix of synchronous and asynchronous teaching activities

Assessment Information

• Formative essay (1500 words) (0%)
• Summative Essay (3000 words) (100%)

Both assessments assess all learning outcomes

Resources

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. SOCI30098).

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 Faculty 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. If you have self-certificated your absence from an assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.