Module ARAM103 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
ARAM103: New Approaches to Islamic Thought
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
This required core seminar should provide a common foundation for the thesis research of all MA students in Islamic Studies in four key respects: (1) to give a broad overview of several key areas of "Islamic thought" (understood as the intellectual, written formulations of various Islamic cultural traditions in various historical settings) in their actual social and historical contexts; (2) to train students in the methods of close, critical reading appropriate to each of the specific Islamic intellectual traditions covered in this course; (3) to acquaint students with some of the pioneering secondary studies in each selected area of Islamic thought; and (4) to offer students an opportunity to develop their expository skills in oral, classroom presentation of their research and reading. The actual seminar topic and assigned readings will be adjusted each year to match the background and research interests of incoming MA students.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
---|---|
Module-Specific Skills | 1. Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge and understanding of some of the most important methodological and interpretive models in relevant areas of Islamic thought; 2. Critically evaluate some of the major texts and seminal thinkers (in translation) in at least two key areas of Islamic thought. |
Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. Explain and evaluate fundamental issues, approaches and challenges in several related historical areas of Islamic thought. 4. Demonstrate a thorough understanding of underlying historical and social contexts within Islamic thought |
Personal and Key Skills | 5. Demonstrate advanced writing and oral presentation skills, group work and the proficiency in working with a large set of unfamiliar reading materials. 6. Synthesise and evaluate reading materials, and identify different methods of interpretation and analysis. |
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:
- What does the ‘Islamic’ in Islamic thought denote?
- Decolonising Islamic thought
- Philosophy as a Way of Life
- Intersectionality and Gender in Islamic Thought
- The Mystical and the Political
- Sovereignty
- Theology and Experience
- Belief and its absence
- Hermeneutics of Text and Context
- Is Islamic Thought possible?
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 2hr seminars |
Guided independent study | 10 | Formative preparation |
Guided independent study | 68 | Summative preparation and writing |
Guided independent study | 150 | Weekly reading materials in preparation for seminars |
Guided independent study | 50 | Further reading and reflection based on module materials |
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 |
---|---|---|---|
15 minute oral presentation on a chosen reading | Weekly | 1-6 | Oral and or written feedback |
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 | Written |
Essay 2 | 50 | 4,000 words | 1-6 | Written |
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 (4000 words) | 1-6 | August/September re-assessment period |
Essay 2 | Essay (4000 words) | 1-6 | August/September re-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.
Shahab Ahmad, What is Islam? Princeton, 2016
Khaled el-Rouayheb and Sabine Schmidtke (ed), The Oxford Handbook of Islamic Philosophy, Oxford, 2017
Aaron Hughes, Theorizing Islam, London, 2014
Special Issue of Method & Theory in the Study of Religion, vol 24 (2012) on study of Islam
Special Issue of JAAR 2018 on Teaching Islam