Undergraduate Module Descriptor

ARA2166: Revolution, Reform or Status Quo

This module descriptor refers to the 2016/7 academic year.

Overview

NQF Level 5
Credits 15 ECTS Value 7.5
Term(s) and duration

This module ran during term 2 (11 weeks)

Academic staff

Professor Lise Storm (Convenor)

Pre-requisites

None

Co-requisites

None

Available via distance learning

No

This module seeks to provide you with an understanding of the current situation in a number of Middle Eastern and North African countries, including Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Turkey, Sudan and Tunisia. During the course of the module, you will be tasked with reading a number of different sources, amongst them academic texts and policy papers, not only on current events, but also on the history of the countries in question so that you have a good yardstick from which to measure the extent of change.

This module on ‘Revolution, reform or status quo? ’ is designed for those students, who have an interest in the Middle East and current affairs, most notably the Arab Spring. Among the key issues that will be discussed are how much the political systems appear to have changed in the different Arab states in the wake of the Arab Spring, what direction the change seem to be taking these countries. In other words, by taking this module you will be faced the current events; topics that are new and relatively unchartered in the academic literature, and therefore exciting but also challenging. If you enjoy a challenge, if you find current events fascinating, and if you enjoy debating, this module is for you. There are no long lectures, very few 'correct' answers - everything is up for discussion, albeit in an academic manner.

No prior knowledge skills or experience are needed to take this module. There are no pre-requisites and co-requisites, but you are expected to have a general interest in the Middle East, democracy and current affairs. The module is suitable for students studying the Middle East as well as non-specialist students. The module is also suitable for students that do not have a social science background, as long as you have a general interest in the Middle East, democracy and current affairs.

Module created

20/01/2011

Last revised

06/03/2014