Postgraduate Module Descriptor

LAWM145: Dignity, Democracy and the Law

This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover all or some of the following topics:

Human dignity and democracy: a global phenomenon
Philosophical roots
Human dignity and human rights after 1945
Human dignity and democracy (Council of Europe)
Human dignity and civilisation (ECHR)
Human dignity as first foundational value of the EU (Treaty of Lisbon)
Human dignity under the EU Charter (Treaty of Lisbon)
Dignity democracy: key theories and core issues
The role of law in promoting dignity democracy

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
33	117	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	33	22 x 1.5 hour interactive workshops (two per week). Initially, the lecturer will lead workshops, with students expected to become gradually more involved in defining the workshops focus and in leading them.
Guided independent study	50	Workshop preparation
Guided independent study	67	Reflection, research, and the preparation of formative and summative assessments.

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

ECJ case law: http://curia.europa.eu

ECHR case law: http://www.echr.coe.int/

Venice Commission: http://www.venice.coe.int/

ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/

Other Learning Resources

Primary legal materials (e.g treaties, constitutions, case law etc ….) as available on official websites
Relevant and authoritative blog posts
Selected video clips/podcasts as available on youtube, media webpages, and official organisations.

How this Module is Assessed

In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.

Formative Assessment

A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.

Form of assessment	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Essay plan and draft introduction	500 words	1-7	Individual written feedback and general comments to the whole cohort as relevant.

Summative Assessment

A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.

Coursework	Written exams	Practical exams
100	0	0

...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.

Form of assessment	% of credit	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Essay (on a topic determined by the student in consultation with the module convenor)	100	3,750 words	1-7	Written comments on the feedback sheet, with the opportunity for an individual meeting with the lecturer for further oral feedback.

Re-assessment

Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.

Original form of assessment	Form of re-assessment	ILOs re-assessed	Timescale for re-assessment
Essay	Essay (as above; 3,750 words)	1-7	August/September re-assessment period