Module GEOG3787: SPACES OF DEVELOPMENT

Department: Geography

GEOG3787: SPACES OF DEVELOPMENT

Prerequisites

• Any Level 2 Geography Module

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• This specialised module offers final year geographers the chance to embed their understanding of development issues developed in Levels 1 and 2 in a detailed consideration of recent global social and economic transformations.
• The module will:
• Review competing views of development, in the context of the emergence of new spaces of development
• Examine different conceptualisations of poverty and underdevelopment, success and failure
• Consider particular themes in development geographies, such as global-local relations, power/knowledge, and economic change
• Compare and reflect on different country experiences and the national policy contexts that have structured their development agendas

Content

• The course will examine high level debates about the nature of development, placing development in the context of the emergence of new development actors and in the midst of debates about postcolonialism and colonialism. This will range from mainstream explanations for development and underdevelopment through to consideration of alternative approaches to development. Throughout the lectures, the course will provide detailed consideration of how these processes and arguments work their way out in the context of specific country experiences. Overall, the course will take a cross-cutting, thematic approach to understanding development examining a range of issues.
• Indicative Themes:
• Theories of development and underdevelopment
• Development and the relation with colonialism/postcolonialism
• Modernization and development
• Knowledge and power
• New development actors
• Regional case studies
• Alternative approaches to development

Learning Outcomes

• On successful completion of this specialized module, in addition to the module learning outcomes, students are expected to be able to:
• Reconcile competing interpretations of recent development experiences
• Appreciate the diversity of development trajectories by drawing on case studies
• Embed local and national patterns of change within the context of global economic change
• Understand the intersection of the global discourse of development with locally-rooted visions

• On successful completion of this specialized module, in addition to the module learning outcomes, students are expected to be able to:
• Evaluate and apply key concepts in development geography
• Critically appraise the roles of Western and non-Western knowledges and approaches to understanding development

• On successful completion of this specialized module, in addition to the module learning outcomes, students are expected to be able to:
• Demonstrate the ability to synthesise and integrate knowledge and apply it to contemporary issues
• Demonstrate critical reflection and understanding of competing arguments and positions

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

• The core of the course will be based on nine 1.5 hour lectures. These will be supported by two one hour tutorials
• The literature review will prepare students for the examination by developing in-depth knowledge of a particular area of work in relation to development, as well as honing their ability to synthesise material
• The examination will test students ability to analyse different interpretations and experiences of development in the context of patterns of global-local change

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Literature review with written feedback (max. 3 pages in accordance with Departmental Policy on Coursework Length and Format)

■ 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