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
Lecture, seminar style discussion and supervised research.
Course Load
Total course load for the course = 10 EC (280 hours) , broken down by:
Hours spent on attending classes: 2 hours per week x 12 weeks = 24 hours
Time for studying the compulsory literature and completing weekly assignments: 8 hours per week x 12 weeks = 96 hours
Time to write a paper (including reading / research): 160 hours
Assessment method
Assessment method
Presentation 40%
Individual term paper 60%
If the final grade is insufficient (lower than a 6), there is the possibility of retaking the full 60% of the term paper, replacing both the earlier grades. No resit for the presentation is possible.
Blackboard
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 student will be notified of the required readings via 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
ms. Prof.dr. I.G.B.M. Duyvesteyn, email i.duyvesteyn@hum.leidenuniv.nl