Module POC2115 for 2018/9
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POC2115: Political Campaign Strategy
This module descriptor refers to the 2018/9 academic year.
Please note that this module is only delivered on the Penryn Campus.
Module Aims
This module aims to capture the historic, ethical and strategic dimensions of campaigns and locate them within a broader understanding of democratic government. You will explore campaigns as a pivotal site of democracy and examine to what extent campaigns can be understood as a legitimate and effective form of democratic action. You will examine case studies of political campaigns and learn practical campaigning skills through their assignments.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
---|---|
Module-Specific Skills | 1. Demonstrate good knowledge of the role of political campaigns in contemporary democracies through lectures, class discussion and submitted coursework; 2. Demonstrate good knowledge of how to develop a campaign plan and how to communicate strategically with constituents; |
Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. Demonstrate the capacity, through formative and summative coursework, to assimilate taught materials and utilise them to analyse different political campaigns; 4. Demonstrate knowledge of democratic theory and understand political campaigns in the context of democratic government; |
Personal and Key Skills | 5. Strategic communication skills; 6. Project planning skills; 7. Demonstrate critical argumentative skills. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:
- understanding the historical development of political campaigns in the twentieth century
- evaluating the democratic quality of political campaigns
- demonstrate knowledge of the most recent political and technical advances in polling, micro-targeting, political finance and
- understanding the basics of media strategies for election campaigns
- develop their own campaign plan
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 |
---|---|---|
22 | 128 |
...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 Activity | 22 | 11 x 2 hours seminars |
Guided independent study | 60 | directed reading; |
Guided independent study | 28 | essay preparation; |
Guided independent study | 40 | campaign plan preparation. |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
ELE – http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/
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 |
---|---|---|---|
Draft of Campaign Analysis | 500 words | 1-7 | Written |
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 | 40 | 2000 words | 1-7 | Written |
Campaign Plan | 40 | 2000 words | 1-7 | Written |
Class Participation | 20 | 1-7 | Written |
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 (2000 words) | 1-7 | August/September re-assessment period |
Campaign Plan | Essay (2000 words) | 1-7 | August/September re-assessment period |
Class Participation | Oral Presentation (30 minutes) | 1-7 | August/September re-assessment period |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Ronald A. Faucheux, Winning Elections: Political Campaign Management, Strategy and Tactics (Rowman and Littlefield, 2003)
Michael John Burton and Daniel M. Shea, Campaign Craft The Strategies, Tactics and Art of Political Campaign Management, 4th Edition, (Praeger Publishers, 2010 )
Michael McNamara, The Political Campaign Desk Reference A Guide For Campaign Managers and Candidates Running for Elected Office 2nd edition (Outskirts Press, 2012)