Keele Badge

PIR-30158 - Module Specification
School of Social Sciences
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

For academic year: 2024/25 Last Updated: 27 April 2024

PIR-30158 - Civil Rights in the United States
Coordinator: Jonathan Parker Room: CBB2.029 Tel: +44 1782 7 33547
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 6
Credits: 15
Study Hours: 150
School Office:

Programme/Approved Electives for 2024/25

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2024/25

Civil Rights are one of the most important issues in American politics today. Issues of race and equality can be seen in some of the most prominent political movements in recent years. The #metoo movement, the @blacklivesmatter movement, and other prominent groups have campaigned for changes in how the values of equality are protected in the United States. Issues of racial equality, criminal justice reform, women¿s rights, LGBT+ rights, abortion, and voting rights have all been very high on the political agenda in recent years. The Supreme Court is the main battleground on which many of these controversies are fought. This module examines the role of the Supreme Court in American politics and evaluates the current state of rights through its rulings and impact.

Aims
This module analyses how the Supreme Court makes decisions. It evaluates the state of constitutional rights and impact of the courts rulings in key areas such as free speech, racial equality, women's rights, religion, abortion, the right to bear arms, and voting rights.

Intended Learning Outcomes

describe how the Supreme Court makes decisions on issues of constitutional rights and evaluate how these approaches have been applied to specific cases: 1,2
describe important legal cases that establish particular rights and analyse why the Court decided each case as well as its wider impact: 1,2
critically analyse the role of the Supreme Court in the American political system through its rulings on important issues around rights and equality: 2
apply the precedents of important Supreme Court rulings to hypothetical cases or issues: 2

Study hours

Seminars: 24 hours
Seminar preparation: 54 Hours
Preparation for Case Review: 24 Hours
Revision for Examination: 46 hours
Examination: 2 Hours

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Case Study weighted 40%
Case Review
Describe the facts of a Supreme Court case from a list of 15 provided titles. Analyse how and why the Court ruled on that case. Evaluate its implications for future cases and its overall impact in a paper of 1200 words.

2: Exam weighted 60%
2 hour exam
The exam will require students to answer two questions from a selection of 6-8 from the major themes studied in the module. Students will be asked to describe historical legal precedents and apply them to particular hypothetical cases or issues as well as critically analysing the role of the Court in these political issues.

Please note that for the 2022/23 Academic Year programmes may be adapted to operate in accordance with a flexible, digital approach. This means that there may be some changes made to how modules are delivered and assessed. The latest information will be provided to you by your School in module handbooks. We endeavour to give you as much notice as possible of any changes and details about the circumstance in which changes are made to programmes can be found in the Student Agreement, available at: https://www.keele.ac.uk/student-terms-and-conditions/

Last Updated: 27 April 2024