Race, Inclusion, Society, and Equality (RISE)

Module overview

What is racism and why is it a perennial feature of our societies? How far does the law address race discrimination and race inequalities? What can we do to ensure a more inclusive (higher) education? 

This digital interdisciplinary module will give you an opportunity to think about these fundamental questions and find out more about cutting-edge research on race, equality, and inclusion at the University of Portsmouth. The syllabus will enable you to gain an understanding of socially embedded systems of race inequality, while the various synchronous and asynchronous activities will help you hone analytical and critical skills that are necessary for you to become agents of social change. 

The module is structured around five themes, each of which is covered across a two-week period, with one synchronous online seminar, a pre-recorded lecture, and a selection of individual and collaborative asynchronous learning activities.

The pre-recorded lectures offers you an introduction to the topics, while the synchronous seminar will give you an opportunity to discuss some key aspects of the topic in more depth based on the essential reading assigned.

The synchronous seminars will be interactive and will give you a chance to familiarise yourselves with and make use of digital learning tools (Nearpod, Padlet etc).

Your module credits will be earned through three assessments: an online quiz (20%), an online in-class group presentation (40%), and a policy brief (40%). You will be offered dedicated support and training for each of the three assessments throughout the module.  

The module offers a way for you to clearly demonstrate your development of some characteristics of a Portsmouth graduate which are also desirable skills and attributes sought after by graduate employers.

The course will help you demonstrate evidence of your intellectual curiosity, team-player working ethos, awareness of and commitment to equality and social justice issues. In particular, it will show the following Portsmouth Hallmarks, which are to be:

• Intellectually curious, embrace challenges and seize opportunities for development.
• An effective team player, able to provide leadership and to support the success of others.
• An informed citizen, with a sense of responsibility allied to a commitment to ethical practice and social justice issues, such as equality, respect and sustainability.
• Proactive in recognising and addressing personal development needs, and able to make informed career decisions.
• Able to locate, access and critically engage with information.
• Able to communicate clearly and effectively.

Note that this is a standalone additional module - the credits do not count towards your degree course, but they are a way to demonstrate valuable additional skills and attributes.