Undergraduate Module Descriptor

SOC2062: How Organisations Work: Ethnography in Institutions

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

Module Aims

You will learn how to conduct an ethnographic research project through hands-on experience in combination with an introduction to landmark methodological texts in sociology and anthropology. Instruction will take the form of lectures and ‘practicums’ (where students will apply module concepts to their own ethnographic practice). Some will address challenges inherent in any ethnographic project (picking a site, negotiating with gatekeepers, elicitation techniques, the perils of participation, writing up, and disseminating findings). Others will focus in on characteristic social dynamics of contemporary institutions (reliance on infrastructure, written record-keeping, and the use of statistics). Through a guided project, you will conduct your own ethnographic study of a local institution and present your findings in both oral and written formats.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here – you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills	1. Demonstrate familiarity with the major contemporary social scientific approaches to the ethnographic study of institutions; 2. Show a developed understanding of specific aspects of ethnographic research like ethics, site selection, dealing with gatekeepers, building rapport, interviewing, participant observation, mapping, document analysis, writing up and the dissemination of findings;
Discipline-Specific Skills	3. Apply various theories and methodologies to a specific institutional case; 4. Critically assess claims about institutions and socio-political organization more generally; 5. Think critically about the social, political, and anthropological implications of institutions;
Personal and Key Skills	6. Communicate effectively in written and oral form; 7. Engage in cross-cultural translation and comparison; 8. Conduct research on a topic and organize findings in written form in a compelling manner.

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
Oral Presentation	10 minutes	1-8	Oral and 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
Ethics Assessment	30	1000 words	1-7	Written
Research Report	70	2500 words	1-8	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
Ethics Assessment	Ethics Assessment (1000 words)	1-7	August / September reassessment period
Research Report	Research Report (2500 words)	1-8	August / September reassessment period