Module ARA2166 for 2016/7
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
ARA2166: Revolution, Reform or Status Quo
This module descriptor refers to the 2016/7 academic year.
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Introduction: The persistence of authoritarianism in the Middle East and North Africa
Tunisia. Ben Ali’s regime and its demise: A facelift or profound change?
Algeria. The bloodshed of the 1990s and the merits of authoritarianism
Morocco. The monarchy as a guarantor of stability: Domestic and international perspectives
Egypt. The 2010 elections and their aftermath: The end of the line for the Mubarak family?
Libya. Qadhafi and the War on Terror: Lessons on how to stay in power
Sudan. The reign of Omar al-Bashir and the secession of the south
Pacts or revolutions? Theories of regime change
Debating the pros and cons of regime change
Essay workshop
Revision
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | 128 | 0 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching activity | 22 | Teaching will take the form of seminars and brief lectures. Each week's class will begin with student presentations, followed by a seminar organized around the discussion of the theme of the week. The discussion will make reference to the presentations, the texts read at home, the formative reaction paper for the week, and current events, which students are expected to keep up to date with. At the end of each week's class, there will be a short lecture by the module convenor to ensure that all material has been covered fully... |
| Guided independent study | 128 | A variety of independent study activities directed by your module leader |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
Other Learning Resources
Students are expected to familiarize themselves with the various libraries.
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seminar discussion of themes covered in the previous lectures and students' class presentations | Weekly | 1-6 | Verbal feedback |
| Reaction Papers | 5 x 500 words | 1-6 | Written |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 90 | 0 | 10 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 90 | 4,000 words | 1-6 | Written |
| Individual presentation | 10 | 10 minutes | 1-6 | Written and Oral |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay (4,000 words) | 1-6 | August/September re-assessment period |
| Individual presentation | Individual presentation (10 minutes) to the module convenor and an additional member of staff. | 1-6 | Re-scheduled during term-time |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Blaydes, Lisa (2011) Elections and Distributive Politics in Mubarak’s Egypt. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Boukhars, Anouar (2011) Politics in Morocco: Executive monarchy and enlightened authoritarianism. London: Routledge.
Cavatorta, Francesco and Vincent Durac (2011) Civil Society and Democratization in the Arab World. London: Routledge.
Collins, Robert (2008) A History of Modern Sudan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Hemmer, Jort (2009) Ticking the box: Elections in Sudan. The Hague: Netherlands Institute of International Relations Clingendael. Available online at http://www.nbiz.nl/publications/2009/20090900_paper_cru_hemmer_elections_sudan.pdf.
Kausch, Kristina (2009) Tunisia. The Life of Others. FRIDE Working Paper 85. Available online at http://www.fride.org/descarga/FRIDE-WP85-INGLES.pdf
Kazemi, Farhad and Augustus Richard Norton (1999) ‘Hardliners and Softliners in the Middle East: Problems of Governance and the Prospects for Liberalization in Authoritarian Political Systems,’ in Howard Handelman and Mark Tessler (eds) Democracy and Its Limits: Lessons from Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, pp. 69-89.
Le Sueur, James (2009) Algeria since 1989: Between terror and democracy. London: Zed Books.
Martinez, Luis (2007) The Libyan Paradox. London: Hurst and Company.
Perkins, Kenneth (2004) A History of Modern Tunisia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Schmitter, Philippe (2010) ‘Twenty-Five Years, Fifteen Findings,’ Journal of Democracy 21(1), pp. 17-28. Available online at http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/journal_of_democracy/v021/21.1.schmitter.pdf.
Vandewalle, Dirk (2008) Libya since 1969: Qadhafi’s revolution revisited. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
(2006) A History of Modern Libya. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
