Module ARA3158 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
ARA3158: Armed Islamist Movements: Jihadism and Beyond
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
This module aims to provide you with an understanding of the complex relationships between Islamism and various types of armed action including, coups, resistance, insurgency and terrorism. It prepares you to constructively engage in academic and policy debates on armed Islamism and the related issues of security, democratization, demobilization, and counter-terrorism in several Muslim-majority and Muslim-minority states.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. understand the major armed Islamist movements, their behaviours, ideologies and the contexts in which they operate; 2. demonstrate the ability to discuss key-issues in the themes of Islamism and political violence; |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. handle recent Islamist terminology; 4. analyse and critique both primary and secondary sources as well as to place the issues discussed in a wider context; |
| Personal and Key Skills | 5. demonstrate critical and analytical skills through readings, class discussions and presentations; 6. organise time and resources; 7. demonstrate an enhanced ability to undertake comparative and cross-regional analysis; 8. give oral presentations and write essays. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
- Islamism and Political Violence: Introduction and Theories
- Jihadism: Historical Roots and Ideological Versions
- National Jihadism in Egypt and Libya
- Pragmatic Jihadism? Ballots and Bullets in Algeria and Tajikistan
- Global Jihadism: Between al-Qa’ida Central and al-Qa’ida Franchise
- Jihadism in the United Kingdom and Europe
- Armed Islamism and Colonialism: Hamas and Hizbullah
- Armed Islamism and Secession: The Case of Chechnya
- Afghanistan and the Endless Jihad
- The De-Radicalization of Jihadists
- Conclusion and Revisions
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 and Teaching activity | 22 | The module will consist of lectures, seminars and student presentations. Each two-hourly seminar will commence with a student presentation(s), followed by a class discussion about the assigned topic, and will conclude with a lecture on the topic for the following week. |
| Guided Independent study | 38 | Weekly reading for seminars |
| Guided Independent study | 18 | Preparing seminar presentation |
| Guided Independent study | 66 | Researching and writing op-ed and essay |
| Guided Independent study | 6 | Web-based activities |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oral presentation | 10-15 minutes | 3-5 | Verbal feedback |
| Act as a discussant in one other presentation | 10-15 minutes | 3-5 | Verbal 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Policy Brief or Academic Opinion Op-Ed Article | 40 | 1,200 words | 1-8 | Written feedback |
| Analytical Essay | 60 | 2,000 words | 1, 2, 3, 4, 7 | Written feedback |
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Policy Brief or Academic Opinion Op-Ed article | Policy Brief or Academic Opinion Op-Ed article | 1-8 | August/September reassessment period |
| Analytical Essay | Analytical Essay | 1, 2, 4, 5, 8 | August/September reassessment period |
