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ANTH3023 – Development Studies: Global Economic Inequality, International Aid, and Human Rights

2023 – Session 1, Online-flexible

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Chris Vasantkumar
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
130cp at 1000 level or above
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

Why are some countries rich and others poor? Why do billions live on less than $5 a day while the 26 richest billionaires together own as much wealth as the poorest 50 percent of the planet’s people? What, if anything, should we do about this? This unit tackles these questions anthropologically, focusing on international aid as a key means of closing the gap between rich and poor. We will focus on a number of key topics. Specifically, we will explore the history of global poverty and economic inequality, the emergence of human rights as a key vocabulary for staking claims to economic equality, and the complexity of the relationship between culture and development, examining in some detail the ways in which culture can both impede and aid development projects. Finally, we will pay some critical attention to why programs designed to help people in the developing world have sometimes fallen short of their intended goals.

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:

  • ULO1: Analyse and articulate how and why international aid remains such a contested arena within international relations and such a problematic context for altruistic notions of help.
  • ULO2: Read widely and actively participate in discussions concerning interactions between development agencies and target communities within the developing world and thereby gain a detailed picture of what international aid entails.
  • ULO3: Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid, what makes development assistance successful in improving lives and/or why there are often difficulties in achieving this.
  • ULO4: Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the complex factors that influence these outcomes.
  • ULO5: Demonstrate command of anthropological knowledge and theories relevant to international aid.

General Assessment Information

Late Submission Policy

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue. This late penalty will apply to non-timed sensitive assessment (incl essays, reports, posters, portfolios, journals, recordings etc). Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs etc) will only be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application. Special Consideration outcome may result in a new question or topic. 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Essay 1 15% No 26/03/2023
Essay 2 30% No 14/05/2023
Take-home exam 30% No 04/06/2023
Participation 15% No Weekly, beginning in Week 2
Quizzes 10% No Weekly beginning in Week 2

Essay 1

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: 26/03/2023
Weighting: 15%

 

500-700 word short essay on a designated topic.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse and articulate how and 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, what makes development assistance successful in improving lives and/or why there are often difficulties in achieving this.
  • Demonstrate command of anthropological knowledge and theories relevant to international aid.

Essay 2

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: 14/05/2023
Weighting: 30%

 

1500 word essay on a designated topic

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse and articulate how and 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, what makes development assistance successful in improving lives and/or why there are often difficulties in achieving this.
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the complex factors that influence these outcomes.

Take-home exam

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: 04/06/2023
Weighting: 30%

 

This assessment entails two short essays based on assigned questions.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse and articulate how and 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, what makes development assistance successful in improving lives and/or why there are often difficulties in achieving this.
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the complex factors that influence these outcomes.
  • Demonstrate command of anthropological knowledge and theories relevant to international aid.

Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 12 hours
Due: Weekly, beginning in Week 2
Weighting: 15%

 

Weekly participation comprises writing a 250-word discussion on each weekly readings (for external students).

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse and articulate how and why international aid remains such a contested arena within international relations and such a problematic context for altruistic notions of help.
  • Read widely and actively participate in discussions concerning interactions between development agencies and target communities within the developing world and thereby gain a detailed picture of what international aid entails.
  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid, what makes development assistance successful in improving lives and/or why there are often difficulties in achieving this.
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the complex factors that influence these outcomes.
  • Demonstrate command of anthropological knowledge and theories relevant to international aid.

Quizzes

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: Weekly beginning in Week 2
Weighting: 10%

 

Quizzes based on lecture content

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Learn to think critically and reflexively about recent debates informing development, the motivations behind international aid, what makes development assistance successful in improving lives and/or why there are often difficulties in achieving this.
  • Examine the social outcomes that emerge from programs of international aid by looking beyond the rhetoric and developing an appreciation of the complex factors that influence these outcomes.
  • Demonstrate command of anthropological knowledge and theories relevant to international aid.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

In person lectures and tutes on Wednesdays. Unit information will be available on iLearn. Readings made accessible via Leganto. 

Unit Schedule

Unit Schedule

Week

Date

Lecture Topic (Weds)

 

Assessments Due (note weekly quizzes and tutes/forums commence in week 2)

1

22 Feb

Introduction to the Unit

 

 

2

 1 Mar

Global Inequality I: Histories of Uneven Interconnection:  From Empire to a World of Nation-States. From Three Worlds to One.

 

 

3

 8 Mar 

Global Inequality II: Defining Wealth and Poverty

 

 
4

 15 Mar

Global Inequality III: When Cultural Relativism is Inappropriate: Consumerism, Neoliberalism and The Global Shop Floor    

5

22 Mar Development and Aid I: Development History and Periodization

 

 Essay 1 Due 26 March by 23:55 via turnitin

6

29 Mar

Development and Aid II: Development Institutions: IMF, WB, WTF? 

 

 

7

5 Apr

Development and Aid III: Development Goals, Development Measurements, Development Metrics

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

* Mid-semester Recess 10 Apr-21 Apr

 

8

26 Apr

Human Rights I: What is the Human? What are Rights? What are Human Rights?

 

 

9

3 May 

Human Rights II: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Historical and Comparative Persepective    
10 10 May  Human Rights III: Are Human Rights Univeral or Culturally Particular? 

 

Essay 2 Due 14 May by 23:55 via turnitin
11 17 May Putting It All Together I: Lost in Translation: Why Well-Intentioned Projects Fail  

 

12

24 May

Putting It All Together II: Can One Person Change the World?  Fair Trade, Voluntourism and Other Forms of Individual Action 

 

 

13

31 May

Putting It All Together III: The End of Development? Alternatives To (And Within) Development    
   

 

  Take Home Exam Due 4 June by 23:55 via turnitin

 

 

 

 

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Unit information based on version 2023.01R of the Handbook