LW1PL1: Public Law 1

Module code: LW1PL1

Module provider: School of Law

Credits: 20

Level: Level 1 (Certificate)

When you'll be taught: Semester 2

Module convenor: Mrs Shweta Band, email: s.band@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: No

Last updated: 21 May 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

The term Public Law refers to the broader field of constitutional law, administrative law, and protection of rights. In Public Law 1 you will study constitutional law and Public Law 2 (core module Year 2) will cover administrative law and protection of rights. 

The module aims to introduce students to the essential features of the British constitution and legal and political institutions. In addition, the module will focus on key features of the English legal system, and explore the extent to which constitutional law underpins the working of the legal system and its importance for the enactment, enforcement, and amendment of laws. 

The module will present you plenty of opportunities to learn about - and join – some fascinating debates and conversations on constitutional law and to build some valued legal skills, which you will need for all other modules too- e.g., critical thinking, creative reasoning, analyzing legal writings & case law, structure arguments coherently etc. 

The Module Lead at the University of Reading Malaysia is Nalina Nadarajah (n.p.nadarajah@reading.edu.my).

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Understand the nature and purpose of constitutions, the value of constitutional law and discuss the nature and underlying principles and doctrines of the constitution
2. Explain how the most important institutions of the constitution operate and relate to one another
3. Appraise and assess recent constitutional developments, reforms, and proposals for reform
4. Recognise the extent to which Constitutional Law underpins the working of the British legal system

Module content

The module content is divided in three parts: (A) Nature of British Constitution and Institutions- organisation, powers, relationships, devolution and multi-layered governance; (B) Organising Constitutional Principles- Separation of powers in theory and practice, Parliamentary Sovereignty, Rule of Law and(C) Public Law in action in UK- Human Rights Act, Brexit and Contemporary Challenges

• In the introductory sessions, students will acquire the basic knowledge on defining constitutions, nature of constitutions and constitutional law, general sources and characteristics of the UK constitution and outlining the structure and role of constitutional institutions (legislature, executive and judiciary) in the UK  
• The second part of the module focusses on exploring the history and development of the key constitutional doctrines in the UK (rule of law, parliamentary sovereignty, and separation of powers) and their interplay with other principles/developments of significance in constitutional law (key constitutional statutes, constitutional conventions, and royal prerogatives) 
• The third part is designed to explore the aspects of constitution in practice, contemporary challenges and positioning British Constitutional law in a wider setting of world constitutions (devolution and practical arrangements for the distribution of power within the state, Brexit, human rights protection, codifying the constitution and contemporary challenges & reforms) 

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

Consistently with the School of Law requirements for Part I and Part II modules, there will be 

22 hours of Lectures, (whole cohort), 10 hours of workshops, 5 hours of tutorials and 13 hours of blended learning 

Substantive content will primarily be delivered in lectures. Workshops will mainly be used to develop case- and scholarship-reading and analysis skills. Workshops will be based on activities embedding employability skills and will primarily focus on engaging students in discussion and debate on basic constitutional doctrines, institutions and contemporary constitutional reforms and challenges. Tutorials will build on lectures to enable students to develop and discuss their own views on legal doctrines and theories.  

Learning in workshops and tutorials will be based on engaging in interactive activities, group discussion and presentations. Additional teaching will broadly include recorded screencasts with accompanying tasks, supplementary material in the form of handouts, test-yourself activities, educational videos on the lecture topics, power-point slides, learning activities and further independent reading provided. Independent study will primarily comprise of engaging with Blackboard resources, handouts, screencasts, reading lists and sharing ideas via the online module padlet. Students will be offered online drop-in sessions. 

For students studying at our campus in Malaysia: This module may be taught in a different semester and the breakdown of study hours may differ to those set out in the Study Hours table (please refer to the Module Handbook for the correct breakdown). In addition, you will be required to complete an additional 40hours of study, taking the total number of study hours to 240 for this module. This is to comply with the Malaysian Quality Agency (MQA).

Study hours

At least 37 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Case summary to be submitted in week 7. The case-selection will be broadly aligned with that of the assessed presentation 

Reassessment

Additional costs