FLKM4310 Struggles for justice and equality in international development, education and sustainabilities Emneplan

The course covers three main topics:

• Education and development in the Global South
• Education as and for sustainable Development
• Educational aid, management and planning

No prerequisite knowledge required.

After completing the course, the student is expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

• has acquired in-depth knowledge of and insight into the field of education and development in the South, and how conceptions of sustainable development are manifest in the South
• has an overview of recent research-based knowledge of education discourse and the production of knowledge from both a North and a South perspective
• has broad knowledge of international perspectives and discussions concerning comparative and international education

Skills

The student

• is capable of explaining the role of education in societies in the South characterised by socio-economic, cultural, epistemological and ethnic diversity
• is capable of comparing and critically assessing theories and methods used to study education, culture and sustainable development
• is capable of analysing recent research on connections between education, gender, globalisation, culture and the production of knowledge in the Global South

General competence

The student:

• has extensive knowledge of how to assess how recent research on education and development is relevant to work on the education sector in the Global South
• is capable of explaining and problematising relevant theory in the research field
• is capable of using and disseminating new knowledge and academic issues relating to education in the context of the South

Education and development in the Global South

The focus in this topic is development and education in the South. It covers important issues such as different and often competing education paradigms (e.g. ‘Western’ versus Indigenous education approaches and epistemologies), the relationship between tradition and modernity in the education system, development of national curricula, and the modes of pedagogical practice. A central focus is on the exploration of efforts within the Global South to apply education to development.

Education as and for sustainable development

Building on the first topic, the focus here is on pressing global phenomenon of advancing models of sustainable development, and how these relate to education and development initiatives within the Global South. A prominent concept is cultural understanding and the relationship between cultures, ecologies, development and education, and the instersections with particular ideologies, class, gender and ethnic identities, and school-community relationships. This topic includes consideration of advances within the countries of the Global South to re-define development in ecologically sustainable terms, and incorporate these cultural projects into education systems.

Educational aid, management and planning

The topic focuses on issues relating to international education as they are experienced and understood at an implementation level - locally, nationally and regionally, at school and in the local community, and on changes in the role of teacher and education.

The topic deals with educational aid, and the critical consideration of important lending and donor institutions (e.g. the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund), and the use of educational research by Aid agencies.

Students’ own professional experience will also be discussed in this context. The inclusion of fictional literature from the South will help to elucidate the relationship between national culture and identity in a post-colonial context.

The work and teaching methods used in the course are characterised by lectures and workshop / seminar style dialogue and discussions, to which the students bring their own particular interests and experiences, and diverse academic backgrounds. See the general programme description for further details.

The following required coursework must be approved before the student can take the exam:

• The student must give a presentation lasting 15-30 minutes (individually or as part of a group) of an article, chapter in a book etc. to fellow students during the course.
• 80 % attendance requirement (see the programme description for more information)

The purpose of the oral presentation is to encourage students to engage in more oral activity and improve their oral presentation skills, and to present the academic content to fellow students and the lecturer(s) in an organised and effective manner. The oral presentation is intended to help the students to acquire the skills specified in the learning outcomes for the course.

The course is assessed on the basis of an individual written home exam over seven days, with a scope of 3,500 words +/- 10%.

Resit/rescheduled exam:

Resit/rescheduled exam is organised in the same way as the ordinary exam.

Examination support material is permitted.

Letter grades ranging from A to F are used, with A being the highest grade and E the poorest pass grade, and F being a fail grade.

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