TAFANPS15U Nature, Population and Society in Africa

Volume 2014/2015
Content
This course has three inter-related objectives. Firstly, it aims to locate ‘Africa’ – as idea and as continuum of complex realities – within histories of representation of and on the continent, and in relation to the changing dynamics associated with its resources, spaces, and people. Secondly, it aims to provide students with a basic grounding in the kinds of academic disciplines, theoretical perspectives, analytic themes and empirical topics that are key to the contemporary, interdisciplinary field of African Studies. Thirdly, through the use of diverse sources and perspectives – including those of historians, anthropologists, geographers, sociologists, political scientists, political economists, and environmentalists, as well as writers and artists – the course aims to illuminate more deeply and engage critically with three core analytic arenas, namely nature, population, and society.
Learning Outcome

The aim is for the student to acquire the following qualifications:

  • Knowledge of key issues and themes central to the study of ‘Africa’ (as an idea) and of diverse and complex African realities. 
  • Critical capacities for analyzing the inter-related social, political, economic and cultural dynamics on the continent, and, where relevant, beyond it.
  • Command of interdisciplinary approaches and methodologies within African Studies.
  • Knowledge of relevant concepts and concerns associated with the particular analytical fields ‘nature’, ‘population’ and ‘society’ in Africa.
The course is only open for CAS MA students and professional master students.
The course combines lectures and classroom discussions, requiring participation and active engagement, including student presentations. This will be supplemented by guest lectures. If available, ethnographic and documentary films giving a visual aspect to some of the themes in the course will be screened.
  • Category
  • Hours
  • Class Instruction
  • 56
  • Course Preparation
  • 244
  • Exam
  • 120
  • Total
  • 420
Credit
15 ECTS
Type of assessment
Written assignment
Marking scale
7-point grading scale
Censorship form
External censorship
Exam period
January 2015
Criteria for exam assesment

The grade of 12 is given at the exam when the student demonstrates:

  • Confident knowledge of the disciplines, history and academic terminology of African Studies.
  • Confident ability to identify, define and consider an issue from an interdisciplinary and critical-analytical perspective.
  • Confident ability to choose, analyse and present the material relevant to the issue in question in an independent and critical manner.
  • Confident command of methodologies and concepts within the key disciplines of African Studies as well as contemporary research discussions.
  • Confident ability to communicate academic material in a clear, concise and well-argued manner.