Undergraduate Module Descriptor

POC2090: Violence, Conflict and Religion in the Middle East

This module descriptor refers to the 2018/9 academic year.

Please note that this module is only delivered on the Penryn Campus.

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:

1. Introduction to the module: “What is going on in the Middle East?”

2. Drawing a line in the sand? 100 years since Sykes-Picot: the deal that changed the Middle East

3. Making of the Modern Middle East: Nationalism

4. Conflict and Violence: Ethnicity, Identity, and Religion

5. Legacy of Colonialism and Foreign Meddling

6. Economic Challenges

7. Violence, Conflict, and Religion: the case studies

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	128	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 & Teaching activities	11	Lectures and discussion facilitated by the convenor
Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities	11	Seminars guided by questions and readings assigned by the convenor
Guided independent study	37	Reading and preparing for seminars
Guided independent study	36	Research and preparation of student-led seminar
Guided independent study	15	Researching and Preparing for examination practice
Guided independent study	40	Researching and Preparing for unseen examination

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

Al-Jazeera-www.english.aljazeera.net

Institute for the Study of War- http://www.understandingwar.org/

Other Learning Resources

Syria: Reckoning (2013, Aljazeera)

ISIS: "Islamic" Extremism? (2014, Mojtaba Masood)

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
Peer reviews of presentations	5 minutes	1-6, 9	Oral
Examination practice sessions	300-500 words	1-7,11	Oral

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
0	65	35

...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
Student-led Seminar	35	15 min per student	1-10	Verbal and Written
Examination	65	1.5 hours	1-7,9-11	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
Student-led Seminar	Presentation Report (1000 words)	1-7, 9,10	August/September assessment period
Examination	1.5 hours	1-7, 9-11	August/September assessment period