FIRST YEAR BOOKLET 2016-17

For the following programmes

BA SOCIOLOGY

&

BA SOCIOLOGY with CRIMINOLOGY

BA SOCIOLOGY with SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

&

SOCIOLOGY and EDUCATION

SOCIOLOGY and PHILOSOPHY

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DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE UNDERGRADUATE DEGREE PROGRAMMES

AIMS

The Department's aims are:

to produce graduates of a high academic quality

to incorporate the latest research and scholarship into our modules

to equip students for the world of work

to enable students to appreciate the value of sociological inquiry and to enjoy studying the discipline to empower students by increasing choice in module selection and topics of study as the

degree progresses

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of our teaching are:

to provide students with an understanding of the nature, content and scope of the discipline of Sociology

to foster students' enthusiasm for the discipline of Sociology through a varied and stimulating educational programme which emphasises the contemporary relevance of sociological understanding to personal and civic experience

to develop students' communication, comprehension and co-operative skills, together with their capacity for independent, analytic and critical thought

to help students acquire the skills involved in marshalling, and making balanced judgements about, complex bodies of evidence

to assist students to discover their abilities, and to develop as independent, mature and responsible individuals

DISCLAIMER

Whilst the University tries to ensure that information contained in this document is accurate when published, the University does not accept liability for any inaccuracies contained within it. Where circumstances occur or change outside the reasonable control of the University, the University reserves the right to change or cancel parts of, or entire, programmes of study or services at any time without liability, before or after students have registered at the University. Circumstances outside the University’s reasonable control include: industrial action, over or under-demand from students, staff illness, lack of funding, severe weather, fire, civil disorder, political unrest, government restrictions and concern regarding risk of transmission of serious illness. The University’s contract with its students does not confer third party benefits under the Contract (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.

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INTRODUCTION

USING THIS GUIDE

Welcome to the Department of Sociology at the University of York. We hope that you will find your degree course intellectually stimulating, as well as a valuable grounding for your future career.

This First Year Booklet provides some basic information about: the aims and objectives of the undergraduate degree the structure of the First Year programme for all degrees in Sociology basic information about what will be expected of you in respect of your workload, attendance

and assessment requirements, and requirements for the progression into the Second Year outlines of the First Year modules taught in the Department information about the Study Abroad schemes offered by the Department and by the University optional study programmes and opportunities for volunteering

You will receive the Second Year Booklet and Third Year Booklet as you progress through your degree. Individual Module Guides, which describe in detail the organisation, requirements and recommended resources for the modules you take, will be available at the start of each term and are posted on Yorkshare, the University’s virtual learning environment (VLE).

NB. The Undergraduate Handbook 2016-2019 contains full information about the Department of Sociology (staff, organisation, the Board of Studies, academic supervision, etc.); all aspects of its degree programmes and their requirements in all three years; module attendance and completion requirements; assessment procedures and regulations; and penalties for failure to meet requirements and standards. You will receive a copy of this when you register in the department at the start of term. You must make sure that you read and understand the contents, and especially the advice on attendance, submission of work, and assessment procedures.

This First Year Booklet and the Undergraduate Handbook are as accurate and up-to-date as we can make them, although changes sometimes do occur.

If you have any questions concerning the first year before you arrive in York, please contact the Department sociology@york.ac.uk

REGISTRATION

Students on all Sociology Programmes covered by this handbook must register in the Sociology Department on Tuesday 27th September 2016 in the lobby area near W252, Wentworth College, between 9.00 am and 1.00 pm. Note: Students taking Sociology in combination with Education or Philosophy must also register in the other department. You are responsible for finding out when and where to do this.

INTRODUCTORY SOCIOLOGY TEXTBOOKS

Many students who come to York have taken Sociology at ‘A’ level, but as many as half of our students have not. If you have not taken Sociology at ‘A’ level do not be anxious. Our modules are designed so that you start your degree from first principles in a way that is quite different from ‘A’ level. However, before you arrive you may care to read

Fever, R. and Bancroft, A. (2010) Dead White Men and Other Important People: Sociology's Big Ideas Palgrave.

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More standard introductions:

Giddens, A. with Sutton, P. (2009) Sociology (6th edition) Polity Press.

Newburn, T. (2007) Criminology Willan.

Ritzer, G. (2008) Sociological Theory McGraw Hill.

Rohall, D.E. et al., (2011) Social Psychology: Sociological Perspectives

Pearson THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY

You may be unfamiliar with the sort of work we do in universities – which is very different from what goes on in schools and colleges – and some of the terminology needs explaining. Academic staff in universities certainly teach undergraduate students, but they also spend much of their time supervising postgraduates, carrying out research, writing books, chapters, articles and reports, giving talks and seminars, marking and refereeing, applying for research grants, giving advice to a range of organisations, editing academic journals and book series, and involving themselves in the administration of the institution. They also spend much of their time reading, thinking and debating in order to better inform their teaching and research.

All academic staff are engaged in teaching, supervision, administration, research and publishing but the balance between these differ. Professors (or ‘Chairs’) and Readers tend to spend more of their time on research, postgraduate supervision and administration. Senior Lecturers and Lecturers tend to have more of a balance between teaching, research and administration. Teaching Fellows certainly do research but their emphasis is on teaching. Research Fellows spend almost all of their time on funded research but they may also do small amounts of teaching in their areas of expertise. You may also be taught by Post Graduates Who Teach (‘PGWTs’) who are postgraduate students studying for their PhDs (think of them as apprentice academics) but who also do small amounts of teaching.

You will find details about everyone on the Department website - http://www.york.ac.uk/depts/soci/about/acadstaff.htm including their contact details.

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THE FIRST YEAR OF YOUR SOCIOLOGY DEGREE

THE FIRST YEAR PROGRAMME

The first year consists of Terms 1, 2, and 3 (the Autumn, Spring and Summer Terms) during which Level 1 modules are taken. There are different routes through the first year depending on the degree programme you are following.

Learning Outcomes

At the completion of their first year on the degree, students will have developed:

the ability to describe and deploy key concepts in sociology

a basic understanding of the institutional structures and processes shaping the development of modern society

an understanding of comparative analysis and social change at a global level an ability to explore the processes shaping human conduct at the level of the individual and group

a range of cognitive and other skills, especially related to the gathering and synthesising of

information STUDYING FOR A SOCIOLOGY DEGREE: SOME BASIC INFORMATION In order to meet the

necessary academic standard to allow you to progress through your degree and to do

well you need to make sure that:

you do not miss lectures, seminars or other taught sessions

you prepare thoroughly the reading and set work for lectures and seminars

you do not fall behind with your work

you meet all the submission deadlines

you complete the online academic integrity module (available on the VLE)

you do not commit any form of academic misconduct

You should be aware that breaches of the Department’s and University’s rules about attendance, assessment, and academic misconduct may have very serious consequences. Full information about these matters can be found in your Handbook.

SOCIOLOGY MODULES AT LEVEL 1

The Department offers four year-long 30 credit modules in the first year. The number of Sociology modules which must be taken varies according to your degree programme.

Students taking the programmes in Sociology, Sociology with Criminology, or Sociology with Social Psychology take all four modules:

Cultivating a Sociological Imagination

Introduction to Sociological Theory

Introducing Social Psychology

Sociology of Crime and Deviance

Each module is worth 30 credits. Students must take 120 credits, which is equivalent to 40 credits per term, over the year.

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Students taking the joint honours programmes in Sociology and Education or Sociology and Philosophy take just two modules with us

Cultivating a Sociological Imagination

Introduction to Sociological Theory

Each module is worth 30 credits. Students must take 60 credits, which is equivalent to 20 credits per term, over the year. The other 60 credits are taken in the other Department.

Outline details of the modules are given below.

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CULTIVATING A SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION Module Convenor: Daryl Martin

Level 1 | 30 Credits | Terms 1, 2 and 3 | 2016-17

Prerequisites: None Compulsory for Degrees: Sociology; Sociology with Criminology; Sociology with Social Psychology; Sociology and Education; Sociology and Philosophy. Optional for: Social and Political Sciences

AIM

This course does three things. First, it serves as an introductory course to substantive sociological topics and social divisions that are experienced in everyday settings: ageing and the life-course; class and stratification; culture; diversity; gender and sexualities; health, illness and the body; politics; race and ethnicity; and so on. Second, it has been designed to introduce students to the research interests of staff working in the department. By doing this, you’ll get a sense of what our staff interested in, how their work relates to the big topics of social research and the potential themes of courses developed for later in the degree programme. This will help you to select your second and third year modules. Third, it should help you to cultivate a ‘sociological imagination’ from the start of your studies, and get you thinking creatively about the topics mentioned above. As an example, in your week of lectures on gender, as well looking at significant theories about gender, we get you to read a research paper which helps us to think about body hair as constitutive of gendered identity or norms, in an everyday and embodied way. Or, in the week of lectures on social class, we look at research that uses stand-up comedy as a prism through which contemporary class distinctions are articulated. Thus we can locate our everyday experiences within much wider debates and cultural processes.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

To cultivate a sociological imagination

To inculcate good academic practices at the outset of your sociological studies

To introduce basic concepts and empirical studies relating to selected substantive issues in contemporary sociology, especially those relating to the analysis of social divisions.

ORGANISATION

The module will be taught through lectures and seminars. There will be two weekly 1 hour lectures over 8 weeks in both of Terms 1 and 2 (32 lectures in total) accompanied by linked weekly 1 hour seminars (16 seminars in total). In Term 3 there will be two revision lectures and two seminars in the first few weeks of term to support examination preparation. The face-to-face aspects of the module will be supported by an extensive set of resources on the ‘Yorkshare’ Virtual Learning Environment (VLE); these will include copies of the lectures; on-line readings; links to video and other materials; and extensive guides to essential, recommended and background reading.

ASSESSMENT

The module will be assessed by 3 different pieces of work: A short exercise (20% of the total mark) to be handed in in Week 10 of Term 1; an essay (30% of the total mark) to be handed in in week 10 of Term 2; and a 3-hour closed examination (50% of the total mark) to be held at some point in weeks 5-7 in term 3.

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Some Indicative Reading There are no set texts, and all essential reading is provided via the vle. However, some books which speak to the themes of the course are: Back, L. (2007) Art of Listening Oxford: Berg Mills, C. W. (1959). The sociological imagination. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (We will provide links to the most relevant chapter - but if you want to buy your own copy, any edition will do) Payne, G. (ed) (2006), Social Divisions (2nd Edn) Basingstoke: Palgrave

INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY

Module Convenor: Prof Nik Brown

Level 1 | 30 Credits | Terms 1, 2 and 3 | 2016-17

Prerequisites: None

Compulsory for Degrees: Sociology; Sociology with Criminology; Sociology with Social Psychology; Sociology and Education; Sociology and Philosophy; and Social and Political Sciences.

AIM

This module is in two parts. The first part looks at the origins of sociology as a discipline. It opens by looking at the circumstances and conditions leading to some of our discipline’s great thinkers and critics including Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797), Auguste Comte (1798-1857), Harriet Martineau (1802-1876), Karl Marx (1818-83), Emile Durkheim (1858-1917), Max Weber (1864-1920), and Georg Simmel (1858-1918). We will look at each of these thinkers in turn and will get to grips with some of their key texts. To do this, we will consider each thinker in relation to a set of core concepts and ideas that have become central to sociological theory, for example: gender (Wollstonecraft), class, value and labour (Marx); class status, power and bureaucracy (Weber); positivism and social facts (Durkheim). Through this part of the module, we will raise questions about the intersection of sociological theory and sociological method, and explore connections between the social and the natural sciences. We will also question the contemporary relevance of the above writers by considering the extent to which their theories and concepts are, or are not, out-dated today.

The second part of this module turns its attention to contemporary social theory. The aim here is to build on many of the ideas and concepts considered in the previous term by focussing on sociological theory from the 1960s onwards. It will be organized, like the first term, around key thinkers and fundamental figures in the recent history of the discipline. This includes the Mary Douglas, Michel Foucault, Walter Benjamin, Stuart Hall and Christine Delphi.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

To provide a detailed introduction to classical and contemporary sociological theory

To introduce some key concepts of social theory To illustrate how classical and contemporary theory can be applied to the study of the social world

today

ORGANISATION

The module will be taught through lectures and seminars. There will be two weekly 1 hour lectures over 8 weeks in both of Terms 1 and 2 (32 lectures in total) accompanied by linked weekly 1 hour seminars (16 seminars in total). In Term 3 there will be some revision lectures and supporting seminars in the first few weeks of term to support examination preparation. The face-to-face aspects of the module will be supported by an extensive set of resources on the ‘Yorkshare’ Virtual Learning Environment (VLE); these will include copies of the lectures; on-line readings; and extensive guides to essential, recommended and background reading.

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ASSESSMENT

The module will be assessed by 3 different pieces of work: A short exercise (20% of the total mark) to be handed in in Week 10 of Term 1; an essay (30% of the total mark) to be handed in in week 10 of Term 2; and a 3-hour closed examination (50% of the total mark) to be held at some point in weeks 5-7 in term 3.

Some Indicative Reading:

Ray, L. (1999) Theorizing Classical Sociology. Open University Press.

George Ritzer and Douglas Goodman’s (2008) Sociological Theory 6th International Edition, McGraw Hill.

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SOCIOLOGY OF CRIME AND DEVIANCE

Module Convenor: Mr David Honeywell

Level 1 | 30 Credits | Terms 1, 2 and 3 | 2016-17

Prerequisites: None

Compulsory for Degrees: Sociology; Sociology with Criminology; Sociology with Social Psychology. Optional for: Social and Political Sciences

AIM

to introduce various key criminological theories and how they have emerged and built upon previous ideas; to provide an overview of a number of controversies within contemporary criminology;

to critically consider the contribution and impact of criminological theory to society and to engage students in using and improving their skills in problem solving, self-management, team working, creativity and innovation and IT skills.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

discuss the historical development of the social theories that underpin the discipline of criminology; understand and critique key criminological theories; express and tailor ideas and arguments

coherently to an audience through presentations, group discussion and written work;

self-manage and plan their time, work autonomously, and take the initiative in order to succeed; work as a team and co-operate with others on shared tasks, recognise and take on appropriate

team roles, and lead and follow effectively;

problem solve and demonstrate a capacity for analysis and synthesis, apply knowledge, and retrieve, analyse and evaluate information from and for different sources and create, innovate and generate ideas, and identify and take opportunities.

ORGANISATION

The module will be taught through lectures and seminars. There will be one two-hour lecture every week for 8 weeks in both of Terms 1 and 2 (16 lectures in total) accompanied by linked weekly one-hour seminars (16 seminars in total). In Term 3 there will be some revision lectures and supporting seminars in the first few weeks of term to support examination preparation. The face-to-face aspects of the module will be supported by an extensive set of resources on the ‘Yorkshare’ Virtual Learning Environment (VLE); these will include copies of the lectures powerpoint slides; on-line readings; links to video and other materials; and an extensive module outline that provides essential, recommended and background reading.

ASSESSMENT

The module will be assessed by 3 different pieces of work: A short exercise (20% of the total mark) to be handed in in Week 10 of Term 1; an essay (30% of the total mark) to be handed in in week 10 of Term 2; and a 3-hour closed examination (50% of the total mark) to be held at some point in weeks 5-7 in term 3.

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Module set text

Newburn, T. (2013), Criminology, (2nd ed.) Cullompton: Willan.

We also recommend the following: Downes, D. and Rock, P. (2007) Understanding Deviance, (5th ed.) Oxford: Oxford University Press. Lilly, J.R., Cullen, F.T., and Ball, R.A. (2011) Criminological Theory, (4th ed.) London: Sage. Maguire, M. Morgan, R. and Reiner, R. (eds.) (2007) Oxford Handbook of Criminology, (4th ed.) Oxford: Oxford University Press. Tierney, J. (2006) Criminology, Hemel Hempstead: Prentice Hall/Harvester Wheatsheaf. Williams, K.S. (2008) Textbook in Criminology, (6th ed.) Oxford: Oxford University Press.

INTRODUCING SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Module Convenor: Will Paterson

Level 1 | 30 Credits | Terms 1, 2 and 3 | 2016-17

Prerequisites: None

Compulsory for Degrees: Sociology; Sociology with Criminology; Sociology with Social Psychology. Optional for: Social and Political Sciences

AIM

To introduce the discipline of social psychology, identify the different perspectives within social psychology, and consider how these perspectives conceptualise the relationship between the individual and society.

This module will introduce you to the discipline of social psychology and how it helps us to make sense of the social world. In the first term you will be presented with a distinctively sociological social psychology (SSP). SSP draws from sociology and philosophy and examines the social, historical, and cultural context of behaviour and observes people in their own social worlds. You will be introduced to approaches which have redefined contemporary social psychology; social constructionism, ethnomethodology, and symbolic interactionism, and start to think critically about different ways of understanding the relationship between the individual and society. In the second term, we will examine the more traditional psychological social psychology, which tends to use experiments and observes people in laboratory settings in order to establish laws about human behaviour. We will encourage you to think critically about approaches to studying human social conduct. LEARNING OUTCOMES

This module will enable students to:

Understand sociological and social psychological theory and methods; Call upon sociological and social psychological approaches, methods and concepts to deal with and

understand events and occurrences

Place and understand social phenomena in a wider social context. Appreciate the foundations and contemporary debates in the disciplines of sociology and social

psychology.

Synthesise various literature so as to construct coherent arguments

ORGANISATION

The module will be taught through lectures and seminars. There will be one two hour lecture every week for 8 weeks in both of Terms 1 and 2 (16 lectures in total) accompanied by linked weekly 1 hour seminars (16 seminars in total). In Term 3 there will be some revision lectures and supporting seminars in the first few weeks of term to support examination preparation. The face-to-face aspects of the module will be supported by an extensive set of resources on the ‘Yorkshare’ Virtual Learning Environment (VLE); these will include copies of the lectures; on-line readings; links to video and other materials; and extensive guides to essential, recommended and background reading.

ASSESSMENT

The module will be assessed by 3 different pieces of work: A short exercise (20% of the total mark) to be handed in in Week 10 of Term 1; an essay (30% of the total mark) to be handed in in week 10 of Term 2; and a 3-hour closed examination (50% of the total mark) to be held at some point in weeks 5-7 in term 3.

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Some Indicative Reading Franzoi, S.L. (2009) Social psychology. London: McGraw-Hill. Goffman, E. (1969). The presentation of self in everyday life. London: Allen Lane Hewitt, J.P. (2010) Self and society: A symbolic interactionist social psychology. London: Pearson. Hollway, W., Lucey, H., & Phoenix, A. (2007) Social Psychology Matters. Maidenhead: Open University Press. Rohall, D.E. Milkie, M.A., and Lucas, J.W. (2011) Social psychology: Sociological perspectives. London: Person.

OPTIONAL STUDY PROGRAMMES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR VOLUNTEERING

Student IT Training

The Student IT Training programme has been especially developed at York. The programme consists of two strands:

IT for Higher Study - a range of online modules situated within the VLE, designed to equip new undergraduates with the IT and information skills needed for academic work.

IT for the Workplace - a range of courses for all students, designed to develop IT skills required by employers Further information is available at

http://www.york.ac.uk/services/cserv/training/students

Languages For All (LFA)

Languages for All offers a range of courses to help students to communicate with people from other countries, brush up rusty language skills or acquire a new language, etc. The level of the courses ranges from beginners to degree standard; they vary in length (short, 4-week), (medium, 8-week) and (long, 19- week; 20-week); and are held at a variety of times (lunchtimes, daytimes, evenings). Some courses are formally assessed and those who complete them successfully will receive a certificate. The LFA website also has a very useful set of supporting language study links and related social and cultural online resources for each language. For details see <http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/ltc/lfa/ >.

York Award

The York Award is the University of York's certificated programme of transferable skills training and experiential learning which is supported by public, private and voluntary organisations. To obtain the York Award students have to plan and pursue an active programme of personal development. They are encouraged to recognise and develop the skills and knowledge that will help them succeed in life after university and, with a little additional effort, leave university with two qualifications instead of just one. They can also gain points for other activities, such as work experience, part-time jobs, volunteering and involvement in clubs and societies. See:

< https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/skills/york-award/ >.

Volunteering

The University encourages students and staff to get involved in their local community through volunteering. For further details see < https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/skills/volunteer/ >.

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LOOKING AHEAD TO YOUR SECOND AND THIRD YEAR PROGRAMMES

SECOND YEAR MODULES

In Year 2 the Department offers a range of modules that again run over the three terms, and are each worth 30 credits.

Students following the BA (Hons) Sociology must take 4 modules Social Research Methods

Any 3 of: o Contemporary Political Sociology

o Divisions and Inequalities o Gender, Sexuality and Diversity o Popular Culture, Media and Society o Social Interaction and Conversation Analysis o Sociology of Health and Illness

Students following the BA (Hons) Sociology with Criminology must take 4 modules: Social Research Methods

Crime, Culture and Social Change

Any 2 of: o Contemporary Political Sociology

o Divisions and Inequalities o Gender, Sexuality and Diversity o Popular Culture, Media and Society o Social Interaction and Conversation Analysis o Sociology of Health and Illness

Students following the BA (Hons) Sociology with Social Psychology must take 4 modules: Social Research Methods

Critical Perspectives on Social Psychology

Any 2 of:

o Contemporary Political Sociology o Divisions and Inequalities o Gender, Sexuality and Diversity o Popular Culture, Media and Society o Social Interaction and Conversation Analysis o Sociology of Health and Illness

Students following the BA (Hons) programmes in Sociology and Philosophy must take any 2 of the following modules (with the other 60 Credits being taken in Philosophy):

Social Research Methods Divisions and Inequalities

Contemporary Political Sociology

Gender, Sexuality and Diversity Popular Culture, Media and Society

Social Interaction and Conversation Analysis

Sociology of Health and Illness

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Students following the BA (Hons) Sociology and Education must take the following (with the other 60 Credits being taken in Economics:

Social Research Methods

Any 1 of: o Contemporary Political Sociology o Divisions and Inequalities o Gender, Sexuality and Diversity o Popular Culture, Media and Society o Social Interaction and Conversation Analysis o Sociology of Health and Illness o Science & Society

THIRD YEAR MODULES

In the final year the Department offers a large range of Specialist Modules on topics related to the research interests of the staff (so what is on offer varies year or year). These all last one term, run in the Autumn or Spring Terms, and are each worth 20 Credits. Modules that have run in recent years have included:

Advanced Social Theory

Analysing Doctor-Patient Interactions

Birth, Death and Marriage

Body, Identity and Society

Cinema, Cities and Crime

Emotions in the Social World

Humans and Other Animals

Migration and Tourism Paranormal in Society

Sociology of Art

The Global Transformation of Health

The Racial State

Students on the BA (Hons) Sociology select any 4 of these options (2 per term). Students on the Joint Programmes select any 2 of these options.

Students on the BA(Hons) Sociology with Criminology must following a compulsory module in Theoretical Criminology and then select 3 of these options.

Students on the BA(Hons) Sociology with Social Psychology must following a compulsory module in Contemporary Research in Social Psychology and then select 3 of these options.

All students also complete a Dissertation (worth 40 credits). Students choose their own topic to investigate and construct the questions they want to answer, under the supervision of a member of staff. Those taking Sociology with Criminology do a dissertation in Criminology and those taking Sociology with Social Psychology do one in Social Psychology. Students taking a Joint Degree choose one of their two subjects in which to write their dissertation.

Students on all programmes can also take up to 40 credits from other departments (called ‘electives’) over Year 2 and 3. In practice, because of the structure of the programmes we run in Sociology, this means taking either 30 credits in Year 2 or up to 40 credits in Year 3.

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