Third World Cultures (Latin America, Asia, Africa) HN 214 Spring 2016 Course Time: MWF, 1:00-1:50pm Section: F Room: AD 205 Instructor: Dr. Richard L. Biffle Office: 223A Email: biffler@thomas.edu Office Phone: 859-1366 Office Hours: by appointment (Tuesday and Thursday only) Course Description: This course examines various aspects of political, economic, and social development in the Third World (also known as the developing world or underdeveloped world ). The vast majority of people in the contemporary international system live in the developing world, encompassing more than 150 countries in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. Despite their great diversity, many nations of the developing world share a number of common characteristics, such as poverty, legacies of colonialism, external vulnerability and dependency, internal political and social instability, challenges of state-building, state failure, ethnic conflict, human rights abuses, and so forth. This course aims to help students to identify and critically analyze the major issues and challenges facing the developing nations. Course Objectives Students who are successful in this course will be able 1) to understand and apply the key concepts and major theoretical perspectives in the study of the developing world; 2) to recognize the political and socioeconomic differences between developed and developing countries and the significant variation within the developing world; 3) to develop analytic skills to explore various factors that shape political, economic, and social development and underdevelopment in the developing world; and 4) to investigate the impact of the changing dynamics of the international system on the developing world. The course consists of four parts. The first section provides a brief overview of the main challenges of the Third World development, the meanings of key concepts, such as Third World, development, poverty, and inequality, and the major analytical approaches to the study of the developing world. For the rest of the course, we will explore different aspects of underdevelopment and challenges of Third World countries: Latin America culture surveys the First Nation/Indian cultures; the Spanish an Portuguese conquest and its impact; and the political, economic, and social problems facing Latin America.
African culture includes a study of political, social, religious, economic aspects of African tribal systems; their encounter with European nations, and the struggle to maintain their political, intellectual, and economic identity. Asian culture focuses on past and recent developments and the interactions in the following areas: kinship and family, economic, political, social, and religious systems and institutions. This course will provide students with opportunities for important career and life experiences, and will address these and other objectives in a context designed to deepen students understanding of intergroup relations while improving their information-literacy, study-strategy, reading, and critical thinking/problem solving skills. Finally, the course will examine the concept of culture from a range of perspectives drawn from the field of cultural studies. Students will read and interpret a variety of academic and popular texts - written, visual, and oral - to recognize the role culture plays in how a dialogue and discussion are produced and understood; explore the role ideology plays in culture; apply various theoretical positions to culture; explore how different ways of reading a single text produce different meanings; conduct library and field research; and engage successfully in the writing process. Creating classroom dialogue and respecting voice In this class, when you are invited to actively engage in discussion, there may be a time that you disagree with someone s perspective or the ideas found in our class readings; please feel free to share your thoughts but also respect the opinions of others. It is not necessary for all of us to agree on a subject; however, it is critical that we maintain an environment where we can all consider it safe to speak and be respected. The professor reserves the right to interrupt any discussion that may not be towards this end. Thomas College Diversity Statement Thomas College is committed to promoting a diverse community in an atmosphere of mutual respect. We recognize and appreciate diversity in relation to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, veteran status, age, socioeconomic status, and disability. Prominent among the values that define the Thomas College community is civility, which includes mutual respect, fairness, and appreciation of differences. All members of the college are called upon to promote and value this ethic of common respect and civility. Accommodations To request accommodations, please contact the Student Affairs Office for information about college policies. (859-1243) or stuaff@thomas.edu Thomas College encourages members of its community with special needs to use existing services and become involved in campus life. Although the Student Affairs Office is located on the second floor of the Administration Building, the staff members are available to meet with students in more accessible locations as needed. (2008-09 Thomas College Catalog)
Required Course Texts: Diamond, Jared (1999). Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies. Norton: New York, NY. Collins, Robert O. (2010). Africa- A Short History. Markus Weiner Publishers: Princeton NJ. Other Reference and Resource Materials: Galeano, Eduardo (1997). Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of A Continent. Monthly Review Press: New York NY. Oliver, Roland & Atmore, Anthony (2005). Africa Since 1800 (Fifth Ed). Cambridge University Press: New York, NY. Achebe, Chinua (2012). There Was a Country. Penguin Books: New York, NY. Cell Phone and IPOD Policy Please put your cell phones on vibrate or manner mode during this class; if you must receive a call during the 50 minutes of this class, please leave the room to hold your conversation. Please demonstrate respect to your fellow colleagues in class and the professor, by selecting to listen to your IPOD at a time other than this class. Course Attendance You have heard the saying, You had to be there! Please keep this in mind as the attendance policy for this class. Attendance is taken for each class meeting. You are responsible for all notes and/or announcements that you may miss due to absences. I strongly suggest that you request a colleague in the course to collect any handouts/notes, etc. for you in the event that you have to be absent. Best policy is to contact me by email or phone and notify me that you will be absent. As the professor of this class, I reserve the right to determine if your attendance is impacting your learning, the learning of others, and/or your final grade. Course Participation By enrolling in this course, you have joined a community and by nature of this event, you are expected to participate in the development and growth of this community of learners. Dialogue does not occur when only a few speak; each member of this class community is expected to participate in the dialogic life of this course. Once again class participation is measured by the quality of your thoughtful contributions to the class discussion. Please make every effort to read all assigned chapters/readings as they will form the basis of in-class discussions that you will be strongly encouraged to participate in, as class participation is a part of your final grade. You will also be responsible for finding resources in the form of other books, magazine/journal/newspaper articles of your own to complete assigned course projects. You are expected to attend every class session except in cases of illness, family emergency, or religious holidays. Missing more than three class sessions without appropriate documentation (such as a doctor s note) will hurt your participation grade (Students who have failed to attend at least two-thirds of the classes without due cause will receive a 0
for this course). Each student is expected to complete the required readings BEFORE CLASS and to participate actively in class discussion. Course Requirements Assessment and Evaluation Assessment for this class is holistic. This means that as your professor, I will be observing your active participation in small and large group settings; how you present your individual work and the ways in which you actively contribute to group projects and discussions. I am looking at the big picture or 360 degree nature of student work and participation. You will receive both qualitative comments and quantitative scores on each of your assigned activities and projects. 1. Reading Memos: Each student is required to write six 1 ½ page memos (doublespaced) during the semester (You need to submit three of them before the midterm and the rest after the midterm). The memo should include a brief summary of the main arguments of the readings, your critical reactions, and two questions for potential class discussion at the end. Failure to submit at least six memos will hurt your participation grade severely. 2. Case Studies/Group Presentations: Each team will select one country from the countries covered in the Diamond or Collins books. A team of 4-5 students will be assigned to make a 20-minute professional Power Point presentation (approximately 4-6 minutes for each presenter). The course is composed of five sections/areas. Thus, each team will be expected to research and present on one of the five sections/areas. While you are expected to present as a group (thus, the coherence of the whole group presentation will be considered), grades will be based on individual performance on your presentation. Each student is expected to use at least three sources besides the textbook in their portion of the presentation. The date of your presentation will be decided on January 22nd. Peer Evaluation: For the case study project your colleagues in this class will be given the opportunity to evaluate your presentations. The evaluations will not be used in determining your grade, but you will be able to collect the feedback forms. As always the intention is for continual improvement. 3. Midterm Exam: The midterm exam will test your understanding of the readings, class lectures/discussions, and other class activities. The exam will consist of ID questions (i.e., identification of key concepts, events, and people, etc.), short answers, and one essay. No make-up exam will be given except in case of medical or family emergency (Appropriate documentation will be required) 4. Research Paper Project: a. Proposal: You need to meet with the instructor to discuss your research topic early in the semester. After the instructor approves your topic, you are required to write and submit a formal proposal of 2-3 pages (double-spaced, 12-point font) by Friday, February 26th at 4:00pm. The proposal should include your central research question, your (tentative) argument, a short
literature review (i.e., your critical evaluation of what has been written about your topic; it is NOT an annotated bibliography), and a preliminary bibliography. The proposal should be properly cited. b. First Draft (Optional): You are encouraged to submit the first draft of your research paper. The draft should be at least 8-10 pages. It should not be a rough draft. If you decide to submit the first draft, you need to make a substantial progress on your final draft, based on my feedback and your continued efforts. It is due on Friday, March 25th at 4:00pm. c. Final Paper: The final draft should be 10-12 pages (double-spaced, 12-point font, minimum 10 titles/citations in the reference list). There should be a separate front page with the title of the paper, your name, and your e-mail address. You should insert page numbers on every page. Writing style will be considered in grading the paper. It is due on Wednesday, April 27th at 4:00pm. Grades: Every assignment must be completed to pass this course. Final grades will be based on the following criteria: Participation 13% Research Paper Proposal 7% Reading Memos 10% Midterm Exam 20% Case Study Group Presentation 25% Research Paper Project 25%
Tentative Course Schedule (subject to change) HU 214 Spring 2016 Tentative Schedule - Subject to Change Week 1/Day Date Topic Guns, Germs and Steel Mon Jan 11 Our Journey: Orientation, Planning and Navigation Wed Jan 13 Guidelines/Discussion of the process of research, troubleshooting and outlining your research project paper Readings and/or Assignment Given/ *Case Study Teams Design/creation (6 teams) Reading: GGS Prologue Fri Jan 15 Video: Episode 1- GGS Week 2/Day Out of Eden Mon Jan 18 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Holiday Wed Jan 20 Weaving a tapestry of conflicting ideologies, issues and challenges Fri Jan 22 Exploration Asia Reading: GGS Part 1 *Case Study Team Presentation Schedule Dates Week 3/Day Mon Jan 25 Exploration Asia Reading: GGS Part 2 Wed Jan 27 Exploration Asia Reading: GGS Chap 15/16/17 Fri Jan 29 Exploration Asia **Reading Memo #1 Week 4/Day Mon Feb 1 Exploration Asia Reading: TBA Wed Feb 3 Exploration Asia Fri Feb 5 Exploration Asia Reading: TBA Week 5/Day Mon Feb 8 Exploration Asia Reading: TBA Wed Feb 10 Exploration Asia Fri Feb 12 Exploration Asia **Reading Memo #2 Week 6/Day Feb 15-19 Winter Break Week 7/Day Conquest Mon Feb 22 Video: Episode 2- GGS
Wed Feb 24 Exploration Latin America Reading: GGS Part 3 **Research Paper Proposal Fri Feb 26 Exploration Latin America Reading: TBA *Course paper draft due Week 8/Day Mon Feb 29 Exploration Latin America Reading: GGS Chap 3&18 Wed Mar 2 Exploration Latin America Fri Mar 4 Exploration Latin America Reading: TBA Week 9/Day Mon Mar 7 Exploration Latin America Reading: TBA Wed Mar 9 Exploration Latin America **Reading Memo #3 Fri Mar 11 Midterm Exam Week 10/Day Into the Tropics Mon Mar 14 Video: Episode 3- GGS Reading: GGS Part 4 and Chap 19 Wed Mar 16 Exploration Africa Reading: Collins Chap 1 Fri Mar 18 Exploration Africa Reading: Collins Chap 2&3 Week 11/Day Mon Mar 21 Exploration Africa Reading: TBA Wed Mar 23 Exploration Africa Reading: Collins Chap 4 Fri Mar 25 Exploration Africa Week 12/Day Mar 28-Apr 1 Spring Break **Reading Memo #4 Week 13/Day Mon Apr 4 Exploration Africa Reading: Collins Chap 5 Wed Apr 6 Exploration Africa Reading: TBA Fri Apr 8 Exploration Africa Reading: TBA Week 14/Day Mon Apr 11 Exploration Africa Reading: Collins Chap 6 Wed Apr 13 Exploration Africa Reading: TBA Fri Apr 15 Exploration Africa Reading: TBA
**Reading Memo #5 Week 15/Day Mon Apr 18 Exploration Africa Reading: TBA Wed Apr 20 Exploration Africa Reading: TBA Fri Apr 22 Team Case Study Presentations (2) Week 16/Day Mon Apr 25 Team Case Study Presentations (2) Wed Apr 27 Team Case Study Presentations (2) Fri Apr 29 Team Case Study Presentation (1) Course Case Study Paper Course Case Study Paper **Reading Memo #6 Course Case Study Paper Course Case Study Paper Week 17 May 2-6 Course Evaluation Finals Week No Final Exam