Postgraduate Course: Key Skills in Development Practice (PGSP11348)
Course Outline
| School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course investigates methodological approaches to the theorisation and practice of development. It brings together social science research methods (e.g. interviewing, participatory methods) with more targeted practical development methods (e.g. monitoring and evaluation, programme evaluation, policy analysis). The main objective of this course is to offer key skills to the students to enable them to work in the field of international development. It exposes the students with key frameworks, tools and instruments used in the practice of development. This course is suitable for everyone with an interest in development and undertaking research in developing countries, regardless of discipline or orientation.
This course is suitable for everyone with an interest to work in international development globally, regardless of orientation.
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| Course description |
1 week : Working for development: practical considerations
2 week : Rethinking Planning and Impact: Theory of Change
3 week : New approaches: Social innovation
4 week : Policy Briefing: communicating development findings
5 week : Funding applications for development
INNOVATIVE LEARNING WEEK: No classes
6 week : Partnership and stakeholders engagement
7 week : Assessment and response in emergency contexts
8 week : M&E: an introduction to evaluation
9 week : M&E: practical examples from the health sector
10 week: Enterprise for development: practical reflections
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2015/16, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 55 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 20,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
176 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
The course is assessed by the followings:
1. One short assessment (policy brief), maximum 1,500 words - 40%;
2. One long assessment (short essay), maximum 2,500 words - 60%.
For the short assessment students will be asked to write a policy brief on the theme suggested below. The longer essay will focus on a critique of monitoring and evaluation frameworks, participatory tools or evaluations used in development agencies. In this essay students should demonstrate and reflect critically on their learning in lectures and independent studies.
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| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- critically examine the relationship between development thinking and development practice.
- appraise and utilise appropriate practical tools and instruments
- utilise skills learned in key areas of development practice such as monitoring and evaluation, writing policy brief, participatory appraisals and meta-analysis
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Reading List
Students are encouraged to read beyond the required readings for each session (provided in the course handbook) as full participation in discussions is expected. We do not recommend any specific textbook for this course, although there are a number of very good ones currently available in the library and/or bookshops. The following sources, for example, serve as excellent introductions to the field and to the debates that we will be following:
Scheyvens, Regina (2014, 2nd edition) (eds), Development Fieldwork: a practical guide, SAGE publication.
Carden, Fred (2009). Knowledge to Policy: Making the Most of Development Research, International Development Research Centre and Sage.
Desai V. and Potter Robert B. (2006), Doing Development Research, SAGE
DFID. 2002. A Tools for Development: a handbook for those involved in development activity. Department for International Development
Mikkelsen B. (2005), Methods for Development Work and Research, second ed., SAGE
Thomas A. and Mohan G., Research Skills for Policy and Development. How to find out Fast, SAGE publications, 2007
Sumner, A. and Tribe, M. (2008) International Development Studies: Theories and Methods in Research and Practice, Sage London
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Barbara Bompani
Tel: (0131 6)51 3891
Email: |
Course secretary | Ms Jessica Barton
Tel: (0131 6)51 1659
Email: |
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