Undergraduate Programme and Module Handbook 2018-2019 (archived)
Module ANTH2141: Global Health and Disease
Department: Anthropology
ANTH2141: Global Health and Disease
| Type | Open | Level | 2 | Credits | 20 | Availability | Available in 2018/19 | Module Cap | None. | Location | Durham |
|---|
Prerequisites
- ANTH1041 Health, Illness and Society
Corequisites
- None
Excluded Combination of Modules
- None
Aims
- To give students a firm grounding in theories of medical anthropology (evolutionary, ecological, sociocultural) as applied to international health and disease
Content
- Nutrition and disease ecology – focusing on the impact on global human health and disease of the intersections between human and pathogen biology and human economic and social systems.
- Key areas of theory in social medical anthropology (including for example critical medical anthropology, cultural and symbolic theories, political economy, governance and governmentality, biopolitics and biosociality) in relation to global health.
- Applying theory to key current issues in international health. Specific topics will vary from year to year, but may include: malaria, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, viral haemorrhagic fevers, emerging diseases and drug resistance, reproductive cancers, allergies and autoimmune diseases, community engagement and public health.
Learning Outcomes
Subject-specific Knowledge:
- Epidemiologic transitions in evolutionary perspective
- Infectious and non-infectious disease ecology
- Major theories of social medical anthropology
- Major current global health concerns
Subject-specific Skills:
- Ability to apply theory within medical anthropology to a range of key contemporary global health issues.
- Ability to evaluate critically international health policy and practice, using anthropological theory.
- Critical awareness of the role of applied anthropology within international health and development policy and practice.
Key Skills:
- Application of theory to practical situations.
- Ability to read and critically evaluate both academic and policy literature.
- Academic essay-writing skills.
Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module
- Lectures and seminars introduce students to the material and enable discussion of it, informed by wider reading.
- Formative assessment is a 1000 word essay in each term. The formative essay should be a draft attempt at the summative assignment.
- Summative assessment is by two 2500 word summative essays (each worth 50% of the module mark).
Teaching Methods and Learning Hours
| Activity | Number | Frequency | Duration | Total/Hours | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 20 | Weekly | 1 hour | 20 | |
| Seminars | 8 | Four in Michaelmas and four in Epiphany | 1 hour | 8 | |
| Preparation and Reading | 172 | ||||
| Total | 200 |
Summative Assessment
| Component: Coursework | Component Weighting: 100% | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Element | Length / duration | Element Weighting | Resit Opportunity |
| Essay | 2500 words | 50% | yes |
| Essay | 2500 words | 50% | yes |
Formative Assessment:
Written feedback on two formative assignments. Verbal feedback in seminars.
■ 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