Overview
Since the mid-1990s most university disciplines have come under increasing scrutiny from external stakeholders such as government agencies, taxpayers, students, parents and employers. Sociology is traditionally a sceptical and critical activity and one which has been traditionally locked in an uneasy relationship with the state and the rest of society. This book charts the story and outcome of the Assessment Strategies and Standards in Sociology project and paints an intimate portrait of an academic community accustomed to deconstructing the practices of other professional groupings but now facing a challenge to some of its own beliefs and assumptions.Synopsis
The process of producing the accountability assessments that sociology departments are now required to write due to the higher levels of external regulation of universities is addressed in this collection of eight essays. The contributors discuss the new assessment standards in various ways, writing on the changes occurring in universities as a whole, the different approaches used by different departments, the reliability of marking dissertations, and the potential of student involvement in assessment (with case studies). All the contributors are sociologists or research students at universities in the UK; Harrison is a research student at Nuffield College in Oxford, Mears teaches at Bath Spa U. College.
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