PROGRAMME SPECIFICATION:
BSc (Hons) HEALTH STUDIES (HEALTH DEVELOPMENT)
NOTE: This specification provides a concise summary of the main features of the course and the learning outcomes that a typical student might reasonably be expected to achieve and demonstrate if s/he takes advantage of the learning opportunities that are provided. More detail on the specific learning outcomes, indicative content and the teaching, learning and assessment methods of each module can be found (1) at in the Module Specification Handbook, and (3) in the Student Handbook. The accuracy of the information contained in this document is reviewed by the University and may be checked within independent review processes undertaken by the Quality Assurance Agency.The information from this specification may be selectively extracted and included in documents that are more appropriate for students, intending students and employers.
1 / Awarding Institution / Body: / Birmingham City University
2 / Teaching Institution: / Birmingham City University
3 / Programme accredited by:
4 / Final Award: / BSc(Hons) Health Studies (Health Development)
5 / Programme Title: / BSc(Hons) Health Studies
6 / UCAS Code: / BL94
7 / QAA Benchmarking Group: / Health Studies
8 / Aims of the programme
/ Aim (overall programme aim)
To provide supportive opportunities for the critical study of the many dimensions of health, and the dilemmas facing society in relation to the provision of healthy living environments, opportunities and health care in local, national and international contexts. Drawing on the multi-disciplinary nature of the study of health, this will take place through the development of the skills necessary for success in academic study, for the enhancement of personal development, and for the successful transition into employment.
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Learning Outcomes (specific aims of the programme)
Subject knowledge and understanding (applicable to the overall programme)- Demonstrate a knowledge of the contribution of the disciplines of psychology, physiology, sociology and social policy, research and epidemiology to the study of health
- Discuss the many dimensions of health and demonstrate an understanding of the contested nature of health as a concept
- Identify and offer analysis on the foundations for health and the barriers that may exist to their achievement
- Identify, compare and contrast the differing research approaches adopted by the many disciplines contributing to the study of health
- Demonstrate an understanding of a range of conceptualisations, explanations, models and theories in health development especially concerning ethics and effectiveness, health and illness, psychology and behaviour, community and inequality, and epidemiology and social policy
- Identify the range of influences on health development policy and practice including epistemological, political, ethical, ideological, by epidemiological and research work.
- Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the approaches to integration across the disciplines
- Offer a comparative analysis of health issues and delivery in an international context
- Identify, analyse and evaluate contemporary health issues and dilemmas
- Demonstrate an awareness of the ethical dimensions of health and a commitment to rigour and principled and ethical practice
- Identify a range of employment and career development opportunities available, and demonstrate the skills required to compete and participate in employment selection
- Identify features of the context within which contemporary health development takes place including historical, cultural, and world
- Identify and critically question the assumptions and attributes of a variety of approaches within health development especially public health policy, individualistic approaches, and community health action aiming to appreciate diversity, and acknowledge strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
- Identify some of the practical details of health development approaches
- Demonstrate and understanding of the issues to do with the effectiveness of a variety of health development approaches, specifically, their evidence base, scope and limits, ethical appropriateness, and types of outcome
- Identify some of the contemporary and emerging issues in health development practice
- Demonstrate an awareness and understanding of an ethical perspective
- Demonstrate an application of a theoretical mapping to health development work and be able to account for variations and tensions found in practice in terms of this map.
- Demonstrate self awareness and the ability to reflect on, monitor and evaluate their own learning
- Demonstrate an ability to utilise IT applications as appropriate, to communicate and analyse throughout the course
- Demonstrate skills in articulating knowledge and understanding of health development
- Demonstrate skills in personal awareness and reflexivity
- Demonstrate skills in independent learning
- Demonstrate skills in producing a considered synthesis of health development work.
- Demonstrate skills in philosophical argument by being able to identify how various approaches in health development relate to a social constructionist epistemology and how this differs from the positivist account.
9Intended learning outcomes and the means by which they are achieved and demonstrated: the programme provides learners with opportunities to develop and demonstrate knowledge and understanding, skills and other attributes as follows:
Learning Outcome
/ Teaching, learning and assessment methods usedSubject knowledge and understanding (applicable to the overall programme)
Demonstrate a knowledge of the contribution of the disciplines of psychology, physiology, sociology and social policy, research and epidemiology to the study of health / All modules in the pathway utilise insight from some or all of these disciplines and apply this to the study of health development. In addition, some attempt is made to encourage students to consider how particular contributions form these disciplines has influenced or shaped health development theorising and hence practice
Discuss the many dimensions of health and demonstrate an understanding of the contested nature of health as a concept / All modules in the pathway deal with health as a contested concept and show how different theories of health underpin health development practice; in Community Health Action, this analysis is developed together with accounts of how different theories of society also underpin health development practice.
Identify and offer analysis on the foundations for health and the barriers that may exist to their achievement / A key feature of Analysing Fundamental Issues is to identify how health and illness are determined; in Community Health Action the focus is towards social determinant and this inevitably leads into discussions about the determinants of health inequalities. In Exploring the Scope of Individual Change, the focus is on individual determinants such as individual psychology and behaviour.
Identify, compare and contrast the differing research approaches adopted by the many disciplines contributing to the study of health / The aspect of health research most significant is that of epidemiology and the influence this has on how health development is approached in practice. In Exploring the Scope of Individual Change and Community Health Action, the epidemiological base for behaviour change and community development approaches is explored and in addition, related to epistemological assumptions.
Subject knowledge and understanding (additional for the Health Development pathway)
Demonstrate an understanding of a range of conceptualisations, explanations, models and theories in health development especially concerning ethics and effectiveness, health and illness, psychology and behaviour, community and inequality, and epidemiology and social policy / All modules within the health development pathway will utilise and help students to develop their conceptual understanding of health development and broaden their conceptual framework. Specific module have a specific conceptual focus taught by a mixture of lead lecture, case study and small or whole group discussion:
Analysing Fundamental Issues: concepts of ethics and effectiveness such as autonomy, the ethical grid, technical and allocative effectiveness; concept related to trustworthiness are dealt with within an introductory epidemiological framework in order to provide insight into how health issues are identified or constructed, and in order to understand the relationship between evidence, value and health policy; assessment requires the application of these concepts and an analysis of their relationships within an analysis of a specific health development issue. Assessment requires the application of these concepts within an analysis of a specific health development issue.
Exploring the Scope of Individual Change: concepts of health and illness, in particular, health models such as medical, prevention, foundation, categorisation and resilience models within pathogenic and salutogenic theoretical frameworks; assessment requires students to focus on aspects of their personal learning that has been most influenced by the module and so coverage of these concepts, models or theories is not a necessity.
Exploring the Scope of Individual Change: concepts of health behaviour such as risk, and models such as the Health Belief model and Theory of Reasoned Action are analysed within a general critique of social cognition theory; some reference is also made to social constructionist theory; assessment requires students to focus on aspects of their personal learning that has been most influenced by the module and so coverage of these concepts, models or theories is not a necessity.
Community Health Action:
Concepts of community and inequality are explored in relation to an analysis of health and its social determinants and the functioning of community health action to promote health; assessment requires some account of these, and their application in analysis of a specific example of community health action work.
Identify the range of influences on health development policy and practice including epistemological, political, ethical, ideological, by epidemiological and research work. / All modules include a focus on the influences or determinants of health and some reference to these are required in all assessments. For example, Analysing Fundamental Issues focuses on the epidemiological basis for health development intervention and differentiates between individual and population risk factor types of epidemiological account, as well as an exploration of the implications for practice of these different perspectives.
Subject specific skills / ability (applicable to the overall programme)
Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the approaches to integration across the disciplines / The task of integration of theoretical thought which might lead to an integration of health development practice begun to be addressed in Analysing Fundamental Issues where the contribution of different disciplines to the development of various health development approaches is explored.
Offer a comparative analysis of health issues and delivery in an international context / There is no overt attempt in the pathway to offer international comparisons in health development practice. However, some international comparison of epidemiological data is addressed in Analysing Fundamental Issues.
Identify, analyse and evaluate contemporary health issues and dilemmas / The main issue addressed in this connection relate to debates about the limits and boundaries of different health development approaches, particularly community development dealt with in Community Health Action, and behaviour change dealt with in Exploring the Scope of Individual Change.
Demonstrate an awareness of the ethical dimensions of health and a commitment to rigour and principled and ethical practice / All modules in the pathway focus on how ethical considerations and cultural issues effect and influence health development practice
Identify a range of employment and career development opportunities available, and demonstrate the skills required to compete and participate in employment selection / Through the experience of some of the students, and of the tutors, some linking is made between abstract ideas about health development approaches, and more practical issues, particularly the sort of statutory and voluntary-sector posts that are currently being funded.
Subject specific skills / ability (additional for the Health Development pathway)
Identify features of the context within which contemporary health development takes place including historical, cultural, and world / This is addressed in all three health development pathway modules. For example, in Analysing Fundamental Issues, students present seminar topics on influences on population health over the last 150 years. Although students are encouraged to use these comparisons as part of their analysis in assessment, this aspect is not assessed directly.
Identify and critically question the assumptions and attributes of a variety of approaches within health development especially public health policy, individualistic approaches, and community health action aiming to appreciate diversity, and acknowledge strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. / An overview of health development approaches is provided within Analysing Fundamental Issues, and in this module, students are required to develop a comparative analysis of two contrasting approaches. This is taught via a lead lecture and group discussion. More detailed coverage is provided in the other modules, and assessment in each of these modules centres around an analysis of one or other approach.
Identify some of the practical details of health development approaches / Although some practical aspects of using different health development approaches are covered in each of the health development pathway modules, the level of detail is kept low, and is introduced via examples and case studies by the tutor. Assessment does not require students to have practical experience in a health development approach in order to be able to analyse and critique it.
Demonstrate and understanding of the issues to do with the effectiveness of a variety of health development approaches, specifically, their evidence base, scope and limits, ethical appropriateness, and types of outcome / The intention for each module is for students to undertake critical study of health development approaches and this will focus on issues of effectiveness. All modules encourage this critical attitude to effectiveness but in particular, Analysing Fundamental Issues examines the idea of effectiveness and differentiates (using a case study and group-work) between different types of health development outcome, specifically, process, impact and outcome. Some understanding of the issue of effectiveness types is built into the assessment criteria for this model.
Identify some of the contemporary and emerging issues in health development practice / All modules attempt to appraise students of contemporary information and issues in health development such as national and local policy, organisational and political issues, examples of practice, and emergent empirical or theoretical insight.
Demonstrate an awareness and understanding of an ethical perspective / All modules encourage students to consider and develop an ethical aspect to health development work. This ranges from issues to do with the ethics of treatment-led health investment, the ethics of research agenda’s (Analysing Fundamental Issues); the ethics of inequality, and of marginalising community participation and tokenism (Community Health Action); and the ethics of individualistic health persuasion (Exploring the Scope of Individual Change).
Demonstrate an application of a theoretical mapping to health development work and be able to account for variations and tensions found in practice in terms of this map. / In addition to the conceptualising, modelling and theorising of health development, students are also encouraged to apply an over-arching theoretical mapping of health development and to explore how various health development approaches can be located theoretically. This is considered as a tutor-led discussion within the Community Health Action module.
Transferable and learning skills / ability (applicable to the overall programme)
Demonstrate self awareness and the ability to reflect on, monitor and evaluate their own learning / In both Exploring the Scope of Individual Change and Community Health Action, an aspect of teaching, learning and assessment is devoted to student reflection on their own personal awareness and learning. In Exploring the Scope of Individual Change, this is taken on board in a very thorough way through the use of staged learning diaries to record and develop personal learning, and the use of a framework to enhance this as part of the assessment.
Demonstrate an ability to utilise IT applications as appropriate, to communicate and analyse throughout the course / This is not an objective that is dealt with specifically by any module in the pathway.
Transferable and learning skills / ability (additional to the Health Development pathway)
Demonstrate skills in articulating knowledge and understanding of health development / All modules encourage students to discuss and venture opinion regarding health and its development. This is undertaken via seminar presentation (Exploring the Scope of Individual Change and Analysing Fundamental Issues) and small and whole group discussion. This aspect is not assessed.
Demonstrate skills in personal awareness and reflexivity / All modules encourage some aspects of the work to be addressed by the students at a personal, reflexive level, as well as at the cognitive and intellectual. In particular, in Exploring the Scope of Individual Change, students are required to record and develop their reactions and feelings about a range of health development issues such as the nature of health, learning preferences and blocks to learning, and conditions for effective learning and personal change. These are built into a learning diary that aims to encourage the students to develop this personal reflexivity. The learning diary is an assessment requirement and the developmental nature of their personal learning is assessed through a short reflexive paper
Demonstrate skills in independent learning / Skills in cognitive / intellectual development are to some extent examples of independent learning skills – students are not encouraged to accumulate simple ‘fact’ but to skilfully place their understanding within ethical, theoretical and personal development frameworks. In this sense, students are encouraged to develop their independent learning skills through critical analysis of knowledge and understanding; a critical stance to taken-for-granted knowledge; a developing competence in expression and articulation; a developing competence in ethical consideration; a confidence in theoretical mapping; and an experiential development of reflexivity skills.
Demonstrate skills in producing a considered synthesis of health development work. / Many intellectual, cognitive and personal learning skills developed through the health development pathway are transferable to other contexts, e.g. ethical skills, theoretical mapping, articulation skills, and reflexivity skills. In addition, one specific aspect dealt with concerns the synthesis skills required to assimilate and make personal and theoretical sense of a complex conceptual and practical area like health development. These two aspects of synthesis (personal sense and theoretical sense) are encouraged though Exploring the Scope of Individual Change and Community Health Action modules respectively. Assessment for both modules makes specific reference to criteria covering these examples of synthesising.
Demonstrate skills in philosophical argument by being able to identify how various approaches in health development relate to a social constructionist epistemology and how this differs from the positivist account. / All modules address this issue but as a secondary one arising from less abstract conceptual and pragmatic primary concerns. However, issues of realism and relativism are addressed in Exploring the Scope of Individual Change and issues of positivist and social constructionist perspectives are addressed in Community Health Action.
10Programme structure and requirements, levels, modules, credits and awards