Module Descriptors
ENGLISH LEGAL SYSTEM AND SKILLS (SKILLS FOR KNOWLEDGE IN LEARNING AND LAW) (BLOCK TEACHING)
LAWS40626
Key Facts
Faculty of Business, Education and Law
Level 4
30 credits
Contact
Leader: Dennis Crighton
Email: D.Crighton@staffs.ac.uk
Hours of Study
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities: 48
Independent Study Hours: 252
Total Learning Hours: 300
Assessment
- EXAMINATION - UNSEEN IN EXAMINATION CONDITIONS weighted at 50%
- PORTFOLIO weighted at 50%
Module Details
Module Texts
Finch & Fafinski, Legal Skills, 2007, 1st Ed., OUP
Slapper G.D. and Kelly, D. (2005). The English Legal System, 7th ed. Cavendish, London
Module Indicative Content
The module is designed to provide law and non-law students with the necessary legal knowledge, learning, lawyering and personal enhancement skills to facilitate their current and future study of law. The module will focus on;
Areas of subject knowledge:
- court structure
- statutory interpretation
- doctrine of precedent
- legal personnel and key legal concepts
- funding
- Woolf reforms
- Human Rights Act 1998
- distribution between private and public remedies.
SKILLS
- Identifying, locating and retrieving legal materials using appropriate sources
- Reading cases and statutes
- Evaluating secondary materials
- Writing in academic forms and wider learning skills such reading, note-taking, time management, using feedback etc
- Problem solving and analysis
- Referencing of sources and the University's Regulations on Academic Dishonesty
- Professional Writing
- Client Interviewing
- Presentation Skills
- Group Work and Leadership
- An introduction to PDP & Employability
Module Learning Strategies
SKILLS
Learning will take place in 8 x 3 hour workshops which will run throughout the year. These will be supplemented by a further 2 e-sessions which will also last for approximately 2 hours each.
The workshop sessions are designed to facilitate the delivery of a skill in abstract and also the practice, development and mastery of that skill on a number of activities drawn from the L1 modules. The development of the skills should then be furthered by the module teams in their tutorial sessions.
This learning strategy is also underpinned by Skills Focus Session within Part time induction. This lays the foundations for the development of the skills programme over the rest of the year.
Directed study and independent learning: principally this will consist of follow up tasks from the workshop sessions and the e-sessions. These tasks are integrated into the programme of learning guidance in the Study Guide and also via further reading references and workshop handouts
TOTAL LEARNING TIME 150 hours
English Legal System
The lecture framework is designed to provide the student with the foundations of each topic. The lectures will be supported by small group sessions (24 hours in total). Self-directed study (126 hours) will provide the student with the opportunity to prepare for small group work and to carry out independent research as well as team working.
The lecture sessions will provide detailed information and a critique of the legal system and will be used to introduce students to the requisite skills. The small group sessions corresponding to the lectures on the English Legal System will test the students' knowledge of the material covered in the lecture sessions and will involve group discussions and collaborative tasks.
The study guide will provide a detailed programme of study, including reading for each session. Both the lectures and the small group sessions will require the students to undertake further study to enhance their knowledge and understanding. Independent study time will also provide the students with preparation time for research materials for small group sessions.
Total Learning Time 150 hour
Learning will take place in 8 x 3 hour workshops which will run throughout the year. These will be supplemented by a further 2 e-sessions which will also last for approximately 2 hours each.
The workshop sessions are designed to facilitate the delivery of a skill in abstract and also the practice, development and mastery of that skill on a number of activities drawn from the L1 modules. The development of the skills should then be furthered by the module teams in their tutorial sessions.
This learning strategy is also underpinned by Skills Focus Session within Part time induction. This lays the foundations for the development of the skills programme over the rest of the year.
Directed study and independent learning: principally this will consist of follow up tasks from the workshop sessions and the e-sessions. These tasks are integrated into the programme of learning guidance in the Study Guide and also via further reading references and workshop handouts
TOTAL LEARNING TIME 150 hours
English Legal System
The lecture framework is designed to provide the student with the foundations of each topic. The lectures will be supported by small group sessions (24 hours in total). Self-directed study (126 hours) will provide the student with the opportunity to prepare for small group work and to carry out independent research as well as team working.
The lecture sessions will provide detailed information and a critique of the legal system and will be used to introduce students to the requisite skills. The small group sessions corresponding to the lectures on the English Legal System will test the students' knowledge of the material covered in the lecture sessions and will involve group discussions and collaborative tasks.
The study guide will provide a detailed programme of study, including reading for each session. Both the lectures and the small group sessions will require the students to undertake further study to enhance their knowledge and understanding. Independent study time will also provide the students with preparation time for research materials for small group sessions.
Total Learning Time 150 hour
Module Resources
Access to appropriate texts, legislation and case law.
Module study guide.
Computing facilities will be needed to access material available on the web and specialist on-line databases.
Module Additional Assessment Details
An Exam (1.5 hrs) weighted at 50%.
An Individual Portfolio weighted at 50%.
The examination will take place during Teaching Block 2 and will assess Learning Outcomes 4-7.
The portfolio will be submitted during or at the end of Teaching Block 2 and will assess Learning Outcomes 1, 2 & 3.
Max 3000 words
To pass the module, students must achieve an overall mark of at least 25% in each piece of assessment and must achieve an average mark of at least 40%.
An Individual Portfolio weighted at 50%.
The examination will take place during Teaching Block 2 and will assess Learning Outcomes 4-7.
The portfolio will be submitted during or at the end of Teaching Block 2 and will assess Learning Outcomes 1, 2 & 3.
Max 3000 words
To pass the module, students must achieve an overall mark of at least 25% in each piece of assessment and must achieve an average mark of at least 40%.