Overview

Social problems are inherent facets of human societies, hindering the well-being and harmony of individuals and communities. The challenges that affect our communities include economic inequalities, social integration, environmental issues, socio-economic disparities, lack of educational opportunities, community cohesion, and public services and infrastructure. This module will develop a critical understanding of social problems alongside developing practical solutions and recommendations. The workshop format will discuss social problems and their solutions, utilising a classroom based research and a guided social policy walk to understand local social problems as case studies for advanced intervention strategies.

Subjects will include, but not limited too

• Overview of social problems
• Conducting classroom-based research and a social policy walk
• Literature searching
• Writing a report to include recommendations for various stakeholders
• Giving a presentation on how to 'solve' a specific social problem

Assessment Strategy

-threshold -Students in this range (D and D+) will demonstrate a satisfactory achievement across some of the criteria combined with satisfactory range of knowledge and/or some subtlety of analysis in relation to the chosen case study.The report will be supported with a satisfactory level of detail/examples. They will also demonstrate a satisfactory awareness of some of the relevant data, research and debates, and will be able to give a satisfactory account of how the report recommendations are reached.Oral presentations will meet the following criteria - Satisfactory delivery in terms of speed, eye contact, clarity, audibility and tone - Satisfactory content i.e discusses some relevant issues, explains some key terms and provides a satisfactory understanding of the key debates. - Recommendations are provided. - Satisfactory structure: parts are logical, easy to follow, each section relates somewhat to overall purpose - Satisfactory use of visual aids uses handouts or other visual aids, relevant to content - Satisfactory response to questions:Overall, the standards of content, argument, and analysis expected will be satisfactory and suitable for a D or D+ -good -Good students (B+ to C-) will demonstrate achievement across some of the criteria, and will have a depth of knowledge in some areas, and/or some subtlety of analysis in relation to the chosen case study.The report will be supported with some relevant detail/examples. They will also demonstrate some awareness of relevant data, research and debates, and/or the report recommendations will be clear, but not detailed.Oral presentations will meet the following criteria - Good/ varied delivery in terms of speed, eye contact, clarity, audibility and tone - Good/varied content i.e discusses some relevant issues, explains some key terms and provides an understanding of some of the key debates. - Good recommendations which need more detail. - Good overall structure with some limitations: logical, easy to follow, each section relates to overall purpose - Good use of some visual aids i.e handouts or other visual aids, relevant to content - Good response to questions: willing to answer questions, actively seeks questions but needed more substanceOverall, the standards of content, argument, and analysis expected will be in the B- to B+ range. -excellent -Excellent students (A- and above) will show strong achievement across all the criteria combined with particularly impressive depths of knowledge and/or subtlety of analysis in relation to the chosen case study.The report will be supported with a wealth of relevant detail/examples. They will also demonstrate an acute awareness of the relevant data, research and debates, and will be able to give an account of why the report recommendations are reached.Oral presentations will meet the following criteria - Excellent delivery in terms of speed, eye contact, clarity, audibility and tone - Excellent content i.e discusses relevant issues, explains key terms and provides a confident understanding of the key debates. - Recommendations are well thought through. - Excellent structure: logical, easy to follow, each section relates to overall purpose - Excellent use of visual aids uses handouts or other visual aids, relevant to content - Excellent response to questions: willing to answer questions, actively seeks questionsOverall, the standards of content, argument, and analysis expected will be consistently superior to top upper-second work.

Learning Outcomes

• Able to scrutinise a range and specific policy recommendations for how to deal with social problems and injustices alongside providing own recommendations.

• Can systematically evaluate a variety and specific 'social problems' through individual and group work - whether it be written or oral communication - demonstrating critical analysis of complex intersecting factors and innovative solution development

• Critically analyse various social problems, demonstrating sophisticated understanding of how these shape lived experiences across different communities.

• Demonstrate advanced report writing skills suitable for local/national government or charities

• Demonstrate vocational insight by applying theoretical knowledge to practical situations in a community context while developing evidence-based solutions that address complex community needs

• Have advanced self-motivation and time management skills by effectively supporting classroom-based research and guided social policy walks

• Have skills in reading and understanding sociological and social policy texts with a specific focus on policy implications.