Rethinking social policy
On this page
|
|
|
|
|
| 3 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) | |
| Examination | No residential school |
Register for the course
This course is available for study in the countries shown. Fees may vary by country.
Summary
After the social, political, academic and cultural turbulence of recent decades, the study of social policy is in a state of flux. Traditional approaches, such as the Fabian ideal, are being challenged by new social and intellectual movements, including post-structuralism and feminism; and new questions, problems and directions are being set. This course examines new ways of thinking about social policy, and introduces the work of leading authors in the field with the aid of a specially prepared study guide.
Course content
The course explores the range of challenges to the post-war welfare state that were articulated by ‘new’ political constituencies from the 1970s onwards, including women’s and disabled people’s movements and movements connected with ethnic, cultural and sexual identities, as well as the New Right. It examines the economic and social developments that provided the conditions for these new political challenges to be made. The course goes on to consider what effects these challenges had, and are continuing to have, on social policies and the welfare state.
The course examines an overlapping set of challenges that have been made to the study of social policy by developments in social and cultural theory, such as post-structuralism and feminism. It also engages, in new ways, with older debates about class politics and state theory. It is based on a reader, Rethinking Social Policy, an edited collection of specially commissioned articles by leading social policy analysts who have been invited to reflect on the implications of new social and theoretical movements for welfare and the study of social policy.
Designed as an introduction to the Social Policy and Criminology strand in the postgraduate studies programme, the course will familiarise you with key concepts in the study of social policy at an advanced level and help you to develop an understanding of new ways of thinking about social policy that will enhance your study of the other courses in the programme.
Vocational relevance
The course is especially relevant to welfare professionals in the statutory, non-statutory and private sectors, including social workers, those working in the criminal justice system (probation officers, magistrates, prison officers, police officers) or health provision (nurses, managers, health-related academics and those in professions allied to medicine) and in education (teachers, lecturers, managers or local authority administrators). It will help you to reflect constructively on your own experiences and perceptions as a practitioner, and to explore the relationship between social theories and social policy and welfare practice.
Entry
You must hold a UK honours degree (or equivalent), ideally though not necessarily in the subject you wish to pursue.
It is expected that you will commence your studies with the preferred postgraduate foundation course for the qualification you are studying towards, either Investigating the psychological world (D821) or Investigating the social world (D822) (please refer to the relevant qualification description).
If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, or whether your subject knowledge and study skills are adequate for study at this level, please contact the Postgraduate Studies in Social Science Learner Support Team at the OU in Yorkshire (telephone 0113 234 1225, or email).
Preparatory work
If you would like to do some preparatory reading, we suggest:
J. Carabine (ed) (2004) Sexualities: Personal Lives and Social Policy, The Policy Press
J. Fink (ed) (2004) Care: Personal Lives and Social Policy, The Policy Press
G. Lewis (ed) (2004) Citizenship: Personal Lives and Social Policy, The Policy Press
G. Mooney (ed) (2004) Work: Personal Lives and Social Policy, The Policy Press
A. Cochrane, J. Clarke, S. Gewirtz (2001) Comparing Welfare States, 2nd edition, Sage
E. McLaughlin, J. Muncie, G. Hughes (eds) (2nd edition, 2003) Criminological Perspectives: Essential Readings, Sage
J. Muncie, E. McLaughlin (eds) (2nd edition, 2001) The Problem of Crime, Sage
E. McLaughlin, J. Muncie (eds) (2nd edition, 2001) Controlling Crime, Sage
E. McLaughlin, R. Fergusson, L. Westmarland (eds) (2003) Restorative Justice: Critical Issues, Sage
E. Saraga (ed.) (1998) Embodying the Social: Constructions of Difference, Routledge in association with The Open University
G. Hughes, G. Lewis (eds) (1998) Unsettling Welfare: Reconstructing Social Policy, Routledge in association with The Open University
N. Ellison, C. Pierson (eds) (2003) Developments in British Social Policy 2, Palgrave
V. George, R. Page (eds) (1995) Modern Thinkers on Welfare, Prentice Hall
M. O’Brien, S. Penna (1998) Theorising Welfare: Enlightenment and Modern Society, Sage
F. Williams (1989) Social Policy: a Critical Introduction, Polity.
Qualifications
D860 is an optional course in our
- Postgraduate Certificate in Social Sciences (C24)
- Postgraduate Diploma in Criminal Justice (E14)
- Postgraduate Diploma in Development Management (D37)
- Postgraduate Diploma in Social Research Methods (E12)
- Postgraduate Diploma in Social Sciences (D41)
- MA in Childhood and Youth (F55)
- Master of Public Administration (F44)
- MA in Social Policy and Criminology (F18)
- MA in Social Sciences (F09)
- MSc in Development Management (F11)
- MSc in Forensic Psychology and Criminology (F49)
- MSc in Social Research Methods (F24)
D860 together with either the foundation course Investigating the psychological world (D821) or Investigating the social world (D822) (or the discontinued course D820) will qualify you for a Postgraduate Certificate in Social Sciences and with an additional 60 points of specified courses for a Postgraduate Diploma.
Some postgraduate qualifications allow study to be chosen from other subject areas. We advise you to refer to the relevant qualification descriptions for information on the circumstances in which this course can count towards these qualifications because from time to time the structure and requirements may change.
If you have a disability or additional requirement
Some of the course material is presented on CD. If you are a new student, or new to courses using a computer or the internet, you will need to inform us of your particular needs as soon as possible, as some of our support services may take several weeks to arrange. Details of how to do this and our range of support services are described in our booklet Meeting Your Needs which you can download or request from our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
You can also find information about accessible course materials, financial support and the Disabled Students' Allowance, equipment and other services, on our Services for disabled students website. It also includes our contact details for advice and support both before you register and while you are studying.
Course materials
What's included
Course reader, other printed materials, audio CD.
You will need
An audio CD player.
Computing requirements
This course includes online computer activities – you can access these using a web browser that can play Flash and Shockwave.
You will need internet access and a computer. If you have purchased a new computer since 2002 it should meet your course computing requirements. Check our Technical Requirements section if your computer is older than this or is otherwise unusual.
Teaching and assessment
Support from your tutor
You will have a tutor who will help you with the course material and mark and comment on your written work, and whom you can ask for advice and guidance. Your tutor may not be local, so your contact will be by correspondence, email and telephone. Contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service if you want to know more about study with The Open University before you register.
Assessment
The assessment details for this course can be found in the facts box above.
You will be expected to submit your tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) online through the eTMA system unless there are some difficulties which prevent you from doing so. In these circumstances, you must negotiate with your tutor to get their agreement to submit your assignment on paper.
Students also studied
Students who studied this course also studied at some time:
Future availability
This course will be presented for the last time in May 2010.
How to register
To register a place on this course return to the top of the page and use the Click to register button. For more information and advice about registration see OU Study Explained.
About this page
A postgraduate course in Business and Management, Childhood and Youth and Social Sciences.
Study explained
- Course
- - a module of study that can count towards a qualification.
- Credit points
- - show how much study is required to complete a course or qualification. One credit point represents roughly 10 hours of study.
- Financial support
- - find out if you qualify for support with your fees with our eligibility checker.
- Study explained
- - all you need to know about studying with the OU.
Student Reviews
Although I didn't expect to, and wouldn't neccessarily have chosen to do it had it not been a required course ...
Read more
Course satisfaction survey
See the satisfaction survey results for this course.
Got a question?
Contact an adviser in our Student Registration & Enquiry Service
Email or call +44(0) 845 300 60 90
Browse the prospectus
Request a print prospectus
Share
This PageThe University wishes to emphasise that, while every effort is made to regularly update this site, the material on it is subject to alteration or amendment in the light of changes in regulations or in policy or of financial or other necessity.