Undergraduate Module Descriptor

POL3275: The Politics and Policies of Youth Engagement

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

Module Aims

The module will provide you with:

  • Comprehensive knowledge of the competing theoretical explanations for the causes of youth disengagement, including the role of social capital, socialisation, political literacy, exclusion, and efficacy.
  • A critical understanding of the nature and sustainability of democratic practice in established systems, within which the issue of youth engagement is framed
  • The opportunity to evaluate policy responses to the issue in the UK and a selection of EU countries, including the agenda and discussions of the new UK All Party Parliamentary Group on Political Literacy
  • A global perspective on the changing nature and need for youth engagement in civic and political life

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 Skills1. Critically evaluate the key theories of youth disengagement in relation to causes and consequences
2. Explain and question the conceptual and practical changes to participation from a global perspective, utilising quantitative data
3. Identify and discuss political issues and framing in youth participation policy and discourse
Discipline-Specific Skills4. Appraise the implications of research methods on measuring political concepts
5. Deploy theoretical arguments and apply them to empirical case studies
Personal and Key Skills6. Demonstrate proficiency in the use of the internet, online journal databases and other IT resources for the purposes of tutorial and assessment preparation.
7. Implement the ability to communicate clearly and effectively in discussion and feedback with peers
8. Write clearly and coherently to construct rigorous arguments