Admission requirements
Compulsory for students enrolled in the RESMA African Studies programme. Those from other MA programs may be admitted with prior registration (please contact the course coordinator).
Description
In this stage of the programme the students have started to reflect on the theoretical orientation and empirical set-up of their own field research. In order to facilitate their choices, but also to ‘discover’ what theory is and how this links to empirical research, the students will be introduced to the conceptual/ theoretical considerations and choices and concrete research of various senior Africanist researchers. How did they relate to theory while developing their research? What were the guiding theories and concepts for them? And how did they work for them during the process of data gathering and analysis?
The course is organized around three thematic fields that are relevant for the study of Africa and allow for a multi-disciplinary approach, i.e., Markets; Power; and Travelling Texts. For each of these themes, the corpus of theories will be explored and linked to empirical researches accordingly. Practical assignments, including a field excursion, will help students to understand, evaluate, analyse and apply these theories to their own research questions.
Course objectives
After completion of the course, students will have acquired:
A profound knowledge and understanding of various theories and concepts in relevant thematic fields in African Studies and how these guide empirical research;
Decided on the topic of their research project and have selected, studied and analyzed the most important literature on the subject.
After completion of the course, students will be able to:
Critically apply these theoretical insights and concepts in the development of their independent research project in African Studies;
Start writing a full research proposal under expert supervision;
Engage in academic debate related to the selected thematic fields;
Give persuasive oral presentations.
Timetable
Mode of instruction
Lecture/seminar
Field excursion
Course Load
Total course load 10 EC x 28 hours= 280 hours
Lectures/seminars: 6 weeks x 8 hours = 48 hours
Preparation tutorials: 6 weeks x 2 hours = 12 hours
Study of compulsory literature: 100 hours
Assignment(s): 3 x 40 hours = 120 hours
Assessment method
Weight
3 papers (3 x 25% = 75%)
Oral presentation (3 x 5 % = 15%)
Participation (10%)
Resit
Resit will be done in consultation with the course coordinator.
Exam review
How and when an exam review will take place will be disclosed together with the publication of the exam results at the latest. If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the exam results, an exam review will have to be organized.
Blackboard
Blackboard will be used for:
Information on course content
Submission of written work
Reading list
A syllabus with a reading list will be made available on Blackboard prior to the course.
Registration
Enrolment through uSis for the course and the examination or paper is mandatory.
General information about uSis is available on the website
Exchange and Study Abroad students, please see the Study in Leiden website for information on how to apply
Contact
Course coordinator: Dr. C.T.Nijenhuis
Education Administration Office van Wijkplaats:
Coordinator of Studies: P.C. Lai LL.M. MSc