SEMESTER AT SEA COURSE SYLLABUS University of Virginia, Academic Sponsor

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1 SEMESTER AT SEA COURSE SYLLABUS University of Virginia, Academic Sponsor Voyage: Fall 2014 Discipline: Commerce/Economics Course: SEMS (section 1) and 504 (section 2) Title: Entrepreneurship and Global Development: Exploring Microfinance and Social Businesses around the World Division: Upper Faculty Name: Fred Galloway Credit Hours: 3 Contact Hours: 38 PRE-REQUISITES: This course is designed for students who want to learn about entrepreneurship and its relationship to global development. It is appropriate for students of any academic major or background; however at least 3 credits (1 course) of business or economics coursework are required. COURSE DESCRIPTION: Ever since Grameen Bank founder, Professor Muhammad Yunus, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006, awareness and interest in microfinance has risen dramatically and a number of creative approaches to global development have ensued. This course is designed to explore and analyze the key issues associated with microfinance, social entrepreneurship, and global development. In the process we will address such questions as: What is microfinance? What is a social business? What role has microfinance and social entrepreneurship played in global development? What are the limitations of microfinance and social business as a path for alleviating poverty? What are the ethical dimensions involved with globalization and can social entrepreneurs help to spread the benefits of globalization to the poor? Students will have a chance to explore these questions through course readings, class discussions, group projects, and on-site visits with social entrepreneurs. This course provides a unique opportunity to develop cross cultural competency through travel, education, and service in the developing world. We will study the impact of social businesses and microfinance upon global development both from a theoretical and practical point of view. We will also explore potential synergies among a variety of approaches to development in order to more effectively address intractable global problems, most notably extreme poverty. COURSE OBJECTIVES: The principal aim of this course is to critically analyze methods for effective and ethical global development in the regions we will be visiting Europe, Africa, and Latin America - with a specific emphasis on the microfinance model. By the end of the course, students should be able to: Develop a deeper awareness of cultural factors that impact global development Identify unique challenges to development faced in Africa and Latin America Understand the role of microfinance, especially as it relates to economic development in the regions visited through SAS 1

2 Analyze the advantages and disadvantages of different types of organizations for profit corporations, non-governmental organizations (NGO s), and emerging social businesses - in the simultaneous creation of social and economic value Evaluate various arguments surrounding the advantages and disadvantages of increased globalization REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS Building Social Business: The New Kind of Capitalism that Serves Humanity s Most Pressing Needs, Muhammad Yunus, PublicAffairs: New York, 2010, ISBN: How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas, David Bornstein, Oxford University Press: New York, 2007, ISBN: More than Good Intentions: How a New Economics is Helping to Solve Global Poverty, Dean Karlan and Jacob Appel, Penguin Group, Inc.: New York, 2011, ISBN: Portfolios of the Poor: How the World s Poor Live on $2 a Day, Daryl Collins, Jonathan Morduch, Stuart Rutherford, and Orlanda Ruthven, Princeton University, 2009, ISBN: E-Course Reader will include: Web Resources: Banerjee, A. (2011). Think again, again. In Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty (pp ). New York, NY: PublicAffairs. Bhagwati, J. (2011). Markets and Morality. American Economic Review, 101(3), pp Easterly, W. (2005). The rich have markets, the poor have bureaucrats. In M. Weinstein (Ed.), Globalization: What s new? (pp ). New York, NY: Columbia University Press. Illich, I. (1968). Address to the Conference on Inter-American Student Projects in Cuernavaca, Mexico. Delivered on April 20, Nobel Foundation Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech: Poverty is a Threat to Peace, by Muhammad Yunus. Delivered on December 10, Pralahad, C.K. (2010). The Market at the Bottom of the Pyramid. In The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid, 5 th anniversary ed., rev. and updated. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. Sachs, J Chapter 1, A Global Family Portrait. In The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time. New York, NY: Penguin Press. Yunus, M. (2007). The Grameen Experiment. In Creating a World without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism. New York, NY: PublicAffairs. CIA World Factbook Country Profiles: Russia, Germany, Belgium, France, Ireland, 2

3 Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Ghana, South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, United States. Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) Country Profiles: Russia, Germany, Belgium, France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Ghana, South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, United States. United Nations Human Development Program (UNHDP) Country Reports: Russia, Germany, Belgium, France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Ghana, South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, United States. World Bank, World Development Report 2012 TOPICAL OUTLINE OF COURSE CLASS DAY TOPIC READING/ASSIGNMENT 1 (August 25) Introduction/Course overview Syllabus/Course outline 2 (August 27) Setting the global context World Development Report, Sachs (2005), Karlan (Chs. 1&2), Country Profile: Russia ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA: August (September 2) What is global development? What Banerjee (2011), Illich (1968), are some of the current challenges Country Profile: Germany facing global development? HAMBURG, GERMANY: September (September 8) How global development occurs Pralahad (2010), Yunus state-sponsored, NGOs, BOP (Ch.1), Country Profile: strategies, social entrepreneurs Belgium 5 (September 10) Microfinance and small business Yunus (2007), Country development Profile: France ANTWERP, BELGIUM: September LE HAVRE, FRANCE: September (September 17) Social entrepreneurship and social Bornstein (Chs. 1&2), Yunus Businesses (Chs 2&3), Country Profile: Ireland 3

4 DUBLIN, IRELAND: September (September 23) Globalization and development Easterly (2005), World Bank Development Report 2012, Country Profiles: Portugal and Spain 8 (September 25) Microfinance and development in IMF Regional Reports: West Western Africa Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, Karlan (Chs. 4-6), LISBON, PORTUGAL: September CADIZ, SPAIN: September Study Day: October 1 Country Profile: Morocco CASABLANCA, MOROCCO: October (October 7) Microfinance and development in IMF Regional Reports Sub- Sub-Saharan Africa Saharan Africa, Collins (Chs. 1&2) Study Day: October 9 10 (October 10) Microfinance and development in IMF Regional Reports Sub- Sub-Saharan Africa Saharan Africa, Collins (Chs. 3-6) 11 (October 12) Social entrepreneurship and Bornstein (Chs ), Development in Africa Country Profile: Ghana TAKORADI, GHANA: October TEMA, GHANA: October REQUIRED FIELD LAB Study Day: October (October 19) Social entrepreneurship and Karlan (Chs. 7-9) development in Africa 13 (October 21) Midterm Review Study Day: October (October 24) Midterm presentations MIDTERM PRESENTATIONS CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA: October

5 Study Day: October 30: 15 (November 1) Midterm presentations MIDTERM PRESENTATIONS Study Day: November 3 16 (November 4) Globalization and Latin IMF Regional Reports Latin American development America, Country Profile: Argentina 17 (November 6) Social entrepreneurship and Bornstein (Chs. 3, 5-7) development in Latin America Study Day: November 7 18 (November 9) Social entrepreneurship and Bornstein (Chs. 8, 10-12) development in Latin America BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA: November (November 16) Social business and Yunus (Chs. 4-6) development in Latin America 20 (November 18) Microfinance and rural Karlan (Chs ), Collins development in Latin America (Ch. 7), Country Profile: Brazil RIO DE JANIERO, BRAZIL: November Study Day- November (November 24) Leadership for global Bornstein (Chs ) development Study Day- November (November 27) Social business and global Yunus (Chs. 7-9), Country Development future trends Profile: Cuba 23 (November 29) Review of major course Prepare for final exam themes Study Day-November 30 MANAUS, BRAZIL: December 1-4 5

6 Study Day-December 5 24 (December 7) In-class part of final exam IN-CLASS FINAL, TAKE- HOME FINAL DUE Study Day December 9 25 (December 10) CUBA FIELD WORK During the course, students will participate in one mandatory field lab and two independently designed field assignments that are related to the topics covered in the course. The mandatory field lab will occur on Friday, October 17 th in Tema, Ghana and will consist of a full day visit to the Grameen Foundation located less than 20 miles away in Accra. In addition to this mandatory field lab, students will also be expected to propose and conduct two additional field assignments one in Africa and the other in Latin America. Both of these field assignments will require instructor approval and can be done individually or with other groups of students. Please remember that field lab attendance is mandatory for all students enrolled in this course, so do not book individual travel plans or a Semester at Sea sponsored trip on the day of our required field lab. You are expected to complete a report for the field lab as well as each of the two field assignments you attend. The goal of these assignments is to apply the material learned in class to the field visit. At a minimum, each report should address the items listed below. You are encouraged to be creative, conduct some outside research, and develop some interesting insights or conclusions. I also encourage you to consider alternative reporting formats, such as video. Completing only the minimum requirements will earn a grade of no more than a C. I expect that most written reports will be four to six pages, double-spaced. At a minimum, your report should include: What did you see? (This should include a detailed description of relevant aspects of the visit). How did what you saw compare to what you expected? (Utilize your experience or any prior expectations to critically evaluate what you saw and to develop insights into crosscultural similarities and differences). What did you learn? (Summarize any insights you gained). In addition to the reports that you produce, you are also expected to integrate the knowledge and insights that you ve gained from the field assignments into classroom discussions and as well as your responses to some of the questions on the final exam. METHODS OF EVALUATION / GRADING RUBRIC Formal Notes from the Required Readings 6

7 As a way to encourage students to complete the required readings before every class session, at the beginning of each class the instructor will collect from every student a notecard (or piece of paper containing less than 350 words) for each assigned reading that summarizes the main theme or idea behind the reading, a creative take-away from that reading, and a quote that seems to embody the importance or power of the reading. These will be graded and returned to the student at the end of the next class session. Field Work As described in the previous section, each student must complete three field lab experiences, which include our Field Lab with the Grameen Foundation in Ghana, and two less-formal experiences that are related to the topics covered in this course. Of course, you must receive instructor approval before proceeding with the student-designed field experiences, and complete a report for each one of the three experiences in the manner previously described. The first two field lab experiences (the mandatory visit to the Grameen Foundation and another African-related experience) must be completed as well as handed in before we reach our first stop in Latin America Buenos Aires. The Latin American field experience needs to be completed and handed in before we reach Cuba. Midterm Presentation Throughout the course, students will be making use of such electronic resources as the CIA World Factbook, Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) Country Profiles, and the United Nations Human Development Program (UNHDP) Country Reports to develop an understanding of the countries that we visit in and the way that they relate to the material that we cover in the course. For the midterm, students will work closely with another student to produce and present to the class a minute presentation that not only demographically describes one of the countries that we have visited or will visit, but also identifies the most significant country-specific issues related to the material that we have covered so far in the class. Student pairings and countries assigned will be randomly assigned by the instructor; however to give students an idea of exactly what is expected, the instructor will give a sample presentation to the class several days before the student presentations begin. Final Examination The final examination will consist of both an in-class and take-home component. The take-home part of the exam is due when you arrive in class on December 7 th to take the in-class part of the exam. Both parts will be comprehensive and include material covered in the lectures, required readings, field assignments, classroom discussions, and classroom presentations. Class Participation Classroom participation skills, including listening, probing, speaking, challenging, and persuading are important in exploring a complex topic such as this. Your participation will be evaluated based on the quality of your observations, analysis, and recommendations as well as the extent of your participation. Attendance in class is also mandatory and will be taken during every class meeting. Regarding absences, excused absences need to be verified with a note from the appropriate medical professional, while unexcused absences will result in a reduction of your overall final grade. Grading 7

8 Formal notes from required readings: 15% Midterm presentation: 15% Field experiences and written assignments: 30% Final examination: 30% Class participation: 10% HONOR CODE Semester at Sea students enroll in an academic program administered by the University of Virginia, and thus bind themselves to the University s honor code. The code prohibits all acts of lying, cheating, and stealing. Please consult the Voyager s Handbook for further explanation of what constitutes an honor offense. Each written assignment for this course must be pledged by the student as follows: On my honor as a student, I pledge that I have neither given nor received aid on this assignment. The pledge must be signed, or, in the case of an electronic file, signed [signed]. 8