| Unit name | Criminology |
|---|---|
| Unit code | LAWD30100 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Naughton |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| 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?
What is 'crime'? What causes it? How much crime is there? Is the criminal justice system fair? Does it deal with the acts that cause us/society the most harm? Is imprisonment an appropriate or effective remedy in the fight to reduce crime? These are the kind of questions explored by this unit. It looks at how public discourses fail to distinguish between 'crime' and forms of social harm. It emphasises the way in which not only acts labelled as crime but, also, the State's response to it, and our ways of thinking about it, are socially produced and constructed. The wider concepts of power and justice require attention to other significant forms and causes of harm, some of which are created by the criminal justice system itself.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
This a final year optional unit that tackles some of the key challenges and tensions within social, legal and political decisions made about acts labelled as crime. It builds upon and compliments key concepts, theories and skills introduced on other LLB units, such as Criminal Law. More specifically, the unit has been designed to equip students with the skills necessary to conduct and write up independent research which draws on a mixture of library and internet resources. If you want to think beyond criminal law and contextualise the power relations and political ideologies at play in the labelling of certain acts as crimes whilst not problematising some of the most significant harms in society as crimes, you may be particularly interested in studying Criminology.
An overview of content
Criminology takes a critical look at the core components of the discipline from the deconstruction of the concept ‘crime’, the implications of such an approach on the theories that claim to be able to explain the causation of acts labelled as crime, the official statistics on crime and the part that they play in the operations of the criminal justice system and the way that the mainstream media represents crime in society shaping the dominant discourse. Still in critical mode, it then considers the zemiological approach, highlighting the extensive economic, physical and social harms in society that are committed by powerful social actors that are neither defined as crimes nor dealt with by the criminal justice system. Following this, there are dedicated lectures on white collar and corporate crime and the key theories on imprisonment, which are also contextualised within a zemiological perspective.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
You will be able to recognise the social character of the concept ‘crime’ and how it relates to prevailing power relations and political ideologies and interests. You will have a broader awareness of how decisions relating to acts labelled as crime and those individuals labelled as criminals are created or produced and be able to challenge existing norms relating to crime, harm and justice. Students will gain confidence in presenting their work and ideas in oral form and engaging in class discussion.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this unit a successful student will be able to:
The unit consists of a weekly mix of seminar, lecture and guided independent activities. These activities combine teacher delivery to students, asynchronous activities such as recorded interviews/talks and other teaching materials, student discussion, student group work and student independent activities including structured reading, engaging with audio/visual resources and analysing different written data sources.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
A formative assessment is intended to aid your learning but does not count towards the overall unit mark. The formative assessment is aimed at directly assisting you in preparing for the summative assessment by testing your ability to engage critically with a topic or topics and your general writing abilities. As well as developing deeper understanding of a particular topic or topics, by engaging with formative assessment you can further develop your skills and better evaluate your ability to engage with the subject and respond effectively to questions. The formative essay for Criminology is an 800-word critical evaluation. The question(s) for the formative assessment will be released at the start of the unit. Submission will be halfway through the unit. Individual written feedback and a feedback lecture will be provided. In addition, students will have opportunities for formative feedback in seminar discussions. Students can also meet with their seminar tutors for further feedback on their formative essays, with all of the feedback on the formative essays being best seen as feed forward on how students can improve their work for the summative assessment at the end of the unit.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
The summative assessment for Criminology is a Timed Assessment (take home exam), which will take place during the assessment period at the end of Unit. The Timed Assessment will require you to answer two essay-style questions of 1,500 words each. You will have a choice of questions. The assessment will assess all the Intended Learning Outcomes (ILO) for this unit in the context of topics selected by the examiners.
When assessment does not go to plan:
When a student fails the unit and is eligible to resubmit, the unit will be reassessed on a like-for-like basis.
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. LAWD30100).
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.
