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Student Zone - How to use this website

How to use this web site

When I first studied British politics teaching consisted of being given a long and indiscriminate reading list, and being banished to the library to consult it. As the introduction to my book will have shown you, things are now very different. And one big difference is that the web gives the opportunity to do things that were impossible a generation ago. To get most out of this web site, you should be aware of its features, and why they are there.

• Update materials are posted periodically on the site, and allow me to do something that was impossible before the advent of the Web: solve the problem of keeping the material up to date. I was able to incorporate into the book, for example, the 2005 General Election Campaign and result. But almost immediately after the Election, referendums on the new European Constitution in France and the Netherlands dramatically changed the nature of EU politics - a central theme of the book. An update on the EU after the Constitution referendums is among the first group of updates provided.

• The Further reading and linked List of sources is obviously designed to allow, indeed to encourage, you to explore more widely. The book provides at the end of each chapter only highly selective 'core' reading; here you will find much more. For each chapter I have also indicated one key web site. 

• The guide to Using the Web tries to highlight the huge opportunities which the Web now offers, but also to show why the Web needs to be used in a disciplined, and critical, fashion - which is the reason for only recommending one particularly relevant, and often not obvious, site per chapter.
• The Student project guide takes you through an experience you will certainly have early in your life as a student of Politics: writing an extended project (or dissertation.)
• The Self test questions and Answers for each chapter are not intended to suggest that you should learn the text parrot fashion. They are, rather, an encouragement to active and attentive reading. Getting any single answer wrong is not very significant; but getting many wrong means that you have not read attentively. That is why in each chapter, if you do not achieve a minimum score, I suggest revisiting the text. The obvious time to complete the Q&A section is when you have completed each relevant chapter.

Studying British politics is exciting and enjoyable, as well as hard work. I hope you find this site helpful, and the work enjoyable. I welcome comments by e-mail on both the site and the book. Click here to e-mail the author.