BA (Hons) MEDIA AND INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Code: DEV-4008B Credits: 20

This module will critically explore changing trends in humanitarian communication by both the international news media and international development actors, such as Non-Governmental Organisations. This will include a critical review of media representations of development in the Global South and the role and responsibility of journalists reporting about humanitarian crises and poverty. We will also explore conventional strategies of humanitarian communication, such as ‘pornography of poverty’, as well as more contemporary issues such as the role of celebrities, social media and the rise of ‘post-humanitarian’ communication. With case studies ranging from Live Aid to Kony 2012, you will be introduced to key concepts and theoretical approaches cutting across a range of disciplines. This module also contains an integral practical skills component. Speakers from leading NGOs and experienced practitioners will share their insights about the everyday complexities of humanitarian communication and a number of workshops will focus on a relevant hands-on skills such blogging and the basics of development photography.

Code: DEV-4003A Credits: 20

Students on this module will learn how to think critically about complex global problems such as poverty, inequality, climate change, food security and conflict. Students will also study crucial development issues such as environmental sustainability, gender equality and democracy. We will address three 'Big Questions: How do we ensure peace and security? Can industrial development be sustainable? Why do global living standards vary so wildly? This module adopts an interdisciplinary approach, enabling students to learn about these issues from a diverse array of perspectives.

Code: DEV-4004A Credits: 20

This module will introduce students to a range of key concepts and perspectives in the study of global development, such as human development, neo-liberalism and de-colonisation. Students will learn how these different ideas have contributed to – and critiqued - development policy and practice. Students will also be encouraged to compare these different perspectives, and to think critically about how well they explain global inequalities and the complex social, cultural, economic, and political processes which produce them.

Code: DEV-4005A Credits: 20

We will explore the many ways that people work together to imagine and shape billions of diverse futures on our one shared planet. The module critically analyses the different institutions involved in tackling, but also producing, poverty, environmental destruction, and injustice around the world. These include states, social movements, civil society organisations and the private sector. We will explore the interests and motivations of these different actors as well as their strategies and tactics. It will also show how these actors relate to each other, both at the level of policy and practice, in a range of case studies

Code: AMAM4035B Credits: 20

The concept of World Cinema pervades our everyday experiences of film. It is a category of films that can be seen increasingly from cinema listings to the high street. Inherent within the label are debates of resistance, industry, art, technology and aesthetics that have held sway since the dawn of cinema worldwide. In this module you will break down some of these discourses and address the significant cultural, economic and political influences that world cinema has had, and indeed still has, within cinema. There are innumerable cinemas that may be contained within the notion of “world cinema,” but few are more long-lived, or as well-developed, as those we will investigate during this module. Taking the conceptual frameworks of “Middle Eastern,” “European” and “Asian” cinemas as starting points, you will break down the meanings that these regional, national and international definitions of cinema share. You will focus, for example, on the cinemas of Europe, Turkey, Middle East, Japan and America. This tightly focused definition of “world cinemas” is intended to introduce some of the most significant of contemporary world cinemas, while also focusing on those which have had the most influential global histories.

Code: PPLM4001B Credits: 20

Trump’s Tweets, Corbyn’s “fans”, and personalised campaign messages sent by algorithms…political communication has changed drastically in the last five years. Pundits and some scholars warn of serious dangers to democracy. What are the tricks of the trade in modern political communication and how different are they from those of the past? How does one now succeed to get across a message and gain support? Should we be worried about the implications for political discourse and decision-making? This module will enable you to critically assess the role of communication in national and international politics and help you understand the dynamics among political actors, media and citizens in opinion formation and decision-making. This is a professional practice module in which you will gain skills relevant to the conduct of political communications and to many other work environments, as well as experience working in a team on a task that requires critical thinking and collaborative strategizing. This module is ideal for anyone interested in working in politics, diplomacy, journalism, marketing, or for advocacy or activist civil society groups. Ideas about the power of communications and the ways that various political actors use that power are at the heart of this module. You’ll examine how these actors use the media in political communications. Lectures and readings will cover media effects, how political communication has changed with changes in media technology, branding and celebrity in politics, and soft power with political communication at the international level, as well as the tools used by various political actors, such as political parties or civic movements. Lectures are interactive, using an audience response system and open discussion. Seminar activities include practical tasks as well as ones to enhance understanding of the readings. The first assessed work is a group project in which you will play the role of junior analysts in a communications consultancy and you will work together to assess the political communications of a real political actor, your “client”, producing a report and presentation that includes recommendations for improvement. The second is an essay that gives you the chance to develop your ability to analyse and synthesise. By the end of this module you will be able to identify and describe the actors and their interests in a given political communications contexts, as well as formulate and articulate clear arguments about the relationships between political actors and the media in relation to power and agency. You will have gained experience in a simulated work scenario that will give you skills transferable across a number of professions as you will have delivered analysis and recommendations in a professional-style presentation and report. You will also be able evaluate political communications’ role in an international context, something increasingly necessary in the ever more globalized world both for political and corporate actors.

Code: DEV-4001B Credits: 20

This module explores the biological and physical basis for primary production within the main natural resource systems providing food, fuel and fibre to human populations. The module has an integrated biophysical core and deals with resource demand, supply and exploitation issues. There will be a particular emphasis on the important processes in production and a number of key issues in natural resource systems will be introduced here e.g. global resource cycles, diversity, productivity and stability of natural resource systems. There is an important field-based, practical element throughout this course.

Code: DEV-4003B Credits: 20

The module introduces you to key development economics theories and empirical evidence. Topics include the economics of poverty and inequality, economic growth, the balance between states and markets, agriculture and internal migration, population growth, health, human capital, the environment, international trade, and development aid. All of these are discussed within the context of development.

Code: DEV-4005B Credits: 20

This is the first part of a two year course that covers basic principles in social anthropology, and uses them to understand society and processes of social change in developing countries. The SAID1 module provides an introduction to anthropological theory to advance student’s knowledge of socio-cultural issues and disciplinary themes such as adaptation and the environment, human evolution, colonialism, witchcraft and magic, religion, kinship and marriage, class and hierarchy, exchange, rituals, myths and ceremonies. The module’s main aim is to promote an understanding of key figures and debates in social theory and show how these can be applied to development issues and policies. The lectures and seminars are accompanied by a weekly film series in which ethnographic films addressing key anthropological debates are shown and discussed.

Code: DEV-4009B Credits: 20

This module provides an introduction to political concepts and frameworks that are central to the study of international development. Through studying theoretical approaches you will gain the foundations required to critically evaluate contemporary development debates and development policy and practice.

Code: DEV-4011B Credits: 20

This module introduces geographical approaches to the key processes of change that shape our world and its societies. You will examine how people and places are connected and transformed as a result of processes such as colonialism, globalisation, industrialisation, migration, urbanisation and development, and explore how differences and inequalities emerge. A central theme will be why space matters, as people’s lives are influenced by the places that surround them - both near and far - and as they in turn change those places. You will explore these issues through a range of contemporary geographical topics, from sweatshops to climate change, through which you will be introduced to core geographical concepts, ideas and approaches, emphasising on critical thinking and practice. You will discover key methods for geographical research, including Geographical Information Systems (GIS), and will include field-based practical work in the local area.

Code: DEV-4012B Credits: 20

Introduction to International Global Development Management will give you key management, leadership and business skills enabling you to make a stronger career contribution to development through helping more people overcome injustice and poverty. Organisational boundaries continue to change and it is less about the type of organisation that delivers development policy and activities and more about the leadership and management skills that enable you to deliver success. This module has a practical focus drawing heavily upon real world contemporary examples.

Code: DEV-5007A  Credits: 20

What role does media and communication play in promoting positive social change? How can communication help to mobilise citizens, change policies, modify behaviours, promote human rights and support democracy? Equally, how can we prevent communication technologies from being used to promote hate speech and violence? This module will address these and other questions by providing a critical introduction to the fields of ‘Media Development’ and ‘Communication for Development’. Key topics covered are likely to include behaviour change communication, participatory communication, press freedom, digital development and media imperialism. This module is designed to be accessible to Global Development (DEV) students, who have not studied the media before, and to students on degrees relevant to media, with no previous experience of studying global development.

Code: AMAM5025B Credits: 20

The module provides you with the key concepts and methods necessary to devise and execute an independent research project, whether using traditional academic methods or practice based research. As a result, you will cover the key processes involved in devising and focusing a research project, reflexively undertaking the research yourself and writing up your results. In the process, you will be shown how to position your work in relation to an intellectual context; devise the research questions that are practical and realistic; and develop research methods through which to address these questions.

Code: DEV-5002A Credits: 20

Throughout the study of International Development, as in all areas of the social and natural sciences, it is important to weigh our theoretical ideas and policy recommendations against the available evidence. This module deals with the use of quantitative evidence. The aim is to enable students to understand quantitative analysis encountered in other modules, to become critical readers of published quantitative data analysis and to manage, analyse and interpret quantitative evidence themselves. The module deals with research design, a review of descriptive statistics and a number of inferential methods. Techniques taught include simple tests for group differences such as the t-test, analysis of variance and multiple regression.

Code: DEV-5005A Credits: 20

This module will introduce students to the theory and practice of research methods in the social sciences. It will provide you with the skills you need to conduct research both within and beyond the university context, including your dissertation and future careers. The module will introduce students to a range of qualitative, quantitative and spatial methods that social scientists use in research including research design, data collection and data analysis skills. The module is taught using lecture-based classes and workshops. The module is organised based on three research methods that use different approaches to data collection, analysis and presentation. The qualitative method focuses on analysing and presenting qualitative data. The quantitative method focuses on building statistical skills to analyse secondary survey data as well as interpreting quantitative research findings. The GIS method focuses on data visualisation skills, mapping skills and basic GIS analysis.

Code: DEV-5025B Credits: 20

The core of this module is that you learn how to conduct your own ethnographic research. You will develop your own project throughout the semester, by collecting ethnographic data, analysing it, and writing your own ethnography. The module is structured in two parts. In part 1 (weeks 1-5) we will provide you with all the practical tools needed to collect ethnographic data. We will also consider the ethics of ethnographic research. You are expected to start conducting your ethnographic research during this part. In Part II (weeks 6-12) we will show you how to analyse and interpret your findings; in short, how to write ethnographically. There will be a chance for feedback every week.

Code: PPLB4 Credits: 20

There are a broad range of Beginners’ Language Modules for you to choose from. To explore all our available Level 4 modules, please visit our Language Options page. 

Code: PPLB5 Credits: 20

There are a broad range of Beginners’ Language Modules for you to choose from. To explore all our available Level 5 modules, please visit our Language Options page. 

Code: AMAM5063A Credits: 20

You'll be provided with an understanding of media access, production, participation and use/consumption. Module content is organised around notions of space and place, thereby enabling engagement with issues including: globalisation/the global; national media and media systems; regional and local media; community and ‘grassroots’ media, domestic and ‘personal’ media. Over the course of the module, you'll develop an understanding of the range and reach of media and the multiplicity of factors determining how, when and where populations are enabled to access and participate in media activities. Parallel to the above will be an exploration, through selected case study examples, of media and cultural policy issues, spaces/places of media production as well as a critical engagement with questions of power in relation to these. The module also adopts a contemporary focus by incorporating debates about the role and potential of digital media and communications technologies in enabling new forms of media production, distribution and participation.

Code: LDCC5013A Credits: 20

What kinds of writing skills produce great journalism? This question is essential to creating powerful journalism and it’s a central concern of this module. The Writing of Journalism enables you to develop a critical awareness of the skills and structures involved in creating effective journalism. You’ll consider a range of journalistic forms and find out how best to nurture and develop your own writing. You'll have the opportunity to explore the ways in which journalistic writing works – its contexts, its demands, and its inventiveness. This will enable us to approach journalism as a discourse with its own conventions, practices, and ideologies. This module is concerned with journalism as a practice, and a genre. As such, it involves discussion, peer-workshops, and practical experience of reading and writing news and feature articles. In addition to writing your own journalism, you will examine journalistic writing and critical work concerning the craft, in order to probe and challenge your own ideas and assumptions about the practice and production of this writing form. Rather than see the practice of journalism and the critical study of journalism as distinct activities, this module aims to engage you as critical readers and writers whose work is informed by both contexts. In so doing, you’ll gain a greater understanding of the demands and conventions of journalistic writing, develop and sharpen your own work, and gain the discursive flexibility which will allow you to navigate the writing of journalism today.

Code: PPLM5003B Credits: 20

What role do media and communication play in processes of globalisation? How is an ever more global media creating cultural change? In this module you will explore the cultural implications of global media and culture by investigating audience practices and media representations. It begins by introducing the main theoretical approaches to mediated globalisation, before examining how these work in practice. Indicative topics include the power of global branding, global celebrity culture, global publics and local audiences, transnational cultures, and representations of migration.

Code: PPLM5005B Credits: 20

How should we deal with the dissemination of 'fake news'? What role do algorithms play in the media we consume, and is it concerning? What kind of government intervention is there in media markets and in cultural life and how does this get decided? This module will enable you to understand the dynamics and issues of media and cultural policy and how various levels of governance are involved in regulating media cultural sectors. The module will start by introducing you to public policy and policy making processes, covering multi-level governance, multi-stakeholderism, and the policy cycle. It will then enhance your understanding though deep dives into current issues in media and cultural policy, such as audiovisual media policy, arts institutions, net neutrality, harmful content on platforms, sports and premium content rights, urban regeneration through culture, evolving models of (self/co-)regulation. The module will draw on examples from across the globe and at various level including local, regional, national and supra-national policy making, with special efforts made to integrate ones from non-Western contexts. You will have the opportunity to work on real policy issues and practice professional skills in simulations and assessment activities. This module is for anyone interested in media and culture or in public policy in general. It covers topics that touch our daily lives so would be useful to anyone concerned about the shape of our society.

Code: PPLM5042B Credits: 20

How do the media shape how we see ourselves? Or indeed how others see us? In a world of social media, self-branding and the increasing importance of mediated forms of identity, on this module you will explore critical ways of thinking about the relationship between culture, media and the self. Drawing on a range of theoretical approaches in the field of media and cultural studies, this module asks you to use research methods from autoethnography to content analysis to explore both their own identities and the way in which identities more broadly are formulated through contemporary media culture. Through discussing the representation of identity in media content, as well as issues of media production, regulation and consumption, you will critically reflect upon the relationship between media culture and social power and consider how social and technological changes impact on the ways in which identity is experienced in everyday life. On successful completion of this module, you should be able, at threshold level, to critically reflect upon the ways in which media texts construct social identity and should be able to discuss the relationship between media and identity with awareness for social, institutional and technological factors that shape both media production and consumption. Assessment is by group presentation and independent research project.

Code: PPLM5053A Credits: 20

For better or worse, digital technologies are hyped at having revolutionised society. This module will provide you with an introduction to the ways in which the internet and other digital technologies are (and are not) affecting society from theoretical and empirical perspectives, and how society shapes technology. Topics covered include: the evolution of the internet; the "network society"; regulating new media; the radical internet and terrorism; social networking, blogs and interactivity; culture and identity in the digital age; and how the internet affects politics and the media.

Code: DEV-5001B Credits: 20

This module addresses governance challenges arising from natural resource policy and practice, in situations where different stakeholders have competing interests, values and visions. In particular, the module will focus on the governance of biodiversity conservation and agriculture, mainly concentrating on the global South. Students will be encouraged to explore and analyse contested policies and practices using a range of analytical frameworks relating to ecosystem services, human wellbeing and environmental justice. Teaching will involve lectures, seminars and field visits and students will all pursue a case study of natural resource conflict.

Code: DEV-5005B Credits: 20

This is a regional studies module which covers economic, social and political aspects of development in Latin America. It situates the region in its historical and international context, and gives an overview of major development debates in the region. The module also includes country case studies of contrasting development strategies.

Code: DEV-5006A Credits: 20

This module builds on the issues and themes introduced in NR1, with the focus moving to rural livelihoods and household production systems across the landscape. Its themes will be continued in NR3 in the spring. Through deepening their understanding of technical and social aspects of natural resource management, students will be better equipped for later work on applied issues, such as management and conservation, which benefit from inter-disciplinary approaches. This module links closely with the summer Field Course, and with the module on Resource Development and Conservation in DEV3. This module is a requirement for BSc. students and those following the NR stream in DEV and in the joint DEV/ENV BSc. (EGID)

Code: DEV-5006B Credits: 20

Sub-Saharan Africa Development aims to provide students with a historical, political, social and economic analysis of key issues relating to development in Sub-Saharan Africa. Students will develop a historically grounded understanding of political, social and economic change in Sub-Saharan Africa through a critical engagement with a range of scholarship from political science, sociology, anthropology, education and economics. Through an exploration of issues such as colonialism and the post-colonial experience, the state in Africa, reasons for Africa’s poor economic performance and aid effectiveness, conflict and ethnicity, migration and urban development students will develop understandings of the dynamics and agendas of change.

Code: DEV-5007B Credits: 20

This module begins with an overview of the region's history before analysing recent and contemporary social, political and economic development processes. Topics include economic growth, social difference, democracy, land and food security, the environment, health and education. The module draws heavily on India, but also considers Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in relation to the various topics.

Code: DEV-5008A Credits: 20

This module teaches concepts, theories and methods that are fundamental to social anthropology and its relationship with development and change. The teaching methods include formal lectures, guided discussions of key readings, small-group seminars, and ethnographic films. The topics include: fieldwork and ethnography, kinship and marriage, personhood, identity and gender, cultural rights, economic anthropology ecological anthropology, and the anthropology of development.

Code: DEV-5009A Credits: 20

The module is about the distinctive challenges that face low and middle income countries in providing quality education for all. We also consider sources of inequalities in the education systems of the Global North, aiming for a worldwide awareness of the issues affecting equity in education.

Code: DEV-5016A Credits: 20

You’ll be introduced to the basic concepts of microeconomics and its application to development problems. Microeconomic theories of consumption, production, externalities, public goods, common property resources, market structures, land and labour markets and households are covered with an emphasis on issues relevant to developing countries. In addition to conventional microeconomic principles, insights from behavioural and institutional economics on development problems are also covered.

Code: DEV-5017B Credits: 20

The module will introduce you to the main macroeconomic issues of development. You will cover long-run macroeconomics, with a particular focus on economic growth, and short-run macroeconomics, including fiscal, monetary and exchange rate policy. The module combines theory and evidence, relating theoretical arguments to recent macroeconomic phenomena. You will look at specific topics including the government budget and fiscal policy, inflation and monetary policy, trade and the balance of payments, exchange rates and capital flows, and the relationships between gender, institutions, and capital (physical, human and natural) and economic growth.

Code: DEV-5019A Credits: 20

This module will develop your theoretical and empirical understanding of how social environments in different places affect people’s health or ill-health. You will look at health problems and their socio-economic causes at a global, national and sub-national level, examining both communicable diseas (e.g. HIV, covid-19) and non-communicable diseases (e.g. diabetes, stroke), and using case studies from both the Global South and Global North. You will develop knowledge about how ill-health and health inequalities are linked to socio-economic inequalities, poverty and marginalisation. You will be able to apply this knowledge to questions of health policy and interventions designed to improve health. A key conceptual framework for this module is the social determinants of health (SDH). This includes analysis of the risk environment for ill-health, influenced by deeper social structures (such as gender or class inequalities, or poor governance) in a particular setting, how people make a living (their livelihoods), and the nature of health policy and the health services available to people. We are therefore also interested in the interventions which can help deal with risk environments, to make people less susceptible to disease and less vulnerable when they become ill. You will learn how some places have achieved good health. The module is inter-disciplinary, drawing on theories and evidence from disciplines such as sociology, anthropology, public health and development studies, and to a lesser extent economics, demography and epidemiology. It also provides an understanding of the ways different cultures and societies define and understand health and ill-health and why some diseases are highly stigmatised. Case studies from different places and of different diseases are used to illustrate the social determinants of health, including infectious diseases (such as HIV, malaria, Ebola) and non-communicable diseases.

Code: DEV-5019B Credits: 20

This module critically analyses the role of key development actors, and the contexts that they work within. It emphasises how actual interventions play out in society - where they become concrete and have real effects. What changes because of these interventions, and what stays the same, and why? What are the actors’ intentions, who shaped them, and why are outcomes often unintended and contradictory? The module considers a range of actors from social movements to international organisations. It exposes students to the complexities of policy implementation and social change, and provides a strong grounding in understanding the politics of development policy. Although open to all students it is useful if you have taken Introduction to the Politics of Development (DEV-4009B). If you have not you may have to do some additional work in the opening weeks of the semester in order to familiarise yourselves with key concepts. Lecturers will assist you in doing so.

Code: DEV-5020A Credits: 20

This interdisciplinary module will begin by exploring the various approaches to understanding gender and development, then introduces and explains a range of key concepts as the foundations of gender analyses. The module then applies these concepts in examining a selection of important relevant debates: gender analysis of economic growth, divisions of labour and incomes, land and property rights, environmental change, education and health policies, voice and empowerment, violence and religion.

Code: DEV-5026B Credits: 20

What is uneven development and why should we care about it? How did uneven development emerge and what can we do about it? This module focuses on the ways in which geographers have engaged with such questions from different perspectives, focusing on political-economic, environmental, and social concerns. We explore how economic geographers (and geographical economists) have sought to explain the spatiality and unevenness of economic activity, examining the evidence for “natural advantage” and contrasting arguments. We engage with geographical work on urban restructuring and environmental governance – which posit uneven development as a product of capitalism – and consider the influence of Marxist theory on geographical thought. We also explore how both ordinary people and civil society have tried to address, contest, and resist spatial difference and forms of inequality. Throughout the module, questions of place, space, nature, and scale surface (and overlap) – demonstrating the disciplinary strength of geographic scholarship for the analysis of uneven development.

Code: DEV-6013A Credits: 20

The aim of this practical module is to provide an introduction to practical production techniques for storytelling relevant to the field of international development. The module will teach you the basic skills required to make a short film/documentary. Skills taught will include pre-planning a production, working in a team, selecting appropriate equipment, interview techniques, camera work, lighting, sound recording and editing. The module is delivered over an intensive two-week period after the end of the 2nd Year exam period, but counts as 20 credits towards the 3rd Year. The course is taught in collaboration with Duckrabbit who specialise in media training for the third sector.

Code: DEV-5005B Credits: 20

This is a regional studies module which covers economic, social and political aspects of development in Latin America. It situates the region in its historical and international context, and gives an overview of major development debates in the region. The module also includes country case studies of contrasting development strategies.

Code: DEV-5006B Credits: 20

Sub-Saharan Africa Development aims to provide students with a historical, political, social and economic analysis of key issues relating to development in Sub-Saharan Africa. Students will develop a historically grounded understanding of political, social and economic change in Sub-Saharan Africa through a critical engagement with a range of scholarship from political science, sociology, anthropology, education and economics. Through an exploration of issues such as colonialism and the post-colonial experience, the state in Africa, reasons for Africa’s poor economic performance and aid effectiveness, conflict and ethnicity, migration and urban development students will develop understandings of the dynamics and agendas of change.

Code: DEV-5007B Credits: 20

This module begins with an overview of the region's history before analysing recent and contemporary social, political and economic development processes. Topics include economic growth, social difference, democracy, land and food security, the environment, health and education. The module draws heavily on India, but also considers Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in relation to the various topics.

Code: DEV-5008A Credits: 20

This module teaches concepts, theories and methods that are fundamental to social anthropology and its relationship with development and change. The teaching methods include formal lectures, guided discussions of key readings, small-group seminars, and ethnographic films. The topics include: fieldwork and ethnography, kinship and marriage, personhood, identity and gender, cultural rights, economic anthropology ecological anthropology, and the anthropology of development.

Code: DEV-5009A Credits: 20

The module is about the distinctive challenges that face low and middle income countries in providing quality education for all. We also consider sources of inequalities in the education systems of the Global North, aiming for a worldwide awareness of the issues affecting equity in education.

Code: DEV-5016A Credits: 20

You’ll be introduced to the basic concepts of microeconomics and its application to development problems. Microeconomic theories of consumption, production, externalities, public goods, common property resources, market structures, land and labour markets and households are covered with an emphasis on issues relevant to developing countries. In addition to conventional microeconomic principles, insights from behavioural and institutional economics on development problems are also covered.

Code: DEV-5017B Credits: 20

The module will introduce you to the main macroeconomic issues of development. You will cover long-run macroeconomics, with a particular focus on economic growth, and short-run macroeconomics, including fiscal, monetary and exchange rate policy. The module combines theory and evidence, relating theoretical arguments to recent macroeconomic phenomena. You will look at specific topics including the government budget and fiscal policy, inflation and monetary policy, trade and the balance of payments, exchange rates and capital flows, and the relationships between gender, institutions, and capital (physical, human and natural) and economic growth.

Code: DEV-5019A Credits: 20

This module will develop your theoretical and empirical understanding of how social environments in different places affect people’s health or ill-health. You will look at health problems and their socio-economic causes at a global, national and sub-national level, examining both communicable diseas (e.g. HIV, covid-19) and non-communicable diseases (e.g. diabetes, stroke), and using case studies from both the Global South and Global North. You will develop knowledge about how ill-health and health inequalities are linked to socio-economic inequalities, poverty and marginalisation. You will be able to apply this knowledge to questions of health policy and interventions designed to improve health. A key conceptual framework for this module is the social determinants of health (SDH). This includes analysis of the risk environment for ill-health, influenced by deeper social structures (such as gender or class inequalities, or poor governance) in a particular setting, how people make a living (their livelihoods), and the nature of health policy and the health services available to people. We are therefore also interested in the interventions which can help deal with risk environments, to make people less susceptible to disease and less vulnerable when they become ill. You will learn how some places have achieved good health. The module is inter-disciplinary, drawing on theories and evidence from disciplines such as sociology, anthropology, public health and development studies, and to a lesser extent economics, demography and epidemiology. It also provides an understanding of the ways different cultures and societies define and understand health and ill-health and why some diseases are highly stigmatised. Case studies from different places and of different diseases are used to illustrate the social determinants of health, including infectious diseases (such as HIV, malaria, Ebola) and non-communicable diseases.

Code: DEV-5019B Credits: 20

This module critically analyses the role of key development actors, and the contexts that they work within. It emphasises how actual interventions play out in society - where they become concrete and have real effects. What changes because of these interventions, and what stays the same, and why? What are the actors’ intentions, who shaped them, and why are outcomes often unintended and contradictory? The module considers a range of actors from social movements to international organisations. It exposes students to the complexities of policy implementation and social change, and provides a strong grounding in understanding the politics of development policy. Although open to all students it is useful if you have taken Introduction to the Politics of Development (DEV-4009B). If you have not you may have to do some additional work in the opening weeks of the semester in order to familiarise yourselves with key concepts. Lecturers will assist you in doing so.

Code: DEV-5020A Credits: 20

This interdisciplinary module will begin by exploring the various approaches to understanding gender and development, then introduces and explains a range of key concepts as the foundations of gender analyses. The module then applies these concepts in examining a selection of important relevant debates: gender analysis of economic growth, divisions of labour and incomes, land and property rights, environmental change, education and health policies, voice and empowerment, violence and religion.

Code: DEV-5026B Credits: 20

What is uneven development and why should we care about it? How did uneven development emerge and what can we do about it? This module focuses on the ways in which geographers have engaged with such questions from different perspectives, focusing on political-economic, environmental, and social concerns. We explore how economic geographers (and geographical economists) have sought to explain the spatiality and unevenness of economic activity, examining the evidence for “natural advantage” and contrasting arguments. We engage with geographical work on urban restructuring and environmental governance – which posit uneven development as a product of capitalism – and consider the influence of Marxist theory on geographical thought. We also explore how both ordinary people and civil society have tried to address, contest, and resist spatial difference and forms of inequality. Throughout the module, questions of place, space, nature, and scale surface (and overlap) – demonstrating the disciplinary strength of geographic scholarship for the analysis of uneven development.

Code: DEV-6001B Credits: 20

This module is about social movements. It is organised around five key themes, which are also the five main axes of inequality globally. They are: gender/patriarchy, racism, labour/class, climate change and social reproduction. There are two weeks on each theme. The first addresses the forms of inequality relating to each theme and also the structural constraints that impede change. The second week focuses on forms of action taken by social movements, and asks the key questions: under what conditions do things change, which strategies work where, and how can increases in equality be sustained?

Code: DEV-6002B Credits: 20

This module is about sustainability as an environmental justice concern. It approaches sustainability from a political ecology perspective, paying attention to the transformative politics involved in building a safer and more just planet. It looks at just transformations for sustainability from different sides/topics (e.g. conservation, food sovereignty, water, urban and rural areas, indigenous territories) but also in terms of concepts and processes, e.g. planetary boundaries, global (and cognitive) justice, transitions, transformations, alternatives, resistance movements, equity, etc. The course is taught using student experiences and observations. A typical session therefore might involve asking questions around planetary boundaries and asking how students are living within these boundaries. This would involve some theory but also on-line research and group work and dynamics.

Code: DEV-6003A Credits: 20

Since the late 1950s, far more wars have been fought within the boundaries of single states than between different countries. The occurrence of these violent intrastate conflicts poses significant challenges to the development agenda, as they have often devastating social, political and economic consequences that can lead to severe humanitarian crises. Grounded in the acknowledgment that it is extremely difficult to meet international development targets in states experiencing violent civil conflict, the aim of Wars & Humanitarian Crises is to critically assess the (contested) causes and possible solutions of protracted civil wars. Key themes in the module include competing explanations for the incidence of civil war; the humanitarian implications of civil wars; the role of the media in reporting wars and humanitarian action; terrorism as another form of political violence that is distinct from but in many cases related to violent intrastate conflicts; and strategies and challenges of peace-building.

Code: DEV-6005A Credits: 20

This module will provide you with the opportunity to work overseas or in the UK, for example working in education, conservation, agriculture, working with vulnerable groups, administration or journalism. You are expected to fund your own project, which must be approved by the module convenor. The School has a database of projects to assist you with your project selection. The work placement can be between 2 - 5 months duration, over a period stretching from the summer (June) at the end of year two through to the end of the autumn semester of year three (November/December). You are expected to work for a minimum of two months and complete 150 hours of work as a minimum requirement. There are two pieces of assessment: an initial reflective piece of writing about the placement, and an essay related to the placement or project work.

Code: DEV-6006B Credits: 20

The causes and consequences of globalisation are controversial and this module will present alternative theoretical perspectives that lie behind these debates. It extends the analysis of trade and international finance in Economics of Development 3. Specific areas that are examined include global production and transnational corporations, global trade and liberalisation, global finance and debt crises, aid and migration, as well as several cross-cutting issues such as the impacts of globalisation on the environment and on poverty and inequality.

Code: DEV-6007Y Credits: 40

The dissertation will provide you with an opportunity to undertake a research project on a topic within development studies in consultation with your supervisor. It is intended to complement the more conventional methods of coursework and examination assessment, allowing you to investigate and consider themes and issues of importance to you in more depth. The dissertation is not an extended essay; rather it is a (social) scientific piece of research that sets out a clear question and methods, and develops a coherent argument based on a review of existing and/or interpretation of fresh evidence, and application to theory. Please note, the dissertation is restricted to International Development and Environmental Geography & International Development students.

Code: DEV-6012B Credits: 20

This module offers you the opportunity to explore how development ideas and aims are reflected in contemporary development practice, focusing on project design and management . The module content is geared towards giving you tools with which to approach designing and working in and on development projects We explore the history of different approaches to aid enterprises, and how they have been shaped by different geo-political and ideological forces. You will learn core tools common in the sector, such as the difference between a log frame and a theory of change, how to create both, and how they may be useful to defining your endeavours. You will work in a team to develop your own project, with a justification of the need, an evidence-based approach and a strong analysis of the social and political context in which it is going to operate. This will also need a communications strategy and a fully costed budget, all of which you will be supported to learn how to do. However we will also encourage you to think critically about these processes, looking at how these tools have been developed and why, and being aware of their limitations and benefits.

Code: DEV-6014A Credits: 20

This module will address different forms of migration (e.g. internal, international, circular, return, seasonal, irregular) and reasons why people migrate (e.g. economic, political, social and environmental), and will critically explore the different ways in which these are related to development and change in societies of origin and destination. We will start by exploring migration from a historical perspective, and addressing different theoretical approaches with a multidisciplinary angle (including different methods of researching migration – both quantitative and qualitative), as well as regional differences and heterogeneity in migration trends and patterns across the globe. We will then look at key issues in migration studies including: types of migrants; networks and community organisations that link home and host societies; migrants’ integration into the host society; the impact of climate change on people’s movement; policies, citizenship and human rights; and the refugee crisis. Within these topics, we will also discuss inequalities across population subgroups (e.g. by age, gender, education and ethnicity) in terms of migration opportunities, access, networks and integration. These topics will be discussed through the analysis of case studies in various parts of the world and the participation of local community practitioners or migrants themselves in one or more seminar sessions. The module will also include one visit to a local museum to learn about the long and complex history of migration to Norfolk from the museum curators. With this comprehensive approach to migration this module will move beyond a narrow and casual view of the relationship between migration and development, and contribute to understanding the myriad ways in which global forces influence people’s movements, and how these movements, in turn, have historically been transforming societies and communities.

Code: DEV-6017A Credits: 40

The dissertation will provide you with an opportunity to undertake a research project on a topic within development studies in consultation with your supervisor. It is intended to complement the more conventional methods of coursework and examination assessment, allowing you to investigate and consider themes and issues of importance to you in more depth. The dissertation is not an extended essay; rather it is a (social) scientific piece of research that sets out a clear question and methods, and develops a coherent argument based on a review of existing and/or interpretation of fresh evidence, and application to theory. Please note, the dissertation is restricted to International Development and Environmental Geography & International Development students.

Code: DEV-6019B Credits: 20

In this module, we will examine historical and contemporary ideas around urban planning. We will explore the varied socioeconomic, gendered and racialized exclusions embedded within such plans and how ordinary people contest and resist top-down visions. By drawing on Black urbanisms and geographies, Indigenous planning frameworks, and ‘Southern’ theory, we consider alternative visions for what a ‘city for all’ can look like. The module’s focus on theorizing and learning from the ‘South’ and from the ‘margins’ seeks to decenter our ideas on what ‘works’ within a city and the methods we use. While centered on urban planning, the module will bring into conversation debates which have preoccupied urban geographers, including urban economic restructuring and informality; migration; citizenship; urban nature; and race and gender/sexuality in the city. We will think critically with other non-academic materials, such as podcasts and anti-eviction handbooks put together by activists – to ‘decolonize’ and pluralize the ‘knowledges’ we engage with. A one-day field trip to Elephant and Castle, London, focusing on urban planning and regeneration, is an integral part of the module and will be hosted by our partners Latin Elephant and Southwark Notes (Covid-permitting).

Code: AMAM5063A Credits: 20

You'll be provided with an understanding of media access, production, participation and use/consumption. Module content is organised around notions of space and place, thereby enabling engagement with issues including: globalisation/the global; national media and media systems; regional and local media; community and ‘grassroots’ media, domestic and ‘personal’ media. Over the course of the module, you'll develop an understanding of the range and reach of media and the multiplicity of factors determining how, when and where populations are enabled to access and participate in media activities. Parallel to the above will be an exploration, through selected case study examples, of media and cultural policy issues, spaces/places of media production as well as a critical engagement with questions of power in relation to these. The module also adopts a contemporary focus by incorporating debates about the role and potential of digital media and communications technologies in enabling new forms of media production, distribution and participation.

Code: AMAM6024B Credits: 20

This module offers an overview of critical and theoretical approaches to gender and genre in film and television, focusing particularly on North American media, over the last decade. Topics explored may include: the articulation and development of postfeminism in film and television; popular and independent film; feminism and authorship; media responses to the political and cultural contexts of postfeminism; responses to the recession; race and the limits of feminist representation; motherhood and fatherhood; representations of queerness. The module is taught by seminar, tutorial and screening.

Code: ENV-6034B Credits: 20

If you are interested in addressing urban challenges and devising solutions for how we might improve the conditions for life in the 21st century this module provides a space for you to develop your ideas of what a more socially and environmentally just future might look like. Urban Futures introduces you to cutting edge theory and methods that question how cities globally are addressing current environmental, social and health challenges through architectural and infrastructural design. The module’s analytical focus on architecture, infrastructure and urban design enables you to unpack and unravel the politics of their operation and their role in addressing future urban challenges. You will select a building, infrastructure or design to use as your individual case study throughout the module. You will gather materials through onsite and online fieldwork to build up a portfolio of works that will be used for your formative and summative assessments.

Code: HUM-6006A Credits: 20

The transnational movement of bodies, images, and capital has transformed modern conceptualisations of gender and sexuality. Sexual practices, identities, and subcultural formations have been altered through processes of migration and globalisation, as well as by the advent of new media technologies and the wide-reaching circulation of categories such as gay, lesbian, and transgender. In this context, this module aims to situate categories of gender and sexual difference within specific cultural and political contexts, and investigate non-normative gender and sexual formations in relation to emerging discourses on race and class and to anti-colonial theories of modernity and global capitalism. At the centre of the module sit questions such as: How have queer subjects been incorporated into nationalist projects and consumer culture? How has the liberal framework of human rights reshaped the struggles of queer movements outside the West? In what ways have transnational discourses on multiculturalism reshaped notions of queer community and belonging in global cities and in postcolonial metropolitan spaces? What role have media technologies and various forms of visual culture played in the reconstitution of gender and sexual identities and of representations of queer desire, affect, and kinship? Addressing these questions from an interdisciplinary perspective, and drawing on case studies from different geographical regions and from different disciplinary fields, the overall aim of the module is to explore the varied ways local histories and geographies interact with the forces of political, economic, and cultural globalisation, focusing especially on the experiences of sexual minorities in the Global South and of queer diasporas in the Global North.

Code: LDCC5013A Credits: 20

What kinds of writing skills produce great journalism? This question is essential to creating powerful journalism and it’s a central concern of this module. The Writing of Journalism enables you to develop a critical awareness of the skills and structures involved in creating effective journalism. You’ll consider a range of journalistic forms and find out how best to nurture and develop your own writing. You'll have the opportunity to explore the ways in which journalistic writing works – its contexts, its demands, and its inventiveness. This will enable us to approach journalism as a discourse with its own conventions, practices, and ideologies. This module is concerned with journalism as a practice, and a genre. As such, it involves discussion, peer-workshops, and practical experience of reading and writing news and feature articles. In addition to writing your own journalism, you will examine journalistic writing and critical work concerning the craft, in order to probe and challenge your own ideas and assumptions about the practice and production of this writing form. Rather than see the practice of journalism and the critical study of journalism as distinct activities, this module aims to engage you as critical readers and writers whose work is informed by both contexts. In so doing, you’ll gain a greater understanding of the demands and conventions of journalistic writing, develop and sharpen your own work, and gain the discursive flexibility which will allow you to navigate the writing of journalism today.

Code: PPLM5003B Credits: 20

What role do media and communication play in processes of globalisation? How is an ever more global media creating cultural change? In this module you will explore the cultural implications of global media and culture by investigating audience practices and media representations. It begins by introducing the main theoretical approaches to mediated globalisation, before examining how these work in practice. Indicative topics include the power of global branding, global celebrity culture, global publics and local audiences, transnational cultures, and representations of migration.

Code: PPLM5005B Credits: 20

How should we deal with the dissemination of 'fake news'? What role do algorithms play in the media we consume, and is it concerning? What kind of government intervention is there in media markets and in cultural life and how does this get decided? This module will enable you to understand the dynamics and issues of media and cultural policy and how various levels of governance are involved in regulating media cultural sectors. The module will start by introducing you to public policy and policy making processes, covering multi-level governance, multi-stakeholderism, and the policy cycle. It will then enhance your understanding though deep dives into current issues in media and cultural policy, such as audiovisual media policy, arts institutions, net neutrality, harmful content on platforms, sports and premium content rights, urban regeneration through culture, evolving models of (self/co-)regulation. The module will draw on examples from across the globe and at various level including local, regional, national and supra-national policy making, with special efforts made to integrate ones from non-Western contexts. You will have the opportunity to work on real policy issues and practice professional skills in simulations and assessment activities. This module is for anyone interested in media and culture or in public policy in general. It covers topics that touch our daily lives so would be useful to anyone concerned about the shape of our society.

Code: PPLM5042B Credits: 20

How do the media shape how we see ourselves? Or indeed how others see us? In a world of social media, self-branding and the increasing importance of mediated forms of identity, on this module you will explore critical ways of thinking about the relationship between culture, media and the self. Drawing on a range of theoretical approaches in the field of media and cultural studies, this module asks you to use research methods from autoethnography to content analysis to explore both their own identities and the way in which identities more broadly are formulated through contemporary media culture. Through discussing the representation of identity in media content, as well as issues of media production, regulation and consumption, you will critically reflect upon the relationship between media culture and social power and consider how social and technological changes impact on the ways in which identity is experienced in everyday life. On successful completion of this module, you should be able, at threshold level, to critically reflect upon the ways in which media texts construct social identity and should be able to discuss the relationship between media and identity with awareness for social, institutional and technological factors that shape both media production and consumption. Assessment is by group presentation and independent research project.

Code: PPLM5053A Credits: 20

For better or worse, digital technologies are hyped at having revolutionised society. This module will provide you with an introduction to the ways in which the internet and other digital technologies are (and are not) affecting society from theoretical and empirical perspectives, and how society shapes technology. Topics covered include: the evolution of the internet; the "network society"; regulating new media; the radical internet and terrorism; social networking, blogs and interactivity; culture and identity in the digital age; and how the internet affects politics and the media.

Code: PPLM6004B Credits: 20

This module introduces students to the complex world of political journalism. Drawing on examples, both historical and recent it will explore how politics has been reported across all media. You will learn more about the practicalities of covering UK politics and making it informative and interesting for the audience. This module will prepare you for roles as a political reporter within established news organisations, or new media start-ups. It may also be of interest to students who wish to establish a career in politics, public relations or lobbying.

Code: PPLM6078A Credits: 20

Today's political world is more than ever influenced by digital technologies, from innovative social movements to 'fake news' and digital election campaigns. We will explore how the technologies influence political processes and how political processes in turn influence technology. We will examine the impact of digital media on electoral politics, examining key election campaigns (including recent UK and US elections) and the impact of social media, big data, and targeted advertising on their results. We will investigate how social movements (from Black Lives Matter to the Alt-Right) have been transformed through their use of digital networks. We will navigate the world of online politics, with a particular focus on the new culture wars being fought out in online environments. Finally we will explore the politics of the everyday, and the political effects of the technology platforms on which we live our online lives.

Code: PPLM6079B Credits: 20

How do grassroots and third sector organisations campaign for social and political change? Rather than pose this as an abstract question, you will partner with existing organisations to conduct campaigns on specific issues such as climate change, tax avoidance or gender inequality. You will receive a brief from a partner organisation and be supported in planning, devising, and carrying out activities that will achieve the aims of the brief. Taught content will include strategies for both online and offline activism, analysing power relations at different scales, and ways of assessing the effectiveness of your campaigns, but the bulk of this module will be the experience of a “live” campaign. You will combine applied research skills with professional practice in the form of a “reverse internship.” As the partner organisations are embedded in the module, you will build valuable skills for employability as well as an opportunity for being supported in the exercise of engaged citizenship. You will be assessed by presentation and critical reflection. In the year 2017-2018 the partner organisation was Greenpeace, but partners may change each year.

Code: PPLB5 Credits: 20

There are a broad range of Beginners’ Language Modules for you to choose from. To explore all our available Level 5 modules, please visit our Language Options page.