Students

ANTH221 – Development Studies: The Anthropology of International Aid

2014 – S1 Day

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
Chris Lyttleton
Contact via chris.lyttleton@mq.edu.au
Payel Ray
Credit points Credit points
3
Prerequisites Prerequisites
ANTH150 or 12cp or admission to GDipArts
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
Based on lessons from practical experience in development programs, this unit considers the question: why do aid programs designed to help people in the developing world often fall short of their intended goals? Students will come to understand donor-driven development as both a way of thinking and a set of practices that affect recipient populations in profound ways. We begin with theories of what makes 'development' take place and why some theorists believe development itself does more harm than good. We will examine different models for helping people in poor countries and show how the complexity of international and national relations at the macro-level and social relations at the micro-level makes this such a difficult process. We then explore specific themes in the contemporary practice of 'doing development' such as the changing rhetoric and practices of donor agencies, structural adjustment and China's increasing impact, debt crisis and poverty alleviation, NGOs and community empowerment, gender and social vulnerability, fair trade and sustainability, resettlement, and dealing with unforeseen circumstances.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • Understand why international aid remains such a contested arena within international relations and such a problematic context for altruistic notions of help.
  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid and the attendant difficulties in its delivery
  • Read widely and actively participate in discussions concerning the nature of interactions between development agencies and target communities within the developed and the developing world and thereby gain detailed picture of what international aid entails.
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the many background factors that influence these outcomes

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Due
Tutorial/Lecture Participation 20% weekly
Short report 10% 2nd April
Essay 35% 9th May
Take-home exam 35% exam period

Tutorial/Lecture Participation

Due: weekly
Weighting: 20%


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand why international aid remains such a contested arena within international relations and such a problematic context for altruistic notions of help.
  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid and the attendant difficulties in its delivery
  • Read widely and actively participate in discussions concerning the nature of interactions between development agencies and target communities within the developed and the developing world and thereby gain detailed picture of what international aid entails.
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the many background factors that influence these outcomes

Short report

Due: 2nd April
Weighting: 10%


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand why international aid remains such a contested arena within international relations and such a problematic context for altruistic notions of help.
  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid and the attendant difficulties in its delivery
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the many background factors that influence these outcomes

Essay

Due: 9th May
Weighting: 35%


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand why international aid remains such a contested arena within international relations and such a problematic context for altruistic notions of help.
  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid and the attendant difficulties in its delivery
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the many background factors that influence these outcomes

Take-home exam

Due: exam period
Weighting: 35%

 

for more details of asessment tasks see unit guide on ilearn


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid and the attendant difficulties in its delivery

Delivery and Resources

 

Lectures - Wednesday 12-2pm in E6A102

Lectures will use videos and other graphic material not available elsewhere.  It is required that all students attend all lectures.

Weekly readings will be made available on ilearn.

Background readings and other resources will be listed in the course guide on ilearn

Unit Schedule

                                    ANTH 221: LECTURES AT A GLANCE

Week One             Wednesday March 5       Introduction

Week Two             Wednesday March 12     What is ‘Development’

Week Three           Wednesday March 19     Big Theories” Pipe Dreams and Despair

Week Four             Wednesday March 26     Development as Discourse

Week Five             Wednesday April 2 .         Doing Development: Agencies in Practice

Week Six               Wednesday April 9          Chinese ‘soft power’

MID-SEMESTER RECESS

Week Seven          Wednesday April 30        Australian Aid: Changing Priorities 

Week Eight           Wednesday May 7        Drugs and Development: a case study            

Week Nine   Wed May 14  Sustainable development; social capital and micro-finance

 Week 10: Reading Week.  There are no lectures and no tutorials in this week. 

Week Eleven     Wed May 28      The politics of risk: Health, migration and development

Week Twelve         Wednesday June 4         Dams and Displacement

 Week Thirteen       Wednesday June 11       First do no harm: Mitigating Risk

 

More details and weekly readings in unit guide on ilearn

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central. Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Academic Honesty Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html

Assessment Policy  http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/assessment/policy.html

Grading Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grading/policy.html

Grade Appeal Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/gradeappeal/policy.html

Grievance Management Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grievance_management/policy.html

Disruption to Studies Policy http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/disruption_studies/policy.html The Disruption to Studies Policy is effective from March 3 2014 and replaces the Special Consideration Policy.

In addition, a number of other policies can be found in the Learning and Teaching Category of Policy Central.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/support/student_conduct/

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

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For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://informatics.mq.edu.au/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Graduate Capabilities

Commitment to Continuous Learning

Our graduates will have enquiring minds and a literate curiosity which will lead them to pursue knowledge for its own sake. They will continue to pursue learning in their careers and as they participate in the world. They will be capable of reflecting on their experiences and relationships with others and the environment, learning from them, and growing - personally, professionally and socially.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid and the attendant difficulties in its delivery

Discipline Specific Knowledge and Skills

Our graduates will take with them the intellectual development, depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content in their chosen fields to make them competent and confident in their subject or profession. They will be able to demonstrate, where relevant, professional technical competence and meet professional standards. They will be able to articulate the structure of knowledge of their discipline, be able to adapt discipline-specific knowledge to novel situations, and be able to contribute from their discipline to inter-disciplinary solutions to problems.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • Understand why international aid remains such a contested arena within international relations and such a problematic context for altruistic notions of help.

Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

We want our graduates to be capable of reasoning, questioning and analysing, and to integrate and synthesise learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments; to be able to critique constraints, assumptions and limitations; to be able to think independently and systemically in relation to scholarly activity, in the workplace, and in the world. We want them to have a level of scientific and information technology literacy.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid and the attendant difficulties in its delivery

Problem Solving and Research Capability

Our graduates should be capable of researching; of analysing, and interpreting and assessing data and information in various forms; of drawing connections across fields of knowledge; and they should be able to relate their knowledge to complex situations at work or in the world, in order to diagnose and solve problems. We want them to have the confidence to take the initiative in doing so, within an awareness of their own limitations.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the many background factors that influence these outcomes

Effective Communication

We want to develop in our students the ability to communicate and convey their views in forms effective with different audiences. We want our graduates to take with them the capability to read, listen, question, gather and evaluate information resources in a variety of formats, assess, write clearly, speak effectively, and to use visual communication and communication technologies as appropriate.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • Read widely and actively participate in discussions concerning the nature of interactions between development agencies and target communities within the developed and the developing world and thereby gain detailed picture of what international aid entails.

Engaged and Ethical Local and Global citizens

As local citizens our graduates will be aware of indigenous perspectives and of the nation's historical context. They will be engaged with the challenges of contemporary society and with knowledge and ideas. We want our graduates to have respect for diversity, to be open-minded, sensitive to others and inclusive, and to be open to other cultures and perspectives: they should have a level of cultural literacy. Our graduates should be aware of disadvantage and social justice, and be willing to participate to help create a wiser and better society.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Understand why international aid remains such a contested arena within international relations and such a problematic context for altruistic notions of help.
  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid and the attendant difficulties in its delivery
  • Read widely and actively participate in discussions concerning the nature of interactions between development agencies and target communities within the developed and the developing world and thereby gain detailed picture of what international aid entails.
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the many background factors that influence these outcomes