UTVB3121 Capitalist Development and Social Transformation in India and China Course description

The Faculty of Education and International Studies at Oslo and Akershus University College (HiOA) offers interdisciplinary courses in Development Studies and North-South relations, leading to a Bacherlor's degree of 180 ECTS credits in Development Studies. This course on 'Capitalist Development and Social Transformation in India and China' is at the intermediate level and represents a 10 ECTS credits module in the 5th semester of the Bachelor programme.

The course will be taught in English or Norwegian, depending on needs according to the participants' language abilities. The exam papers can be written in English, Norwegian, Swedish or Danish.

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At the end of the course the student has obtained the following learning outcomes:

Knowledge

The student

• has knowledge of main theories and analyses of transition to capitalism/new neo-liberal policies in China and India
• has knowledge of changes in social relations of inequality in India and China
• has acquired a brief overview of the modern history of India and China since the late 1940s

Skills

The student

• is able to compare the modern histories of India and China
• is able to compare recent economic and social change in India and China

General competence

The student

• is able to compare macro and micro level social change across cultures/countries

The course provides a research-based and cross-disciplinary approach to selected processes of social transformation during the market reforms of India and China since 1991 (India) and 1979 (China) within a comparative framework. It will look into changes of class, caste, migration patterns, gender relations and politics.

Lectures will be organised around the following themes:

• The modern history of the two countries.
• The market reforms.
• Political change.
• How market reform and political change interact with gender and class relations.

The course will be running from late September until December (in parallel with the course Energy and Climate Change in Africa and Latin America). There will be nine lectures and three teacher-led seminars. Students are expected to participate actively in group work and discussions during seminars.

The course aims at promoting good study techniques. Therefore, a requirement to be allowed for examination is that students write a paper (approximately 2,000 word +/- 10 %) that compares two of the course texts as agreed with the lecturer.

Students, who due to illness or other compelling reason, fail to submit this course work requirement within the set deadline, can be given a new deadline. In this case, the student shall present the documents confirming his/her illness or other compelling reasons.

The assignment is evaluated with -accepted- or -not accepted-. Students who get -not accepted- on their assignment may rewrite and submit maximum two new versions of the assignment. The student shall contact the teacher to get a new evaluation.

The course is based on active student participation, especially during seminars. These are considered essential for developing skills and general competence, as they give the students the opportunity to verbalize, analyze and discuss key issues of the course. Presence during the three seminars is therefore required to be allowed for examination.

Students who have not attended all of the three seminars, but can document valid compelling reasons for their absence, will have to submit a written paper on a given theme as compensation in order to be able to take the exam. The length of the paper shall be in the range of 2000-5000 words, depending on the number of seminars missed.

The assessment is an individual oral examination of approximately 45 minutes.

New/postponed exam

New or postponed exam is offered within a reasonable time span following the regular exam. The student is responsible for applying for a new exam within the time limits set by HiOA and the Faculty of Education and International Studies. Regulations for new or postponed examinations are available in Regulations relating to studies and examinations at Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences. More information about registration and time for new or postponed examinations is available on the HiOA web site.

A graded scale from A to E for passed and F for not passed will be used.

The exam will be assessed by one internal and one external examiner.

The course is open to students who have completed at least a one-year introductory course in Development Studies at either HiOA, the University of Agder or equivalent courses at other universities/university colleges in Norway or abroad.