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Unit information: Responding to Crime and Social Harm in 2022/23

Please note: you are viewing unit and programme information for a past academic year. Please see the current academic year for up to date information.

Unit name Responding to Crime and Social Harm
Unit code SPOL10031
Credit points 20
Level of study C/4
Teaching block(s) Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director Dr. Natasha Carver
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
School/department School for Policy Studies
Faculty Faculty of Social Sciences and Law

Unit Information

Crime and related harms are major social issues requiring state intervention. This unit introduces students to the way states have attempted to control crime and social harm both in terms of offending and victimisation in national and international contexts. Specifically, the unit will:

  • Examine the main institutions and organisations responsible for the control of crime and social harm
  • Assess policy interventions in the context of wider theoretical debates about how states control (or not) crime and related social harms.

Your learning on this unit

Students who successfully complete this unit will be able to:

  1. Explain the development and operation of criminal, civil and regulatory institutions in responding to crime and harm
  2. Identify the operation of formal and informal social controls and alternative justice mechanisms in preventing and responding to crime and harm.
  3. Recognise how attempts to prevent or control crime may in turn create or reinforce harm.

How you will learn

Teaching will be delivered through blended learning involving a combination of synchronous and asynchronous sessions, including lectures, practical activities supported by study-group sessions and self-directed exercises.

How you will be assessed

Summative assessment is by:

  • Engagement and Collaboration - Learning Journal (50%)
  • Policy Briefing of 1500 words (50%)

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. SPOL10031).

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.

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