| Unit name | On Being Unreasonable |
|---|---|
| Unit code | UNIV10012 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Sedgman |
| Open unit status | Open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Department of Theatre |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
In our divided age, it feels harder than ever to 'agree to disagree'. From climate protests to breastfeeding in public, neighbourhood vigilantism to the Colston Four – civil behaviour is breaking down. Civic debate has gone out the window. Civilised values like manners, order, and respect are being eroded. Why can't we all be reasonable?
The trouble is, what's 'reasonable' to one person is outrageous to another. Unpacking notions of civility throughout history, this unit will explain how prejudice and unfairness got baked into our social norms in the first place, dividing us along lines of gender, race, disability, sexuality, class… Is our propensity to measure human behaviour against rules and reason more problematic than it might seem? By exploring the lines we draw between acceptable and unacceptable, legal and illegal, good and bad, On Being Unreasonable asks whether it’s ever okay to act unreasonably to bring about positive social change.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
This will be an open unit that draws on innovative teaching practices and an interdisciplinary approach to engage with deep rooted ethical debates, drawing on the University of Bristol’s mission to facilitate and encourage civic engagement with communities both within our student community and beyond.
An overview of content
You will engage in project-based learning supported by experts from a range of disciplines. You will begin by being introduced to a series of case-studies by lecturers from departments throughout the university. You will then be guided to choose your own case-study of (un)reasonable behaviour to explore through research and writing practices appropriate to your level of study, which will be developed iteratively with your tutors week by week. This will teach you how to develop a research question, compile a literature review of existing academic scholarship, produce a 'thesis statement' summarising your argument, and develop a cohesive structure to make that argument as persuasively as possible.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
This unit will enable you to engage critically with an array of urgent contemporary debates, giving you the ability to use evidence to form opinions. As an individual scholar, it will develop your skills in critical thinking, research, and writing, including how to structure and evidence a persuasive scholarly argument suitable for future dissemination via undergraduate journals, public writing, and/or social media content.
Learning Outcomes
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Research proposal and Literature review (0%, not required for credit)
Tasks which do not count towards your unit mark but are required for credit (zero-weighted):
Participation in asynchronous, online tasks (0%, required for credit) [ILO1; ILO2]
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Thesis statement and Essay plan (Pass/Fail) (100%) [ILO3; ILO4]
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. UNIV10012).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
