Admission requirements
This course is only available for students in the BA International Studies programme.
The number of participants is limited to 25.
Description
Climate change. Genetically modified foods. Flu pandemics. Obesity. Post traumatic stress disorder. Science issues of global proportions affect our lives as citizens of this planet. Journalists may help us make sense of these issues, enabling us to make informed decisions about policy and about our personal lives. This course looks at the science–media–society nexus, focusing on news media as an intermediary between science and society.
The course will bring critical sociological and rhetorical perspectives to bear on current developments and controversies in this field. The way news media, policy makers, scientists and citizens deal with risk and uncertainty will be a major issue. Special emphasis will be put on the challenges to traditional expertise and authority posed by the internet and social media.
The major assignments will consist of a fact-check report and a final paper. Fact-checking requires the students to assess the accuracy and reliability of a published science news item. Drawing on the mandatory literature and on an additional literature search, the final paper addresses the way a science issue has been reported by the news media.
Please note: an interest in news media and in the social implications of science issues is required, a background in the natural sciences is not.
Weekly overview:
Week 1: Introduction. Science in the news: global trends. Models of science communication: top-down or participatory? Fact-checking: research skills.
Week 2: Uncertainty. Reporting practices. Controversy, consensus, and objectivity. Climate change. Choosing your baby’s sex.
Week 3: Risk society. Policy decisions and public outrage. Global epidemics. Food safety. Air pollution.
Week 4: Social construction. Psychopaths. Depression. How experts and news makers shape mental disorders.
Week 5: Framing. Spreading the message: multinational companies versus NGOs. GM foods. Nuclear energy.
Week 6: Expertise. The crisis of authority. Vaccinations: the Internet, vernacular authority, and expertise.
Week 7: Story telling 1. News as narrative. Heroes, villains, and victims. Cancer survivors.
Week 8: Story telling 2. Science as narrative. The cholera detective. Murder & the bystander effect.
Week 9: Fraud. The failure of peer review. Journalists as watchdogs. Stem cell research. How social psychology handled the Stapel scandal.
Week 10: Work-in-progress. Evaluating the fact-check reports, drafting the final papers.
Week 11: Consultation.
Week 12: Conclusion.
Course objectives
The Electives for International Studies are designed to teach students how to deal with state-of-the-art literature and research questions. They are chosen to enhance the students’ learning experience by building on the multidisciplinary perspectives they have developed so far, and to introduce them to the art of academic research. They are characterised by an international or comparative approach.
Academic skills that are trained include:
Oral and written presentation skills:
1. To explain clear and substantiated research results.
2. To provide an answer to questions concerning (a subject) in the field covered by the course:
in the form of a clear and well-structured oral presentation;
in agreement with the appropriate disciplinary criteria;
using up-to-date presentation techniques;
using relevant illustration or multimedia techniques;
aimed at a specific audience.
3. To actively participate in a discussion following the presentation.
Collaboration skills:
1. To be socio-communicative in collaborative situations.
2. To provide and receive constructive criticism, and incorporate justified criticism by revising one’s own position.
3. To adhere to agreed schedules and priorities.
Basic research skills, including heuristic skills:
1. To collect and select academic literature using traditional and digital methods and techniques.
2. To analyze and assess this literature with regard to quality and reliability.
3. To formulate on this basis a sound research question.
4. To design under supervision a research plan of limited scope, and implement it using the methods and techniques that are appropriate within the discipline involved.
5. To formulate a substantiated conclusion.
Timetable
The timetable is available on the BA International Studies website.
Mode of instruction
Seminars
Seminars are held every week, with the exception of the Midterm Exam week. This includes supervised research.
Course Load
Total course load for this course is 10 EC (1 EC = 28 hours), which equals 280 hours, broken down by:
Attending seminars (2 hours per week x 12): 24 hours
Studying the assigned readings / preparing writing and presentation assignments: 104 hours
Fact-checking assignment: 32 hours
Researching and writing the final research essay: 120 hours
Assessment method
Assessment and Weighing
| Partial grade | Weighing |
|---|---|
| Weekly Writing and Presentation Assignments | 20% |
| Fact-Checking Assignment (2-person teams) | 30% |
| Final Research Essay (5,000 words, excluding tables and bibliography) | 50% |
End Grade
To successfully complete the course, please take note that the End Grade of the course is established by determining the weighted average of all assessment components.
Resit
Students who have been active participants in class and submitted the Final Essay on time, but scored an overall insufficient mark, are entitled to a resit. For the resit, students are given a chance to hand in a new version of the Final Essay.
In case of resubmission of the Final Essay (insufficient grade only) the final grade for the Essay will be lowered as a consequence of the longer process of completion. The deadline for resubmission is 10 working days after receiving the grade for the Final Essay.
Retaking a passing grade
Please consult the Course and Examination Regulations 2018 – 2019.
Exam review
How and when an exam review takes place will be determined by the examiner. This review will be within 30 days after official publication of exam results.
Blackboard
Blackboard will be used for the seminars. Students are requested to enroll on Blackboard, but only after correct enrolment in uSis.
Reading list
Readings will be published on Blackboard.
All required readings are available through the e-journals section of Leiden University Libraries or can be downloaded from the web.
Registration
Registration occurs via survey only. Registration opens 3 December:
1) On 3 December you will receive a message with a link to the survey.
2) Indicate there which are your 5 preferred Electives, in order of preference.
3) Based on preferences indicated by 16 December the Electives Coordinator will assign you to one specific Elective by 15 January.
4) Students will then be enrolled for the specific groups by the Administration Office.
5) All students are required to enroll for their group in Blackboard to access all course information.
Students cannot register in uSis for the Elective, or be allowed into an Elective in any other way.
Registration Studeren à la carte and Contractonderwijs
Not applicable.
Contact
When contacting your lecturers, please include your full name, student number, and tutorial group number.
Remarks
The deadline for submission of the Final Essay is 14 June 2019.