Module HIST3721: EXPLORING BRITONS: BRITAIN AND AFRICA, C.1700-C.1900

Department: History

HIST3721: EXPLORING BRITONS: BRITAIN AND AFRICA, C.1700-C.1900

Prerequisites

• None.

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To equip students with an understanding of the relationship between Britain and Africa in the eras of the Atlantic slave trade, industrialisation and imperialism.
• To encourage students to analyse critically the relevant literature of the age, as well as a more recent scholarship.
• To develop an awareness of the debates surrounding cultural perception and interaction.
• To contribute towards meeting the generic aims of Level 3 study in history.

Content

• 'Exploring Britons' has, as the module will demonstrate, a double meaning.
• Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian writers' views of Africa tell us as much about Britain in the age of the slave trade, industrialisation and imperialism as they do about Africa, a continent which would ultimately become the focus of British imperial expansion.
• but equally, if properly and critically read, their accounts tell us a great deal about Africa, and perceptions of Africa, in this era.
• Using appropriate secondary literature and selected contemporary accounts, the module will examine the 'great debate' surrounding the slave trade through the eighteenth century, the missionary revival, growing commercial and scientific interest in the continent, and the 'scramble' for Africa at the end of the nineteenth century.
• It will examine how changing British attitudes and policies reflected changes in Britain itself.
• how Africans responded to these attitudes and policies.
• and how this era resonates to the present day in terms of political, economic and cultural interaction.

Learning Outcomes

• Knowledge and understanding of the relationship between Britain and Africa in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries using selected contemporary texts.
• Familiarity with pertinent scholarly debates.
• Appreciation of the ways in which modern interpretations of politics, race, culture and gender in the 'Third World' have been formed.

• Subject specific skills for this module can be viewed at:
• http://www.dur.ac.uk/History/ugrads/ModuleProformaMap/;
• In addition students will be able to evaluate primary source material and engage in textual analysis in the reconstruction of both British and African attitudes and societies.

• Key skills for this module can be viewed at: http://www.dur.ac.uk/History/ugrads/ModuleProformaMap/

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Student learning is facilitated by a combination of the following teaching methods:
• lectures to set the foundations for further study and to provide the basis for the acquisition of subject specific knowledge. Lectures provide a broad framework which defines individual module content, introducing students to themes, debates and interpretations. In this environment, students are given the opportunity to develop skills in listening, selective note-taking and reflection;
• seminars to allow students to present and critically reflect upon the acquired subject-specific knowledge, methodologies and theories, and to identify and debate a range of issues and differing opinions. The seminar is the forum in which students are given the opportunity to communicate ideas, jointly exploring themes and arguments. Seminars are structured to develop understanding and designed to maximise student participation related to prior independent preparation. Seminars give students the opportunity to develop oral communication skills, encourage critical and tolerant approaches to reasoned argument and historical discussion, build the students' ability to marshal historical evidence, and facilitate the development of the ability to summarise historical arguments, think in a rapidly changing environment and communicate in a persuasive and articulate manner, whilst recognising the value of working with others and, occasionally, towards shared goals;
• tutorials either individually or in groups to discuss topics arising from prepared work, allowing students the opportunity to reflect upon their personal learning with the tutor.
• Assessment:
• Examinations test students' ability to work under pressure under timed conditions, to prepare for examinations and direct their own programme of revision and learning, and develop key time management skills. The unseen examination gives students the opportunity to develop relevant life skills such as the ability to produce coherent, reasoned and supported arguments under pressure. Students will be examined on subject specific knowledge. In addition, seen Examinations (with pre-released paper) are intended to enable Level 3 students to produce more considered and reflective work;
• Summative essays remain a central component of assessment in history, due to the integrative high-order skills they develop. Essays allow students the opportunity to recognise, represent and critically reflect upon ideas, concepts and problems; students can demonstrate awareness of, and the ability to use and evaluate, a diverse range of resources and identify, represent and debate a range of subject-specific issues and opinions. Through the essay, students can synthesise information, adopt critical appraisals and develop reasoned argument based on individual research; they should be able to communicate ideas in writing, with clarity and coherence; and to show the ability to integrate and critically assess material from a wide range of sources.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Coursework essays are formative as well as summative. They are to be submitted in two copies, of which one will be returned with written comments and a standard departmental feedback sheet; Preparation to participate in tutorials; At least one oral presentation or short written assignment.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University