Admission requirements
This course is only available for students in the BA International Studies who have succesfully completed the second year elective course.
The number of participants is limited to 25.
Description
9/11 is broadly regarded as forming a watershed in the history of terrorism. Especially in policy circles it has been popular to view Al Qaeda and all subsequent terrorism as new and beyond boundaries. The aim of the course is to take a closer look at the terrorist predecessors and dissect the phenomenon from the emergence of the word terrorist during the French Revolution to the present day. We will be focusing, for example, on the nineteenth century anarchists. Were their modes of organization and operation so radically different from today? How did the nationalist terrorism of the era of decolonization view and justify violent attacks against colonial oppression? How did the revolutionary world view of the left-wing terrorists of the seventies inspire violence? The course will combine theoretical discussions about the nature and definition of terrorism with a diachronic treatment of the terrorist praxis. Furthermore, the responses from the state and the counter-measures that were developed will also receive elaborate attention. Terrorism generally thrives by the responses that are formulated to counter it, a holistic approach is therefore of paramount importance to understand terrorism in the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty first centuries.
Course objectives
The elective courses 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 interdisciplinary 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 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
a. in the form of a clear and well-structured oral presentation;
b. in agreement with the appropriate disciplinary criteria;
c. using up-to-date presentation techniques;
d. 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. 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.
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
a. in the form of a clear and well-structured written presentation;
b. in agreement with the appropriate disciplinary criteria;
c. using relevant illustration or multimedia techniques;
d. aimed at a specific audience.
Timetable
The timetable is available on the BA International Studies website
Mode of instruction
Seminar and supervised research.
Course Load
Total course load for the course: 10 EC x 28 hours= 280 hours, broken down by:
Hours spent on attending lectures and seminars: 24 hours
Reading and class preparation (10 hours per week over 12 weeks): 120 hours
Hours to prepare for the presentations: 36 hours
Hours to complete the literature review element: 60 hours
Hours to complete the research essay: 40 hours
Assessment method
Assessment and weighing
To complete the final mark, please take notice of the following:
the final mark for the course is established by determining the weighted average
Presentation: 20%
Literature Review: 35%
Research Essay: 45%
To complete the final mark, please take notice of the following: the final mark for the course is established by determining the weighted average.
To pass the course, the weighted average has to be 5.5 at least.
Resit
The resit is only available to students whose mark of the final examined element, the research essay is insufficient.
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 days after receiving the grade for the final essay.
Blackboard
Course information will be accessible via Blackboard before the start of the course.
Blackboard will be used. For tutorial groups: please enroll in blackboard after your enrolment in uSis
Students are requested to register on Blackboard for this course.
Reading list
The reading list and the course syllabus will be posted on Blackboard before the start of the course.
Registration
Enrolment through uSis is mandatory.
General information about uSis is available in English and Dutch
Registration Studeren à la carte and Contractonderwijs
Not applicable
Contact
Prof. Dr. I.G.B.M. Duijvesteijn
Remarks
The deadline for submission of the final essay is 9 June 2017.