Undergraduate Course: Advanced Issues in the Political Economy of Development (AFRI10005)
Course Outline
| School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Advanced Issues in the Political Economy of Development takes a theoretical approach, policy debate or emerging set of events, and provides students with the tools to situate it within a political economy approach to international development, the political and economic context and methods of analysis. |
| Course description |
The purpose of this course is to provide students with the opportunity of strengthening their understanding of the political economy of development at honours level. Students will develop an analytical skills and theoretical knowledge of political economy that will be accessible to students studying in a range of undergraduate programmes.
The substantive content of the course will change each year depending on topical issues and will be taught by experts on the issue itself or on particular approaches/methods from amongst permanent and postdoctoral staff. For example, around a particular set of theories (institutional, evolutionary, post-colonial, Marxist) or policy approaches or events.
In each case, students will learn substantive information about the topic itself but perhaps more importantly they will acquire the generic skills to analyse any phenomenon through the lens of political economy: how to place it within a larger context, where to look for information about context, the types of variables (whether social, economic, cultural, or political) to consider when analysing the phenomenon, how to identify wider theories and concepts to analyse the phenomenon and how to acquire evidence that would support one theoretical interpretation over another.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Students who have not taken courses in social science subjects should contact the Course Organiser to confirm if they are eligible to take this course. |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students should have at least 4 Social Sciences courses at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this). We will only consider University/College level courses.
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| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2023/24, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 10,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 10,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
176 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
40 %,
Coursework
50 %,
Practical Exam
10 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Participation: 10%
Essay: 50% 3000 words
Online exam: 40%
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| Feedback |
Students will be offered advice and feedback on their outlines in preparation for the essay and on-line exam, which they may obtain on request. This feedback and guidance will be provided during the course convenor's weekly office hours and by appointment. Students will furthermore be given feedback on their tutorial presentations which will take place on a weekly basis throughout the course. In particular, students will have received written feedback on the essay before they are required to sit the on-line exam. Feedback on tutorial participation will be provided through an individual Tutorial Participation feedback sheet, which will be given to the students after the final tutorial. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- demonstrate comprehensive understanding of contemporary debates on the chosen event, from both a theoretical and empirical perspective.
- apply specialist in-depth knowledge of specific areas and issues in relation to the chosen event.
- critically engage with key explanatory theories, concepts, institutions and issues in the study of the chosen event.
- deploy effective communications skills, both written and verbal, to provide clear and concise analysis of the topic at hand.
- engage in critical thinking, reflection and debate for academic and non-academic consumption..
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Reading List
Chang, Ha-Joon (2015) Economics: A Users Guide London: Puffin
Harrison (2021) Developmentalism: The Normative and Transformative within Capitalism, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Reinert E, J Ghosh (2014) Handbook of alternative theories of economic development London: Edward Elgar |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Critical thinking and analysis
Team work
Effective written and verbal communication
Effective research and analytical skills |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Rama Dieng
Tel: (0131 6)51 1636
Email: |
Course secretary | Miss Anna Hallam
Tel: (0131 6)51 1337
Email: |
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