Module POLM105 for 2017/8
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
POLM105: The Politics of Global Capitalism
This module descriptor refers to the 2017/8 academic year.
Module Aims
In this module, you will get an understanding of the political making of the international capitalist system. In terms of your academic development, it will enable you to dissect the agendas, norms and principles underpinning commercial exchange. In order to explain the broader struggles in world politics, this module will provide you with expertise related to the relationship between political and economic forces. This will prove to be immensely valuable for those of you taking the MA in International Relations, although it will also be relevant to those taking other Politics degrees. In terms of personal development, you will develop a refined political and ethical understanding of capitalism which, in turn, could shape your decision-making behaviour as a consumer. The module could even strengthen your likelihood of gaining employment.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
---|---|
Module-Specific Skills | 1. demonstrate detailed knowledge of debates within the study of International Political Economy, including relevant conceptual frameworks, the international institutional history of the world economy, and major contemporary problems in key issue areas; 2. articulate one's own ethical and political positions on questions of the international political economy; |
Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. critically analyse both empirical and theoretical material in the field of international political economy; 4. deploy theoretical arguments in the field of international political economy and apply them to empirical case studies; |
Personal and Key Skills | 5. communicate effectively in speech and writing; and 6. work independently and with peers to achieve common goals. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:
Introduction: Why IPE?
Part 1: Conceptual Frameworks
Economic Nationalism
The Liberal Tradition
Critical Perspectives
Part 2: Governing the Post-war International Political Economy
Finance: From Bretton Woods to the Big Bang
Trade: From the GATT to the WTO
Development and its Discontents
Part 3: Capitalism in CrisisThe Financial Explosion: Causes and Consequences
Reconfiguring World Trade: The WTO and Beyond
A Planetary Emergency: The Political Economy of the Environment
A Crisis of Ideas? Reimagining World Capitalism
Review Seminar
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 | 278 | 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 activities | 22 | 11 x 2 hour Seminars |
Guided Independent Study | 110 | Reading and writing: - Reading in preparation for class each week: c10hrs per week |
Guided Independent Study | 168 | Research and writing for formative and summative assessment |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
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 |
---|---|---|---|
Essay | 2,000 words | 1-6 | Comments and mark |
Solo presentation | 10 minutes, plus hand-out | 1-6 | Verbal comments |
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 |
---|---|---|
100 | 0 | 0 |
...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 1 | 50 | 4,000 words | 1-6 | Comments and mark |
Essay 2 | 50 | 4,000 words | 1-6 | Comments and mark |
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 1 | Essay (4,000 words) | 1-6 | August/September assessment period |
Essay 2 | Essay (4,000 words) | 1-6 | August/September assessment period |
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.
Introductory reading
Blyth, M. (ed), Routledge Handbook of International Political Economy (IPE): IPE as a Global Conversation (Abingdon: Routledge, 2009).
Gilpin, R., Global Political Economy: Understanding the International Economic Order (Princeton:PrincetonUniversity Press, 2001).
Frieden, J. and Lake, D., International Political Economy: Perspectives on Global Power and Wealth (London: Routledge, 2000).
Ravenhill, J. (ed), Global Political Economy (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011). **
Strange, S., States and Markets (London: Frances Pinter Publishers Ltd, 1994).
Walter and Sen, G., Analyzing the Global Political Economy (Princeton:PrincetonUniversity Press, 2008).
ELE – http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/