Module Outline

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GV519-6-FY
Political Parties in Britain and Europe
2015 – 2016
Lecturer and Module Supervisor
Dr Tom Quinn
Tel: 01206 872505
E-mail: tquinn
Room: 5.012 Module Administrator
Office Hours: TBA TBA
ASSESSMENT: This module is assessed by 50% coursework and 50% final exam
INSTANT DEADLINE CHECKER
Assignment Title
Due Date
Coursework Weighting
Feedback Due
Essay 1
TBC
35%
TBC
Test 1
TBC
15%
TBC
Essay 2
TBC
35%
TBC
Test 2
TBC
15%
TBC
MODULE DESCRIPTION
This module examines the role and changing nature of political parties in advanced liberal democracies. The primary focus is Britain, but parties and party systems in Europe are also examined. The module looks at party motivations, party competition and electoral strategies, ideologies and changes in party organisation, including party funding and leadership elections.
Aims
To provide students with a thorough knowledge and understanding of the British party system, and an overview of European party systems
Objectives
At the end of this module, students should understand:
 The motivations and strategies of political parties
 The ideologies of the three main British parties
 Key data sets in the analysis of political parties
 The distribution of power within parties
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Key Skills
 Communications oral presentation; writing clearly and to the point; writing to deadlines
 Working with others making interventions; thoughtful listening; exchanging interpretations
 Improving learning & performance discriminating reading; essay preparation; dealing with criticism
 Information technology word processing; library searches; use of the internet
 Numeracy: interpreting statistics; reading graphs and tables
 Critical thinking responding to challenges; locating presentations in analytic context; exposing assumptions; marshalling empirical evidence.
MODULE STRUCTURE AND TEACHING
The module will be taught as a weekly two-hour seminar for twenty weeks in the Autumn and Spring terms. Attendance at all seminars is compulsory. Students are expected to read for all seminars.
ASSESSMENT
Assessment will be by coursework and a final exam in May/June, with each constituting 50% of the final mark. In the exam, students must answer three questions from a total of not less than eight questions. The coursework component consists of two essays of no more than 2,500 words each (70% of the coursework mark) and two class tests, one in each of the respective final weeks of the Autumn and Spring terms (30% of the coursework mark).
STUDY ABROAD ASSESSMENT
Assessment for Study Abroad students is the same as for University of Essex students (see ‘Assessment’ above).
COURSEWORK SUBMISSION
Submission deadlines
Assignment Title
Due Date
Coursework Weighting
Feedback Due
Essay 1
TBC
35%
TBC
Test 1
TBC
15%
TBC
Essay 2
TBC
35%
TBC
Test 2
TBC
15%
TBC
How to submit your essay using FASer (Online Coursework Submission)
You will be able to access the online submission via your myEssex portal or via https://faser.essex.ac.uk. FASer allows you to store your work-in-progress. This facility provides you with an ideal place to keep partially completed copies of your work and ensures that no work, even drafts, is lost. If you have problems uploading your coursework, you should contact ltt@essex.ac.uk. You may find it helpful to look at the FASer guide
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http://www.essex.ac.uk/elen/student/ocs.shtm. If you have any questions about FASer, please contact your administrator or refer to the handbook.
Under NO circumstances is your coursework to be emailed to the administrators or the lecturer. This will NOT be counted as a submission.
Coursework deadline policy for undergraduates
There is a single policy at the University of Essex for the late submission of coursework in undergraduate courses. Essays must be uploaded before 09.45 on the day of the deadline.
All coursework submitted after the deadline will receive a mark of zero. The mark of zero shall stand unless the student submits satisfactory evidence of extenuating circumstances that indicate that the student was unable to submit the work prior to the deadline. For further information on late submission of coursework and extenuating circumstances procedures please refer to http://www2.essex.ac.uk/academic/students/ug/extenug.html.
Essay feedback will be given via FASer. ALL submissions should be provided with a coversheet (available from Moodle).
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is a very serious academic offence and whether done wittingly or unwittingly it is your responsibility. Ignorance is no excuse! The result of plagiarism could mean receiving a mark of zero for the piece of coursework. In some cases, the rules of assessment are such that a mark of zero for a single piece of coursework could mean that you will fail your degree. If it is a very serious case, you could be required to withdraw from the University. It is important that you understand right from the start of your studies what good academic practice is and adhere to it throughout your studies.
The Department will randomly select coursework for plagiarism checks and lecturers are very good at spotting work that is not your own. Plagiarism gets you nowhere; DON’T DO IT!
Following the guidance on referencing correctly will help you avoid plagiarism.
Please familiarise yourself with the University’s policy on academic offences: http://www.essex.ac.uk/academic/docs/regs/offpro.shtm
Extenuating circumstances for late submission of coursework
The university has guidelines on what is acceptable as extenuating circumstances for later submission of coursework. If you need to make a claim, you should upload your coursework to FASer and submit a late submission of coursework form which can be found here: http://www2.essex.ac.uk/academic/students/ug/crswk_pol.htm. This must be done within seven days of the deadline. FASer closes for all deadlines after seven days. The Late Submissions committee will decide whether your work should be marked and you will be notified of the outcome.
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If you experience significant longer-term extenuating circumstances that prevent you from submitting your work either by the deadline or within seven days of the deadline, you should submit an Extenuating Circumstances Form for the Board of Examiners to consider at the end of the year http://www2.essex.ac.uk/academic/students/ug/extenug.html.