Module ARAM246 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
ARAM246: Critical Readings in Kurdish Studies
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
The primary aim of this module is to acquaint you with core texts of Kurdish studies and to help you read them critically, developing research skills that allow you to investigate topics and readings that may be of use in constructing a viable dissertation and to develop key disciplinary skills that may contribute to the wider MA programme. This module may not be used for direct research on individual MA dissertation topics; however, it may be used to explore topics of wider interest for a dissertation. For example, you may wish to develop your knowledge of specific subjects, which are not fully explored elsewhere in the curriculum, or to read specific texts (such as literary texts) with critical discussion.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
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Module-Specific Skills | 1. demonstrate an advanced knowledge of core texts in Kurdish studies and of the development of this field of study; 2. demonstrate an advanced and critical knowledge of the texts you have chosen to study. |
Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. demonstrate analytically how to contextualize the readings, theories and approaches within the wider field of Middle East and Islamic Studies; 4. undertake research effectively, construct a bibliography and ground one's research within the field of Kurdish Studies. |
Personal and Key Skills | 5. demonstrate understanding and analysis of research undertaken, in oral and written forms; 6. demonstrate the absorption, critical analysis of readings and approaches undertaken. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
It is anticipated that the course will cover some of the themes below:
- Definitions: How can we define ‘Kurdish Studies’ and ((given the Kurds’ unique position as a stateless nation) what is its place in the curriculum?
- The Orientalist origins of ‘Kurdology’ and the arrival of Kurdish scholars
- The recent expansion of the field across disciplines
- Reading Kurdish texts (either written from a Kurdish perspective or in Kurdish language) in the field of: literature, history, anthropology, cultural studies, political science, gender studies, religious studies.
- Discussion of these texts within their own context and within academic contexts
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 |
---|---|---|
11 | 139 | 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 | 11 | 1 hour initial group meeting; (4 x 1 hour) Engagement and discussion of readings, at times agreed directly with the tutor; (3 x 2 hour) meeting with course convenor and group in weeks 4, 8 and 11 of term; You will make a presentation to this group |
Guided Independent Study | 81 | Investigation of sources and research |
Guided Independent Study | 32 | Preparing and presenting the formative assessment and writing the final summative paper |
Guided Independent Study | 26 | Utilising major web-based resources |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/
Kurdish Studies Network website https://kurdishstudiesnetwork.net/
Other Learning Resources
Relevant Journals include: Kurdish Studies, European Journal of Turkish Studies, British Journal of Middle East Studies, International Journal of Middle East Studies
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 |
---|---|---|---|
Presentation of critical reflection on readings | 15 minutes | 1-2: 5-6 | Verbal |
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 | 100 | 4000 words | 1-4 | Written |
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 |
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Essay | Essay | 1-4 | August/Sept |