Module ARAM249 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
ARAM249: Theorising Islam
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
The module aims to introduce students to the major theoretical debates on the study of Islam, on the nature of colonial and orientalism praxes as they have arisen, as well as elements of the theory of decolonial and reparative epistemology and praxis. From these foundations, in this module, you will learn to engage key concepts within the study of Islam that help us to make better sense of our world such as race, class, gender, sexuality, justice, sovereignty, and art. By the end of the module, you will understand and be able to apply what is meant by a decolonial study of Islam as well as the potential shortcomings that such an approach may have.
As the module will be taught online, engagement with digital media and platforms and developing a confidence in their usage will be essential.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the most important approaches to the study of Islam in the field 2. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of what is meant by colonial, postcolonial, and decolonial approaches |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. Demonstrate an ability to engage in an interdisciplinary and intersectional study of Islam through the study of gender, class, race, and sexuality among others 4. Demonstrate an ability to digest and apply postcolonial and decolonial theory to the study of Islam |
| Personal and Key Skills | 5. Demonstrate writing and oral presentation skills, group work and ability to synthesize large areas of unfamiliar reading, subjects and a selection of interpretive and methodological approaches 6. Demonstrate ability to use digital media and platforms for learning and disseminating knowledge and understanding |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oral presentation on a relevant topic | 10 minutes | 1-6 | Oral (and written if requested) |
| Regular reflective reaction pieces | 750 words in total | 1-6 | Written (and oral if requested) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio | 75 | 2,500 words | 1-6 | Oral and written |
| Book review | 25 | 1,000 words | 1-6 | Oral and 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio | Essay (2,500 words) | 1-6 | August/September reassessment period |
| Book review | Book review (1,000 words) | 1-6 | August/September reassessment 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 Ahmed, What is Islam? The Importance of Being Islamic, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2016
Amy Allen, The End of Progress: Decolonizing the Narrative Foundations of Critical Theory, New York: Columbia University Press, 2016
Talal Asad, Genealogies of Religion, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993
, Secular Translations: Nation-state, Modern Self, and Calculative Reason, New York: Columbia University Press, 2018
Markus Dressler and Arvind Pal-Mandair (ed), Secularism and Religion-Making, New York: Oxford University Press, 2011
Carl Ernst and Richard Martin (ed), Rethinking Islamic Studies: from Orientalism to Cosmopolitanism, Columbus, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 2010
Wael Hallaq, Restating Orientalism, New York: Columbia University Press, 2018
Aaron Hughes and Majid Daneshgar (ed), Deconstructing Islamic Studies, Cambridge, MA: Ilex Foundation/Harvard University Press, 2020
Mahmood Mamdani, Good Muslim, Bad Muslim, New Delhi: Permanent Black, 2007
, Neither Settler nor Native: The Making and Unmaking of Permanent Minorities, Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press at Harvard University Press, 2020
Walter Mignolo, The Darker Side of Western Modernity, Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2011
, On Decoloniality: Concepts, Analytics, Praxis, Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2018
, The Politics of Decolonial Investigations, Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2021
Edward Said, Orientalism, New York: Penguin, 1978 [but there are many reprints]
Boaventura de Sousa Santos, Epistemologies of the South: Justice against Epistemicide, New York: Routledge 2014
