FACULTY OF HUMANITIES

SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

POLITICS

COURSE UNIT OUTLINE 2022-23

POLI 20802 – THE POLITICS OF POLICY-MAKING

Semester: 2 Credits: 20

Lecturers: Luke Bhatia & Tim Oliver

Tutors: Tim Oliver & Anthony Noun

Office: Arthur Lewis Building 4th floor

Phone/text: 0161 306 8027

Emails: luke.bhatia@manchester.ac.uk / timothy.oliver@manchester.ac.uk

anthony.noun@postgrad.manchester.ac.uk

Office Hours:
Luke: Email for an appointment
Tim: Weds 12.30 – 2.30 Email for an appointment
Anthony: Email for an appointment

Lectures: Friday 1 - 3pm

Zochonis_TH B
The lectures will be recorded so that you can watch them
asynchronously as well. You can access them through the video
portal.

Tutorials: Starting in week 2 (w/c 6th February)

For your tutorial arrangements look out for your new timetables.
Allocate yourself to a tutorial group using the Student System.

Assessment: 40% assessed essay of 2,600 words, due Monday 20th March 2023 at
2pm.
60% two hour exam

Examination period: Monday 15th May – Friday 11th June

Easter Break: Monday 27th April – Friday 16th April

Administrators: ugsoss@manchester.ac.uk
UG Office G.001 Arthur Lewis Building

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 ***IMPORTANT INFORMATION – PLEASE READ***
Assessed essay hand in date: Monday 20th March 2023

This guide should be read in conjunction with the Politics Part 2 Guide available on Blackboard.
Other crucial information, including tutorial tasks, lecture slides and any additional readings will be
posted on Blackboard.

Communication: Students must read their University e-mails regularly, as important information will
be communicated in this way. There will also be announcements on Blackboard.

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Contents of this guide Page

1. Aims and learning outcomes 2

2. Course content 2
3. Intended learning outcomes 3
4. Employability outcomes 3
5. Topic Guide 4
6. Lectures 4
7. Tutorials 4
8. Assessment 5
9. Extensions 6
10. Feedback 7
11. Reading and other resources for the course 8

Appendix 1. Past assessed essay question example 12

Appendix 2. Past exam question example 13
Appendix 3: Example of a tutorial task 14
Appendix 4: How we mark assessed essays and exams 15

Background

1. Aims and learning outcomes

This course will aim to provide students with conceptual and empirical insights into the
development and implementation of public policies. On completion students should
possess an understanding of models of policy-making and implementation and be able to
apply this understanding to contemporary policy examples. Case studies will be examined
and will include examples from current policy agendas.

2. Course content

Public policies have far reaching consequences for citizens ranging from the restriction of
liberty to the provision of free school meals. Governments need policy interventions to act.
Ministers cannot directly arrest criminals, provide health care to patients or teach this
module. Rather Governments must act through such means as making or amending
legislation, the allocation of public expenditure, executive and regulatory action, ‘nudge’
and other informational tools, and manipulating the 'machinery of government' in various
ways, all of which are in themselves very political processes.

Common perceptions of contemporary public policy are that a widening range of actors and
agencies are involved, but that government works harder to implement policy 'on the
ground'. Increasingly Governments are seeking not only to respond to political demands but
to shape agendas and encourage behavior change from citizens. ‘Policy’ is thus the means
by which politics is connected to government activity in the real world.

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The main aim of the course is to provide conceptual and empirical insights into the
development and implementation of public policy. Contemporary case studies will be used
drawing on relevant fields, such as health and social care, criminal justice, and other topical
policy cases. The primary focus in the lectures is on case studies from the UK, but examples
from around the world are very welcome in tutorials, essays and exams. Much of the
academic literature is directly relevant to policy-making across different countries in the
global north.

This course unit aims to extend knowledge about power and the nature of government into
thinking about how governments seek to address perceived problems. It also seeks to make
connections in the opposite direction, i.e. from knowledge of social problems, to thinking
about governmental strategies for addressing them. The module is designed to equip
students with conceptual tools to interpret and analyse governmental interventions in a
range of policy areas.

We have begun work to diversify the module. As part of this, we are keen to develop the
focus of the module to meaningfully engage with thinkers and perspectives that represent
the broad range of experiences of people from different backgrounds and identities. This is
a work-in-progress and we welcome suggestions and ideas from students to do this.

3. Intended learning outcomes

On completion of the course unit, students should be able to

• Demonstrate a critical awareness of the role of concepts and theories applicable to
the study of public policy-making.
• Apply relevant concepts and theories to substantive case material drawn from the
field of public policy.
• Use electronic resources to identify relevant empirical material, summarise key ideas
and concepts both in writing and verbally, and work in small groups.

4. Employability outcomes (how this module relates to getting work experience and paid
jobs)

This is a great module for students wishing to develop and demonstrate skills that can be
applied in a wide range of different jobs, voluntary roles, internships and work placements.
It could be particularly useful for people considering careers in the civil service, journalism,
think tanks, research and policy, and charitable organisations.

It requires students to:

- grasp detailed and concrete policy and political problems across a range of topics, places
and contexts
- understand the challenges and difficulties of making good decisions, and making things
happen as intended, in policy and practice
- understand how processes of problem identification and problem solving might be
improved

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Teaching and Learning

5. Topic Guide

Before each lecture the lecture slides will be on Blackboard. Also shown will be the tutorial
task for the topic.

The topics for the lectures each week are:

Lecture
Week 1 03 Feb Intro: What is policy-making? Course overview (LB)
Week 2 10 Feb Topic 1 Power and policy-making (LB)
Week 3 17 Feb Topic 2 Citizen participation in policy-making (LB)
Week 4 24 Feb Topic 3 Tools of policy (FA)
Week 5 03 Mar Topic 4 Policy framing (LB)
Week 6 10 Mar Topic 5 Bureaucracy, bureaucrats & policy-making (TO)
Week 7 17 Mar Topic 6 The implementation process (TO)
Assessed essay hand in Monday 20th March
Week 8 24 Mar Topic 7 Street level bureaucrats (AN)
*** Easter Break 27 March – 16 April ***
Week 9 21 Apr Topic 8 Policy evaluation (TO)
Week 10 28 Apr Topic 9 Revision lectures (TO)
Exam between 15 May and 11th June
th

6. Lectures

There is one 2-hour lecture per week which will give an overview of the topic and introduce
the concepts and theories involved and relate this to contemporary policy examples. The
lecture will also set out the tutorial activity associated with this topic. Some lectures will
include participatory exercises as needed to understand the material. Lecture notes will be
provided on blackboard as well as the relevant tutorial task activity. There will also be
additional readings for essay preparation or exam revision.

7. Tutorials

Tutorials are the following week after a lecture. The tutorials are designed to make sure all
students have grasped the basic material, and feel confident developing their own ideas.
Tutorials will use a range of methods to help all students to participate. More detailed
instructions on each tutorial will be explained in the lecture and made available on
Blackboard. There is an example of a tutorial task from previous years in Appendix 3 in this
document.

Each week you are expected to read the key text/s. You may be asked to provide a synopsis
or consider questions based around the ideas in the article.

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All weeks will need to look at concrete policy examples for the topic being discussed.
Sometimes the policy examples used will be from the core reading for the tutorial.

Sometimes you will be asked to research and gather material on a policy example to
bring to the tutorial group. A list of electronic sources for policy examples follows the
guidance on academic sources below. We encourage you to consider and include a wide
range of examples, including those from outside of Britain in these sessions. Please feel
free to bring examples from your home countries and/or countries you have
encountered in previous study.

8. Assessment

Assessment will be by:

• one assessed essay of 2,600 words, worth 40% of the final mark;
• a two hour exam answering two questions, worth 60% of the final mark

Assessed essay questions

The assessed essay questions are designed to relate to the first two topics of the module.
You chose one of the two to answer. The essay is due in on the 20th March 2023. ***The
questions can be found on Blackboard.***

There is an example of assessed essay questions from a previous year in Appendix 1 of this
course guide. There is an opportunity for informal feedback on essay plans in weeks 5 and
7.

Figures, charts and diagrams are permitted in the assessed essay. They are not included in
the word count. Refer to any charts or figures in the text, e.g. 'as shown in Figure 1, these
arguments can be summarised into four categories'. Then insert the Figures at the end of
the essay so you can word count without including them. Diagrams, figures and charts are
sometimes particularly useful as an aid to illustrate your argument and analysis. So, it is
permitted, but not required, expected or compulsory to have one. You will not be marked
down if one is not included.

Exam questions
The exam questions will relate to the last six topics of the module and you will be expected
to answer two questions in the exam. Past exam questions can be found on the University
past papers website http://documents.manchester.ac.uk/pastexams.aspx

There are also sample exam questions from previous years in Appendix 2 of this course
guide.

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Criteria for assessment
The general criteria for assessment at higher 1st, 1st, 2.1 etc can be found in the Politics Part
2 guide (http://www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/student-
intranet/undergraduate/course-information/politics/).

There is a detailed guide to how to get each mark (1st, 2.1 etc) in Appendix 4 at the end of
this course guide.

There are some general tips on essay writing in the Politics Part 2 guide. In summary:
- Make an argument! Do NOT use the format you had in school or sixth form of ‘on
one hand’, ‘on the other hand’, and in conclusion. Instead, you need to come down
on one side or the other, from the start and stick to your argument!
- Give a basic outline of the argument in summary at the start – do not wait until the
conclusion to say what you believe
- For this module- use practical real world examples, that you have researched and
have details about. Use the news as inspiration.
- Make the point of each paragraph explicit “this means that….”, “the point here is…”
- Use your conclusion to say something interesting, as well as summarise the
argument. Reflect on your argument, so what? what does all this mean for the
world? for social change? for what other questions we should ask.....?

9. Extensions

Different schools have different procedures for submitting mitigating circumstances

requests. You MUST submit applications through your home schools procedures regardless
of whether it is a politics essay.

Applying for extensions and mitigating circumstances:

If you are a student in the School of Social Sciences (SoSS), then apply directly online:
https://www.qualtrics.manchester.ac.uk/jfe/form/SV_0liXyxtgSjq22ai

You do not need to email to apply for extensions, just fill out the form. If you have extra
questions about extensions and mitigating circumstances, contact:
soss.mitcircs@manchester.ac.uk

Or for SoSS students, and you prefer to talk to someone face to face, you can visit the Student
Support Hub for all Postgraduate and Undergraduate queries. The Student Support Hub is
located on the ground floor of the Arthur Lewis Building and open Monday to Friday 9am-
5pm.

If you are in the School of Arts, Languages and Culture (SALC), then use this form:
https://www.qualtrics.manchester.ac.uk/jfe/form/SV_eagoCeOVfYx0MQe

For more information about how to get help if you are based in another School:
https://www.studentsupport.manchester.ac.uk/uni-services-az/school-support/

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Late Submission of Essays
There will be a penalty of 10 points per day for up to 5 days (including weekends) for any
assessed work submitted after the specified submission date, unless the student’s Home
School grants an extension. After 5 days a mark of 0 will be assigned.
Please note a "day" is 24 hours, i.e. the clock starts ticking as soon as the submission deadline
has passed. There are no discretionary periods or periods of grace. A student who submits
work at 1 second past a deadline or later will therefore be subject to a penalty for late
submission.

10. Feedback

The School of Social Sciences is committed to providing timely and appropriate feedback to
students on their academic progress and achievement.

Before hand-in
There are opportunities for informal feedback on assessed essay plans.

Students can get extra feedback before or after hand-in at other times through:
- office hour appointments. We encourage to students to make use of office hours to
clarify thinking and to get one-to-one feedback. They are also an opportunity for you
to give us feedback and let us know how the module is going for you.
- e-mailing Luke, Tim and Anthony.
- asking questions (before, during, and after lectures)
- feedback on how the whole class did during lectures
- during tutorials
- hand-writing ideas, plans, or notes, and sending a photo of them to the lecturers, or
handing in your scribbles

After hand-in/marks released

The main form of written feedback after hand-in is feedback on your assessed essay. You
will get these comments in lots of time to help with revision for the exam.

The policy in Politics is that feedback is usually given within 15 working days of the hand-in
date unless there are holiday periods (including Easter), where the feedback might take
longer.

Politics guidelines on how much written feedback you get on assessments are:
• essays of 1,500 words will have commentaries roughly in the region of 70-100 words
• essays of 2,000 words will have commentaries roughly in the region of 80-120 words
• essays of 3,000 words will have commentaries roughly in the region of 100-150
words

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11. Reading and other resources for the course

There are a few textbooks which between them will provide good overview of most of the
topics covered. The library has arranged for multiple copies and/or e-copies of these books
to be made available. The reading list for this course has also been digitized. You can access
it via ‘Reading Lists Online’ from the library website and searching ‘POLI20802.’

Reading Lists Online:

https://manchester.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/leganto/readinglist/lists

Three core books are [all available online]:

Cairney, Paul (2016) The Politics of Evidence-based Policy Making, Houndmills, Palgrave
Cairney, Paul (2012) Understanding Public Policy: Theories and Issues, Houndmills, Palgrave
Knill, Christoph and Tonsun, Jale. (2012) Public Policy: A New Introduction, Houndmills,
Palgrave

The following three books also give good overviews of the conceptual material and would
be valuable for providing background reading on most topics.

Hill, Michael. (2005) The Public Policy Process, Harlow, Pearson Education. [available online]
This is a good basic text book which will have sections on most of the topic areas above. If
you were going to buy one book I would recommend this one

Hudson, John and Lowe, Stuart. (2009) Understanding the Policy Process, Bristol, Policy
Press.
This book is designed for those with a particular interest in social and welfare policies.

Parsons, Wayne. (1995) Public Policy: an introduction, Aldershot, Edward Elgar Press.
This is a detailed and comprehensive text book which will cover most of the concepts and
theories covered by the course. An absolute classic in its day.

This recent book offers an alternative normative perspective and critique of conventional
policy designs (spot one of the authors…)

Durose, C. and Richardson, L. (2016) Designing public policy for co-production: theory,
practice and change, Bristol, The Policy Press [available online]
A critique of conventional approaches to policy-making, and proposed alternative co-
productive approach, including 12 ‘vignette’ examples of policy from the UK and the USA.

The following are also recommended as relevant:

John, P. et al (2011) Nudge, nudge, think, think: experimenting with ways to change civic
behavior, London, Bloomsbury Academic [available online]
Introductory sections especially.

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John, P. (2012) Analyzing Public Policy, 2nd Edition, Abingdon, Oxon, Routledge [available
online]
This is a comprehensive critique of some of the broad social science approaches which
underpin the analysis of public policy, excellent to provide an overview of the literature and
of the strengths and weaknesses of how to study public policy.

King, A. and Crewe, I. (2013) The Blunders of Our Governments, London, Oneworld Books
[available online]
An illuminating read on some of major policy failures, with good empirical examples,
although only a limited theoretical analysis of the causes.

Moran, M., Rein, M. and Goodin, R. (2008) The Oxford Handbook of Public Policy, Oxford,
Oxford University Press [available online]
This is an excellent (but expensive) collection of articles covering all aspects of public policy
theorizing. Probably beyond the budget to buy but good for reference.

Information sources and electronic resources for this course

Texts
Useful material is highlighted here and on BB. These could be supplemented with literature
searches for example using the University Library (http://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/)
‘search resources’; or International Bibliography of Social Science (IBSS). It is also useful to
look at the bibliographies of material you already have, this often indicates further relevant
material.

Journals
In addition, to texts, it is worthwhile to look at appropriate journals as these publications
convey innovative ideas in the discipline, summarise original research and often offer more
concise explanations of ideas found in full texts. Relevant journals for this course include:
Policy and Politics, Social Policy and Society, Critical Social Policy, Social Policy and
Administration, Journal of Social Policy, Public Administration, Governance, Public
Administration Review, Political Studies, British Journal of Politics and International Relations.

Media sources
As well as the BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/politics/) you should also check the websites
of quality papers, for example The Guardian, The Independent, The Times, The Telegraph, The
Financial Times which often have specialist articles and features and to search for articles on
a specific topic. Listen to the Today programme on Radio 4 in the mornings – this will provide
inspiration for many policy examples – useful if you are stuck for ideas.

Government
The Government provides a lot of information about its activity online, this can be a useful
resource. A good place to start for information about how Government works is
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/

Individual departments have their own websites, providing more specific information about
their policies, initiatives and work. For example, Department for Communities and Local

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Government (DCLG) https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-
communities-and-local-government, the Home Office, www.homeoffice.gov.uk, Department
of Health, www.dh.gov.uk, Department for Work and Pensions www.dwp.gov.uk. You can
also sign up for updates and newsletters on a particular policy area or initiative.

To look at how a policy is implemented and delivered in particular area, it may also be useful
to look at the websites of the government agencies, for example
http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/ for the Borders Agency or at the websites for a particular
council, for example Salford City Council www.salford.gov.uk

Parliament
Visit http://www.parliament.uk/ to access House of Commons debates on policy issues and
particularly the work of the various select committees who shadow the work of each
Government department and who often provide an overview of contemporary pressing policy
or political problems and fascinating transcripts of their investigations.

Political Parties
Political parties provide some information online about their policies and perspectives on
social issues:
Labour: http://www.labour.org.uk/
Conservatives: www.conservatives.com
Liberal Democrats: www.libdems.org.uk

Blogs
As well as the political bloggers two really relevant blogs postings come from:

http://www.policy.manchester.ac.uk/blogs/
http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/british-politics-and-policy-at-lse/

Twitter
This is increasingly important in government organizations, individual politicians and
academics as well as social commentators sharing information and links to relevant reports
and other electronic media. Just google the relevant name or # and sign up. Lots of members
of staff in Politics and across the University have twitter feeds like @FrancescaGains
@UoMPolicy, and other useful people include @peterjohn10 and @CairneyPaul

Research institutes/ think tanks

Think tanks carry out innovative, challenging and accessible research. Much of it is often free
to download. Some notable think tanks conducting relevant research are:

• Think tanks (research and disseminating information)

Institute of Fiscal Studies: www.ifs.org.uk

National Institute of Economic and Social Research: www.niesr.ac.uk

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Policy Studies Institute: www.psi.org.uk
Institute for Government https://instituteforgovernment.org.uk

• Think tanks loosely associated with the centre right or political right

Adam Smith Institute: www.adamsmith.org

Centre for Policy Studies: www.cps.org.uk
Institute of Economic Affairs: www.iea.org.uk
Respublica: http://www.respublica.org.uk/
Social Affairs Unit: www.socialaffairsunit.org.uk

• Think tanks loosely associated with the centre, centre left or New (and New Old!) Labour

DEMOS: www.demos.co.uk
Fabian Society: www.fabian-society.org.uk
Institute for Public Policy Research: www.ippr.org.uk
Joseph Rowntree Foundation: www.jrf.org.uk
Social Market Foundation: http://www.smf.co.uk/

• Think tanks associated with race, equality and justice

Runnymede Trust
Institute of Race Relations

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Appendix 1. Past assessed essay question example

POLI20802 Assessed Essay 2020-21

The assessed essay is worth 50% of the overall assessment for this module. It should be
around 2,600 words long. Politics operate a +/- 10% rule. You will be penalised by a mark
deduction of up to 5 points if your work is over or under the word length by more than 10%.
So the permitted range is 2,340 to 2,860 words.

Hand-in: Monday 22 March 2021, electronically through Turnitin, by 2pm. You will receive
instructions as usual from the administrators on this, including ID numbers, font size etc.

Answer one of the following two questions:

Either

1. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the powercube in understanding policy
issues? Discuss the various academic theories, using an applied real-life example or
examples.
Or

2. “Citizen participation in policy making leads to better policy.” Discuss making

reference to the academic literature and at least one empirical example.

The reference list at the end of the essay (Bibliography) is NOT included in the word count.
Citations in the text in Harvard e.g. (Richardson, 2018), are included.

You need to include a correctly formatted reference list (bibliography). There could be up to
10 points deducted for incorrectly formatted citations and references. See the Politics Part 2
Guide on Blackboard for more details.

The balance between your theoretical argument about the academic literature, and your
policy examples, should be roughly about 75-80% for the theory to 20-25% for the example
or examples, or evidence as appropriate.

Figures, charts and diagrams are permitted in the assessed essay. They are not included in
the word count. Refer to any charts or figures in the text, e.g. 'as shown in Figure 1, these
arguments can be summarised into four categories'. Then insert the Figures at the end of the
essay so you can word count without including them. Diagrams, figures and charts are
sometimes particularly useful as an aid to illustrate your argument and analysis. So, it is
permitted, but not required, expected or compulsory to have one. You will not be marked
down if one is not included.

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Appendix 2. Past exam question example

POLI20802 Exam (re-sits) 2017-18

1. What are the problems with policies for citizen participation in policy-making and how
could these be overcome? Make your argument with reference to the academic literature
and one or more practical examples.

2. Compare and contrast the use of competing narratives in policy-making. Use academic
theory and concrete policy examples.

3. Is it the case that civil servants are more neutral than special political advisors in policy-
making? Discuss this in relation to the academic literature, plus examples of one or more
senior civil servants, as well as the evidence on SPADs.

4. What are the most persuasive arguments for what causes implementation failure? Draw
on the academic literature and concrete policy examples.

5. What happens if street level bureaucrats are given more discretion? Draw on academic
theory and empirical material to support your arguments.

6. Critically discuss the claim that policy-makers engage in Policy-Based Evidence Making
(PBEM), rather than Evidence-Based Policy-Making (EBPM). Use academic theory and policy
examples to support your arguments.

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Appendix 3: example of a tutorial task

1. Tutorial task (academic reading)

In this textbook: Hill, Michael. (2013) The Public Policy Process, Harlow, Pearson Education.
Read pages 102-105 and 192-202, also 227-232. Make notes of roughly 200 words,
summarising the core arguments about whether bureaucrats are neutral, or not.

2. Tutorial task part 2 – concrete policy examples

Browse this blog: https://constitution-unit.com/2011/04/05/spads-who-they-are-what-
they-do-why-they-exist%E2%80%94and-why-they-will-continue-to-be-appointed/

And read these short newspaper pieces: https://www.theguardian.com/public-leaders-

network/2018/feb/05/civil-servants-defender-shout-long-and-loud-brexit-criticism

https://www.civilserviceworld.com/articles/news/step-back-alastair-campbell-days-
%E2%80%93-committee-chair-bernard-jenkin-questions-fresh

Then, research and select 1 senior civil servant, and 1 Special Political Adviser (SPAD) of
your choice, from any UK administration.

Examples of senior civil servants: Examples of SPADs:

- Gus O’Donnell (aka ‘GOD’) - Damien McBride
- Sue Gray - Jo Moore
- Jeremy Heywood - Steve Hilton
- Robert Armstrong - Alistair Campbell
- Amyas Morse - Adam Smith
- Michael Wilshaw - Andy Coulson

Look for speeches they have made, or features written about them. Use resources such as
this, e.g. Civil Service World magazine (!):
https://www.civilserviceworld.com/articles/briefing/perm-secs-round-2015-whitehalls-top-
civil-servants-review-year-%E2%80%93-and-look-ahead

and this: https://www.civilserviceworld.com/articles/interview/ofsted-chief-michael-

wilshaw-im-accused-being-too-outspoken-%E2%80%93-ill-never-stop

https://www.themandarin.com.au/10851-lord-gus-odonnellleadership-and-reform-in-the-
public-sector-a-tale-of-two-countries/

Make notes on what you feel their motivations were/are, and what evidence and examples
support your arguments.

*Bonus extra*
If you are also feeling extra keen, then skim read this accessible journal article:
Page, E. (2010) ‘Has the Whitehall Model survived?’ International Review of Administrative
Sciences, 76(3): 407-423. http://ras.sagepub.com/content/76/3/407.full.pdf+html

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Appendix 4: How we mark assessed essays and exams

See: https://www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/student-
intranet/undergraduate/assessment/

Very High First Class (90-100)

Such answers are exceptional and fully answer the question demonstrating the attainment
of all learning objectives and in adherence to all guidelines. The answer will be expected to
show an exceptional level of achievement with respect to the following criteria:
• insight and depth of understanding of the material;
• the exercise of critical judgement along with clarity of analysis and of expression;
• knowledge of the relevant literature.

High First Class (80-89)

Such answers are outstanding and provide a near-full and well-structured answer to the
question and can be expected to indicate an outstanding level of achievement of all of the
following qualities:
• insight and depth of understanding of the material;
• the exercise of critical judgement along with clarity of analysis and of expression;
• good knowledge of the relevant literature.

First Class (70-79)

Such answers are excellent and provide a largely- full and well-structured answer to the
question and can be expected to indicate excellence in some or most of the following
qualities:
• insight and depth of understanding of the material;
• the exercise of critical judgement along with clarity of analysis and of expression;
• knowledge of the relevant literature.

Upper-second Class (60-69)

Such answers are very good and provide a generally well-structured answer to the
question and can be expected to indicate some of the following qualities:
• a good or very good understanding of the material;
• clarity of analysis, of argument and of expression;
• a demonstrable grasp of the relevant literature.

Lower-second Class (50-59)

Such answers are good and provide a clear answer to the question. They can be expected
to show most of the following features:
• a firm understanding of the material;
• clarity of analysis and argument, albeit limited in extent;
• some awareness of the relevant literature.

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Note: What distinguishes a high Lower-second Class from a low Upper-second Class is
greater extent of understanding of material and clarity of analysis and argument, as well as
at least some selective knowledge of the relevant literature, not mere awareness of its
existence.

Third Class (40-49)

Such answers are sufficient and demonstrate a rudimentary understanding of the issues
and offer only partial answers to the question. They can be expected to show some of the
following features:
• sparse coverage of the material with several key elements missing;
• unsupported assertions and a lack of clear analysis or argument;
• important errors and inaccuracies.

Fail (30-39)
Such answers are insufficient and, while showing some awareness of the area, fail to deal
with the question in a way that suggest more than a fragmented and shallow acquaintance
with the subject. They are often error-prone, lacking in coherence, structure and evidence
of independent thought.

Bad Fail (20-29)

Such answers are inadequate and fail to demonstrate the ability to engage with the
question. They demonstrate only the most basic awareness of the area and may contain
errors. They will be almost completely lacking in coherence, structure and evidence of
independent thought.

Very Bad Fail (10-19)

Such answers are severely inadequate and exhibit an almost complete lack of engagement
with the area or question.

Extremely Bad Fail (0-9)

Such answers are profoundly inadequate and exhibit a complete lack of engagement with
the area or question.

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