Personal lives and social policy
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| 6 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) | |
| End-of-course assessment | No residential school |
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Summary
How has social policy influenced ideas and values about parenthood? How far can we legitimise locking children in secure accommodation in order to ‘care’ for them? How have ‘welfare to work’ initiatives changed the meaning of ‘work’ in social policy? How does social policy construct the lives of refugees and asylum seekers? This course uses four key themes – Sexualities, Care, Work, and Citizenship – to explore how individuals shape and are shaped by policy making and welfare practices and how social policy is organised, represented and experienced - opening up challenging questions about the policymaking process both in the past and in contemporary society.
Course content
The course offers an imaginative and innovative perspective on the role played by social policy in society today through its core concepts of the personal, social policy and their mutual constitution – investigating marginalised issues, such as disability and sexuality, as well as ‘taken for granted’ topics, like women’s caring roles, highlighting their meanings in welfare practices and discourses.
Its approach is to explore the course themes across theoretical frameworks – post-structuralism, feminism, Marxism, psychoanalysis and the post-colonial – in order to critically evaluate particular concerns and debates. Students are also encouraged to reflect on their own experiences of welfare (as well as analysing representations by other individuals and groups) through assignments which employ a variety of formats such as explorations of autobiographical accounts, as well as more conventional essays. A clear emphasis on the evaluation of research evidence runs throughout and there are opportunities to consolidate and develop skills in analysing visual, numerical and printed data from a range of historical and contemporary sources. To gain greater insights and develop hands-on research skills, students are supported in undertaking a small piece of independent research consisting of two semi-structured interviews after reflecting on an initial interviewing experience.
DD305 adopts an interdisciplinary approach that is designed to be of interest and relevance to students planning Level 3 study in social policy. In addition, it is likely to be of interest to students in other social science disciplines including sociology and psychology, as well as those in the Faculty of Education and Language Studies. It has also been designed to encourage and facilitate entry to masters level study.
Vocational relevance
This course has relevance to a wide range of employment since it offers students the opportunity to develop transferable skills, such as report writing and interviewing, and will help you plan and design your own work. It would be most valuable for people who work, or want to work, in social welfare, health care or public service settings such as the criminal justice system and various voluntary organisations. The skills developed through the course are also relevant to administration and management in the commercial and service sectors.
Entry
DD305 is a Level 3 course. Level 3 courses build on study skills and subject knowledge acquired from previous studies at Levels 1 and 2. They are intended only for students who have recent experience of higher education in a related subject. DD305 is a Level 3 course that aims to provide a clear progression from Introducing the social sciences (DD101) and Welfare, crime and society (DD208) (or the discontinued courses DD100 or D218).
If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
Qualifications
DD305 is a compulsory course in our
It is an optional course in our
- BA/BSc (Honours) Social Sciences (B06)
- BA/BSc (Honours) Social Sciences (B06) (with Social Policy)
- BA (Honours) Childhood and Youth Studies (B23)
It can also count towards most of our other degrees at bachelors level, where it is equally appropriate to a BA or BSc. 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.
Excluded combinations
Sometimes you will not be able to count a course towards a qualification if you have already taken another course with similar content. To check any excluded combinations relating to this course, visit our excluded combination finder or check with our Student Registration & Enquiry Service before registering.
If you have a disability or additional requirement
The written course material is available in comb-bound format. Written transcripts are available for the audio-visual material. You will need to spend considerable amounts of time using a personal computer and the internet during some sections of the course. Our Services for disabled students website has the latest information about availability.
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 books, other printed materials, CDs, DVDs, course website.
You will need
A portable audio cassette recorder and microphone or other recording equipment for recording interviews.
Computing requirements
This course includes online computer activities – you can access these using a web browser that can play Flash and Shockwave. Some of your course software will be provided on disk.
You will need internet access and a computer. If you have purchased a new Windows 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. Please note that you can use an Apple Mac or Linux computer if you can run Windows using Boot Camp or similar.
Teaching and assessment
Support from your tutor
You will have a tutor who will help you with the course material, mark and comment on your written work, and whom you can ask for advice and guidance. We may also be able to offer group tutorials or day schools that you are encouraged, but not obliged, to attend. Where your tutorials are held will depend on the distribution of students taking the course.
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 must use the online eTMA system to submit some of your tutor-marked assignments (TMAs). Your assignment booklet will tell you which method of submission you should use for each assignment.
If you unavoidably miss or do badly in an assignment, some courses allow you a ‘substitution score’. In DD305 this rule can apply to one assignment only.
Professional recognition
This course may help you to gain recognition from a professional body.
Students also studied
Students who studied this course also studied at some time:
Future availability
The details given here are for the course that starts in October 2009. We expect it to be available at the same time once a year.
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
An undergraduate course in Psychology and Social Sciences.
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