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for a past academic year. Please see the current academic year for up to date information.
| Unit name |
Development Studies |
| Unit code |
POLI21213 |
| Credit points |
20 |
| Level of study |
I/5
|
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
|
| Unit director |
Reverend. Martin Gainsborough |
| Open unit status |
Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None
|
| Co-requisites |
None
|
| School/department |
School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies |
| Faculty |
Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Description including Unit Aims
For people in the West, the notion that development is something which happens in far away places and is about doing good is very deep-rooted. However, what constitutes development, how to achieve it, and whether it is achievable or desirable takes us into a political and ethical minefield. This unit seeks to offer students the tools to come to an informed view about different models of development, whether there are better or worse ways of intervening in poorer countries, or whether it may be better to do nothing at all. The unit considers a series of issues including economic takeoff in Pacific-Asia, ideas of dependency, neo-liberal theories of development, including the rise of the governance agenda, post-development, and the politics of international aid. The aim will be to link theory and practice and to show the relevance of past debates to contemporary issues.
Aims:
- To provide an historically informed introduction to the theory and practice of development since 1945
- To consider the strengths and weaknesses of different ways of thinking about and doing development
- To offer students the opportunity to probe the political and ethical dimensions of a number of areas of debate in the field of development studies.
Intended Learning Outcomes
Upon completing the unit the student will have developed the following:
- An understanding of the way in which the theory and practice of development has evolved since 1945
- An ability to adopt a critical position in relation to different ways of thinking about and doing development
- An understanding of the politics and ethical conundrums associated with different approaches to development pursued by local, national and global actors
Teaching Information
2 hours of lectures and 1 hour seminar.
Assessment Information
Assessment: one country report (40% of marks); one 2000 word essay (60% of marks). The student will receive a feedback sheet for both pieces of work. Detailed guidance will be given to students in relation to both pieces of work so that they are clear about how to perform well in the assessments.
- 40% for the country report. It will assess the achievement of learning outcomes 1, 2 and 3.
- 60% for the essay. It will assess the achievement of learning outcomes 1, 2 and 3.
Reading and References
- Robert Wade, 'What strategies are viable for developing countries today? The World Trade Organisation and the shrinking of development space,' Review of International Political Economy, vol. 10, no. 4, 2003, pp. 621-644.
- Jomo KS and Ben Fine (eds.), The New Development Economics: After the Washington Consensus (Zed Books 2006)
- Charles Gore, 'The Rise and Fall of the Washington Consensus as a Paradigm for Developing Countries,' World Development vol. 28, no. 5, pp. 789-804.
- Ronaldo Munck and Denis O'Hearn, Critical Development Theory (Zed Books, 1999)
- Mark Duffield, Development, Security and Unending War: Governing the World of Peoples (Polity 2007)
- Peter Burnell, Foreign Aid in a Changing World (Open University Press, 1997).
