SOCIAL JUSTICE ACROSS COMMUNITIES, CULTURES AND DISCIPLINES - 2025/6
Module code: ELI3078
Module Overview
This innovative and interdisciplinary module explores social justice in contemporary society, and how people and communities have worked towards achieving it. The module will focus on different forms of systemic injustice, and we will look at their intersections by considering notions such as race, gender, class, migration and identity. You will explore how social justice has been addressed from a wide range of disciplines and perspectives. This will allow you to appreciate how each perspective offers specific critical and imaginative tools to pursue equality and justice in our society. Throughout the semester, you will engage with a diverse set of critical works and reading/viewing materials from disciplines such as literature, sociology, cultural studies, music and media studies, and environmental studies.The thematic units of the module will be taught by lecturers who specialise in the topics and themes under study. Each unit will focus on a particular aspect of social justice so that you will be exposed to multiple and innovative theories and approaches. By the end of the module, you will be able to bring into dialogue these approaches with your own interests and disciplinary focus.
Module provider
Literature & Languages
Module Leader
LAZZARI Gabriele (Lit & Langs)
Number of Credits: 15
ECTS Credits: 7.5
Framework: FHEQ Level 6
Module cap (Maximum number of students): 15
Overall student workload
Independent Learning Hours: 113
Seminar Hours: 22
Guided Learning: 4
Captured Content: 11
Module Availability
Semester 1
Prerequisites / Co-requisites
None
Module content
Indicative topics that could be covered are: Migrant justice and migrant writing; Environmental justice and sustainability; Gender justice in music ; Racial justice in literature and culture; Urban activism and art; Justice in digital spaces and online culture; Class and histories of class struggle; Global justice movements and mutual aid; Social justice in language and translation
Assessment pattern
| Assessment type | Unit of assessment | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Critical essay (2500 words) OR video essay (15 mins) OR podcast (15 mins) | 75 |
| Coursework | Collaborative blog post (750 words) | 25 |
Alternative Assessment
Students unable to participate in the group work should contact the module leader to discuss alternative forms of assessment.
Assessment Strategy
The assessment strategy is designed to:
- enable students to develop awareness about a wide range of social justice issues and to actively participate in urgent discussions about equality in our society
- develop skills in independent research, thinking, and writing by locating resources and materials to develop a compelling final assessment
- develop communications skills and practice active and empathetic listening through collaborative discussions and seminar activities and exercises (both individual and collaborative)
- enable students to collaborate in the production of knowledge by working together on a blog post
- enhance their digital capabilities by working with a wide range of materials textual and visual both in class and in online environments, by locating research materials in online repositories, and by using digital tools on SurreyLearn
- Critical essay (2500 words) OR video essay (15 mins) OR podcast (15 mins)
- Collaborative blog post (750 words)
- Constant feed-forward during seminar discussion; collaborative exercise in which students will receive feedback from their peers and discuss their interpretations and arguments; tutor feedback on the essay plan and on possible selection of approaches, topics, and theories.
Module aims
- Deepen and widen students' understanding of social justice and its relevance in contemporary societies, and actively intervene in current debates
- Introduce students to a wide range disciplinary approaches to social justice issues and establish links and connections between them
- Expand students' understanding of, critical reflection on, and engagement with intersectional forms of (in)justice
- Encourage students' active participation in discussions about equality and justice
- Develop and foster application of students' skills in collaborative research, writing and critical thinking
Learning outcomes
| Attributes Developed | ||
| 001 | Acquire and demonstrate confidence and solid ability in critical analysis and thinking, and group discussion | CT |
| 002 | Apply a wide range of critical tools and theoretical frameworks for the study of social justice in contemporary societies | CKT |
| 003 | Demonstrate confidence in engaging with and actively discuss social justice issues from a wide range of disciplinary approaches and perspectives | KPT |
| 004 | Show a clear understanding of how issues around social justice are contextualised in a global framework | CK |
| 005 | Demonstrate and apply academic skills in independent research, including competency in accessing physical and digital resources, referencing, and compiling a bibliography following university guidelines | PT |
| 006 | Demonstrate skills in collaborative research, writing, and development of a coherent argument | CPT |
| 007 | Develop excellent time management skills and the ability to organise, produce and actively present the research and complete the final assessment | PT |
Attributes Developed
C - Cognitive/analytical
K - Subject knowledge
T - Transferable skills
P - Professional/Practical skills
Methods of Teaching / Learning
The learning and teaching strategy is designed to develop awareness of social justice in our contemporary society and to apply a wide range of disciplinary perspectives and critical tools to the study of it.This will involve directed reading and listening / viewing, class discussion, and the formation of critical responses to secondary literature in the coursework essay / video essay.In the weekly workshops, students will participate in interactive activities. Through individual prompts, small group exercises, and collective discussions, students will cultivate skills in collaborative learning and self-reflexive enquiry-based work. These activities will be crucial for developing the ability to articulate critical insights effectively and concisely.Students will also develop digital capabilities by using a wide range of visual and written materials on SurreyLearn, by locating, connecting, and analysing relevant resources in databases of scholarly articles and books, and by collaboratively working on a blog post.The strategy will also reinforce techniques and styles of academic writing and analysis introduced in FHEQ levels 4 and 5.The learning and teaching methods include a combination of lecture materials, seminars, captured content, guided learning and independent learning.
Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.
Reading list
https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: ELI3078
Other information
Surrey's Curriculum Framework is committed to developing graduates with strengths in Employability, Digital Capabilities, Global and Cultural Capabilities, and Sustainability. This module is designed to allow students to develop knowledge, skills and capabilities in the following areas:
Employability: the module will equip students with transferable skills that employers in a variety of field highly value. They will develop skills in collaborative and group working through seminar discussions and activities, and through the writing of a blog post. They will learn how to evaluate and discuss reading/viewing materials from different disciplines and will develop skills in connective thinking, critical analysis, and interdisciplinary reflection. Students will also develop skills in presenting ideas effectively and concisely, and in summarising and synthesising a large body of knowledge.
Digital Capabilities: students will engage with learning technologies throughout the module. They will explore digital and written materials, do independent research online, and retrieve relevant materials and sources for their assessments. In the final assessment, they will have the opportunity to use specialist software to create digital and engaging analyses. In the collaborative blog post, they will work together, independently explore online resources, and present their findings.
Global and Cultural Capabilities: students will be introduced to a wide range of social justice issues and initiatives from different cultural spaces. They will be able to appreciate the intersections between systemic injustices and will develop a global and cultural awareness of why and how social justice is pursued in contemporary societies. In seminars, students will also be able to share their experiences and knowledge from their own cultural background, and thus participate in critical conversations and dialogue on personal experiences of social justice.
Sustainability: in this module, students will be encouraged to reflect on the social, economic, cultural, and environmental impact of human societies and on how that affects the pursue of equality and social justice. By being exposed to multiple perspectives and approaches to these issues, they will be able to appreciate how social justice is crucial for the creation of culturally sustainable and equitable societies. Students will thus be empowered to take informed decisions that enhance the wellbeing of present and future generations.
Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2025/6 academic year.