Module GEOG3787: WORK, LABOUR AND DEVELOPMENT

Department: Geography

GEOG3787: WORK, LABOUR AND DEVELOPMENT

Prerequisites

• Any Level 2 Geography Module

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• This specialised module offers final year geographers the chance to embed their understanding of development issues developed in Levels 1 and 2 in a detailed consideration of the role work, labour and livelihoods in development.
• The module will:
• Consider how work, labour and livelihoods are conceptualised within competing views of development
• Compare and reflect on different country experiences and the policy contexts that have structured the regulation of labour in and from the Global South within the context of broader development agendas
• Examine how theories of labour and livelihoods emerge the realities of working life in the Global North versus the Global South and to what extent these need to be separated
• Reflect on the major policy challenges in relation to work, labour and livelihoods in the context of development

Content

• The course will examine high level debates about the nature of development, placing labour and livelihoods at the heart of development processes. This will range from mainstream explanations for development and underdevelopment through to consideration of alternative approaches to development. Throughout the lectures, the course will provide detailed consideration of how these processes and arguments work their way out in the context of specific country experiences.
• Indicative Themes:
• Theories of development and underdevelopment
• Gender, labour and development
• Informal work and livelihoods approaches
• Labour migration
• Social reproductive work
• Forced labour and trafficking
• Regional case studies
• Labour movements

Learning Outcomes

• On successful completion of this specialized module, in addition to the module learning outcomes, students are expected to be able to:
• Reconcile competing interpretations of work and labour within development
• Appreciate the diversity of forms of work, labour and livelihoods by drawing on case studies
• Embed local and national patterns of change within the context of global economic change
• Understand the intersection of the global discourse of labour and development with locally-rooted visions

• On successful completion of this specialized module, in addition to the module learning outcomes, students are expected to be able to:
• Evaluate and apply key concepts labour geography and development geography
• Critically appraise the roles of development policy and practice for labour regulation

• On successful completion of this specialized module, in addition to the module learning outcomes, students are expected to be able to:
• Demonstrate the ability to synthesise and integrate knowledge and apply it to contemporary issues
• Demonstrate critical reflection and understanding of competing arguments and positions

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• The core of the course will be based on nine 1.5 hour lectures. These will be supported by two one hour tutorials
• The literature review will prepare students for the examination by developing in-depth knowledge of a particular area of work in relation to development, as well as honing their ability to synthesise material
• The summative assessment will test students ability to analyse different interpretations and experiences of development in the context of patterns of global-local change

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Literature review with written feedback (max. 3 pages in accordance with Departmental Policy on Coursework Length and Format)

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University