Governance Placement Scheme

POLI71090 Governance Placement Scheme 15 Full year Postgraduate Taught Level 6 Elizabeth Richardson Unit coordinator Politics 1 FHEQ level (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) ' Masters/Integrated Masters P4 ' European Credit Transfer & Accumulation System Rating : 7.5 Using political science to analyse the world helps build our understanding of real world processes, structures and dynamics; we use theory to shine a light on policy and practice.  But policy and practice also inform and challenge our theoretical understandings.  This course unit is designed to bring together theory and practice across a broad range of literatures in public policy, governance, civic participation and democracy, and applied political science. Students get 5 days on vocational placement with Greater Manchester- and North West-based organisations (sometimes further afield).  The placement organisations are involved in a variety of practices and roles, including policy design, implementation, assessment, and adaptation; local governance structures, processes and networks; civic participation and democratic activity; applied research. The placements will be organised by the course tutor.  Students will be given the chance to work with practitioners and volunteers from organisations across the public, voluntary, community and private sectors.  They can include local government, research think tanks, and community organisations.  Placements depend on the availability and capacity of local organisations, which can vary depending on finding and policy pressures.  Details of the specific placements will be available week commencing (w/c) 13th November 2017.Students use their existing reading, from across their other taught modules, to critically reflect on the literature in the light of policy practice, while also evaluating policy and practice by situating it in academic literature.  This module is designed to involve minimal additional or new academic literature and reading.  Instead, the focus is on thinking about how these theories and ideas might be applied to concrete situations in the placements, how they help illuminate real life dynamics.  This is not just a one-way reflection.  In this module, we also want to explore how placement experiences might challenge, critique or nuance existing theories. In semester one, students will attend two seminars which will cover an introduction to the unit and preparation for the placement.  There will be individual interviews for placement allocation.  Placements will be allocated by the course convenor on the basis of student selection and matching of placement organisations’ requirements to students’ skills and preferences.In the second semester, students will spend a minimum of 40 hours with a placement organisation, undertaking tasks to meet a set of objectives which will be negotiated with the placement organisation, which will provide day-to-day supervision of work during the placement.  Placements must be completed no later than the end of week nine in semester two.During their placement, students will record their experience through a non-assessed placement diary. Confidential placement diaries are completed online via the Bb discussion pages and be accessible to the student and course convenor.  The diary supports students to produce their assessed reflective essay, and offer a channel for academic supervision and formative online feedback as the placement progresses.After completion of the placement, there would be a seminar for students to debrief on their placements, and as additional teaching/preparation for the assessment. Information about the placements <ul> <li> Minimum of forty hours (approximately five days) in between January and March 2017. The exact dates (and details) to be negotiated with the organisations by you. Some are more flexible than others.</li> <li> Some of the placements are in Manchester, others are further afield.  All are accessible by public transport.  For placements outside Manchester, or with smaller organisations, arrangements can be made for working from home or the University.</li> <li> Some placements are more hands-on; others are more research-based. All offer great opportunities.  Issues of public policy and governance, and/or civic participation and democracy, and/or applied political science inform all of their work.</li> <li> Roles of placement: I have specified placement tasks where known.  However, most of these are flexible and to be negotiated with the placement organisation themselves.</li> <li> I try and make sure that I know all the organisations and people personally.  I have hand-picked opportunities that will work for them, and for you.  They genuinely want to give a student a meaningful experience and get a useable output.</li></ul> The course unit aims to:<ul> <li> Examine concrete and specific policy and practice problems with which the placement organisations are engaged.</li> <li> Explore the relationship between theories and practices of public policy and governance, and/or civic participation and democracy, and/or applied political science.</li> <li> Show the implications of these theories and practices in a local environment.</li> <li> Deliver work experience relevant for employability within organisations which play roles in public policy and/or governance and/or civic participation and democracy.</li> <li> Assist placement organisations with research, development, and delivery of projects.</li></ul> On completion of this unit successful students will be able to demonstrate the following intellectual, practical and transferable skills:<ul> <li> Relate theoretical issues to concrete practices and policy in the placement organisation.</li> <li> Critically assess policy and practices in the placement organisations through the application of knowledge gained via taught modules.</li> <li> Analyse and re-assess relevant theory in light of ground-level practice.</li> <li> Deliver the placement organisations’ project requirements within the timescale.</li> <li> Deploy research and analysis skills as required by the placement organisations’ project.</li></ul> This course will utilise interactive learning and teaching strategies. Students will be expected to take part in a variety of the placement organisations’ activities as required. Seminars will provide peer exchange, and feedback from the tutor.  The course tutor will be involved in supervision of the students’ essays. 0 Other 100% <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="width:562px;" width="766"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width:140px;"> Assessed essay</td> <td style="width:123px;"> 3,000 words</td> <td style="width:299px;"> 100%</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:140px;"> Placement Diary</td> <td style="width:123px;"> As specified</td> <td style="width:299px;"> 0% but must be appended to assessed essay</td> </tr> </tbody></table>  Students will get formative feedback from the course tutor and also peer feedback in seminars.  Students keep a placement diary. NOTE: prerequistes for this course are one of the following courses:either POLI70271 Understanding Governance;or, POLI70771 Philosophy of Politics;or, POLI 70871 Democracy: Theory and Practice;or, POLI70892 Governance and the Welfare StateOR, MGDI60391 Politics and Governance of DevelopmentOr by arrangment N Seminars 10 Placement 40 100 <table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" height="487" width="622"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:21px;"> Indication of interest in module</td> <td style="width:276px;height:21px;"> Enrolment - Dates subject to change</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="width:624px;height:21px;"> First semester</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:39px;"> Briefing session about course </td> <td style="width:276px;height:39px;"> Thursday 19th October 2017  (week 4)</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:39px;"> Specific placement details available </td> <td style="width:276px;height:39px;"> w/c 13th Nov (week 8)</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:39px;"> Preparation for the theory elements</td> <td style="width:276px;height:39px;"> Thurs 16th Nov 10am-12pm (week 8)</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:33px;"> Placement selection form to Liz by email</td> <td style="width:276px;height:33px;"> Wednesday 22nd Nov (week 9)</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:8px;"> 10-minute interviews</td> <td style="width:276px;height:8px;"> By individual appointment, w/c 27th Nov (week 10)</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:13px;"> Assignment to placements</td> <td style="width:276px;height:13px;"> By end of semester (mid-December 2017)</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="width:624px;height:6px;"> Second semester</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:6px;"> Optional placement briefing/support session</td> <td style="width:276px;height:6px;"> TBC</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:6px;"> Placements</td> <td style="width:276px;height:6px;"> 40 hours in between January and end of March 2017</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:6px;"> Post-placement and essay briefing session</td> <td style="width:276px;height:6px;"> Thursday 22nd March 2018</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:348px;height:6px;"> Essay submission</td> <td style="width:276px;height:6px;"> Friday 20th April 2018</td> </tr> </tbody></table>