MSc/PG Dip/PG Cert Development Studies Development Studies and Social Anthropology Department of Geography, Environment and Development Studies School of Social Sciences, History and Philosophy Birkbeck, University of London CONTENTS WELCOME ............................................................................................................................................................................... 3 THE PURPOSE AND AIMS OF THE PROGRAMMES .......................................................................................................... 4 SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE PROGRAMME AND ITS STRUCTURE ............................................................................. 5 PROGRAMME CONTACTS AND PASTORAL SUPPORT ................................................................................................... 8 MODULE AND TERM DATES AND TIMES ......................................................................................................................... 9 ATTENDANCE ....................................................................................................................................................................... 13 LIBRARY, COMPUTING FACILITIES AND VITUAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT .................................................... 14 COMMUNICATION AND TUTORIAL SUPPORT .............................................................................................................. 15 TEACHING STAFF ................................................................................................................................................................ 16 TAUGHT MODULES AND THE DISSERTATION .............................................................................................................. 17 ASSESSMENT MODES AND REGULATIONS. .................................................................................................................. 21 ESSAY GUIDELINES AND REFERENCING ..................................................................................................................... 22 ASSIGNMENT SUBMISSION PROCEDURES .................................................................................................................... 24 ASSESSMENT PATTERN ..................................................................................................................................................... 26 MARKING............................................................................................................................................................................... 27 PLAGIARISM IN COURSEWORK AND DISSERTATIONS............................................................................................... 28 EQUALITIES STATEMENT FOR BIRKBECK COLLEGE ................................................................................................. 29 DISABILITY STATEMENT FOR BIRKBECK COLLEGE .................................................................................................. 29 STUDENT-STAFF EXCHANGE MEETINGS ....................................................................................................................... 30 CAREERS AND DEVELOPMENT ........................................................................................................................................ 30 106744344 2 WELCOME Welcome to the postgraduate Development Studies and Development Studies and Social Anthropology programmes of the School of Social Sciences, History and Philosophy, Birkbeck, University of London. We aim to provide a unique and stimulating academic experience for our students. Over the years we have established a Development Studies programme which has been particularly attractive to students who are seeking to join or are already working in the development sector. We believe that our programme has been successful not only in providing a theoretical understanding of development issues for our students but also providing an opportunity for students to benefit personally, professionally and academically. Last year introduced a Development Studies and Social Anthropology programme, enabling students to gain a deeper understanding of anthropological approaches to development. The Programme Team 106744344 3 THE PURPOSE AND AIMS OF THE PROGRAMMES The Purpose of the Programmes: ● To provide accredited, inter-disciplinary and critical post-graduate courses in development studies and social anthropology. ● To provide unique courses that are predominantly taught outside working hours (evenings and weekends) and address the needs of London’s growing Development sector, and reflect the concerns of people who live and work in London. The principal aims of the programmes are to: ● introduce students to key concepts, theories and debates within selected areas of development studies and, where applicable, social anthropology, ● introduce students to methods relevant to selected areas of development studies and, where applicable, social anthropology, ● enable students to critically apply such knowledge within an inter-disciplinary, social science framework, ● enable students to critically apply such knowledge to practical aspects of development practice and management, ● introduce students to research skills, and to apply these by undertaking an independent research project. Learning Outcomes Postgraduate Certificates, Diplomas and Masters are awarded to students who have demonstrated: i. a systematic understanding of knowledge, and a critical awareness of current problems and/or new insights, much of which is at, or informed by, the forefront of your field of study; ii. a comprehensive understanding of techniques applicable to your own research; iii. originality in the application of knowledge, together with a practical understanding of how established techniques of research and enquiry are used to create and interpret knowledge in the discipline; iv. conceptual understanding that enables you to: a. Critically evaluate current research and advanced scholarship in the discipline; and b. Evaluate methodologies and develop critiques of them and, where appropriate, to propose new hypotheses. v. deal with complex issues both systematically and creatively, make sound judgements in the absence of complete data, and communicate your conclusions clearly; vi. demonstrate self-direction and originality in tackling and solving problems, and selfdirection in planning and implementing tasks at a professional or equivalent level. Masters Students must complete a dissertation of 12,000 words (excluding references). The guidelines for dissertation are distributed in a separate document through the Virtual Learning Environment called Blackboard. 106744344 4 SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE PROGRAMME AND ITS STRUCTURE Common Award Scheme All Birkbeck awards comply with the College’s Common Award Scheme (CAS). From October 2008 all awards are made up of a number of modules that each has a credit rating at a particular level which accords with nationally recognised standards. Modules of the MSc/PG Dip/PG Cert Development Studies programme have a credit rating of either 30 CATS points at level 7 for taught modules or 60 CATS points at level 7 for the dissertation. Level 7 refers to Masters level study and CATS stands for Credit Accumulation and Transfer points. The structure of the programme enables the attainment of different awards depending on the amount of credit accumulated. Award Postgraduate Certificate Credits Modules required 60 CATS Two core modules* points at level 7 Postgraduate Diploma 120 CATS Two core modules and two options** points at level 7 MSc 180 CATS Two core modules, two options and a points at dissertation of 12,000 words (excluding level 7 references) * Students must pass all elements of each module in order to proceed to the PG Dip or MSc. ** Students must pass all elements of each module in order to proceed to the MSc. 106744344 5 PROGRAMME STRUCTURE The programme can be completed in two years (part time) or one year (full time). The structure of the programme allows for specified stopping off points where PG Certificate and PG Diploma awards can be made depending on the amount of credit accumulated. DEVELOPMENT STUDIES PROGRAMME Two years (part time) Year 1 Term 1 Modules Core module 1 Term 2 Core module 2 Term 3 Accumulated credit/award 30 CATS points 60 CATS points Postgraduate Certificate (extra-curricula screenings and No CATS credit talks) Year 2 Term 1 Modules Option module 1 Accumulated credit/award 90 CATS points Term 1 Research methods for dissertation Term 2 Option module 2 Term 3 Research methods for dissertation For submission mid September Dissertation No CATS credit but essential for progression. Submit research proposal including 2,000 word lit review at start of term 2 120 CATS points Postgraduate Diploma No CATS credit but essential for progression. 180 CATS points MSc One year (full time) Term Term 1 Term 2 Term 3 For submission in September 106744344 Modules Core module 1 AND Option module 1 Dissertation research methods workshops Core module 2 Option module 2 Accumulated credit /award 30 CATS points Postgraduate Certificate Research methods for (extra-curricula dissertation screenings and talks) Dissertation (working on this throughout year) 6 120 CATS points Postgraduate Diploma No CATS credit but essential for progression. 180 CATS points MSc DEVELOPMENT STUDIES AND SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY PROGRAMME Two years (part time) Year 1 Term 1 Modules Core module 1 Term 2 Option module 1 Term 3 (extra-curricula screenings and No CATS credit talks) Year 2 Term 1 Modules Option module 2 Term 1 Research methods for dissertation Term 2 Core module 2 Term 3 Research methods for dissertation For submission mid September Dissertation Accumulated credit/award 30 CATS points 60 CATS points Accumulated credit/award 90 CATS points No CATS credit but essential for progression. Submit research proposal including 2,000 word lit review at start of term 2 120 CATS points Postgraduate Diploma No CATS credit but essential for progression. 180 CATS points MSc One year (full time) (not running in 2011-12) Term Term 1 Term 2 Term 3 For submission in September 106744344 Modules Core module 1 AND Option module 1 Dissertation research methods workshops Option module 2 Core module 2 Accumulated credit /award 30 CATS points Research methods for (extra-curricula dissertation screenings and talks) Dissertation (working on this throughout year) 7 120 CATS points Postgraduate Diploma No CATS credit but essential for progression. 180 CATS points MSc Upgrading to MSc Students enrolled on the Postgraduate Certificate or Postgraduate Diploma who would like to upgrade i.e. to progress to the MSc, should be aware that this is subject to satisfactory overall performance in the PG Cert or PG Dip. If you wish to upgrade you should formally submit an application to the summer exam board through the Chair of the Exam Board. You are advised to reflect on your own performance before deciding to make this request. You are not required to make a case for your upgrade as your request will be judged on your academic performance only. Upgrade requests should be made by e-mailing Karen Wells, for Development Studies students, and to Penny Vera-Sanso, for Development Studies and Social Anthropology students, by 1st June 2012 so the request will be considered at the summer exam board. Part time PG Dip students wishing to upgrade to the MSc are advised to do so by this date also so they can fully participate in dissertation preparation activities to enable submission at the end of their second year. PROGRAMME CONTACTS AND PASTORAL SUPPORT Pastoral Support: Development Studies Students (DS students): Full timers and 1st year part-timers will be assigned a pastoral support tutor by Dr Jasmine Gideon, j.gideon@bbk.ac.uk at the end of Week 1 (see Blackboard for details). 2nd year, part-time students: Your pastoral support tutor is Dr Karen Wells, k.wells@bbk.ac.uk Development Studies and Social Anthropology Students (DSSA students: Full timers and 1st year part-timers will be assigned a pastoral support tutor by Dr Jasmine Gideon, j.gideon@bbk.ac.uk for term one; thereafter your tutor is Dr Penny Vera-Sanso, p.vera-sanso@bbk.ac.uk. 2nd year, part-time students: For term 1 your pastoral support tutor is Dr Karen Wells, k.wells@bbk.ac.uk; thereafter Dr Penny Vera-Sanso, p.vera-sanso@bbk.ac.uk. Enrolment issues, fee payment and official notification of results and awards are dealt with by Birkbeck Registry, see http://www.bbk.ac.uk/reg/ for further details. Programme and student administration: your first point of contact for any enquiries will be Shirley Collins s.collins@bbk.ac.uk; she will be able to refer you to other agencies as appropriate. 106744344 8 MODULE AND TERM DATES AND TIMES Birkbeck term dates and holiday closing - current and future dates can be found on the College website at: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/about_us/termdates or via the About Us tab on the Birkbeck home page. Term dates and holiday closing 2011/2012 Autumn term Monday 3 October 2011 to Friday 16 December 2011 Christmas and New Year The College will close at 5pm on Thursday 22 December closure 2011, re-opening at 9am on Tuesday, 3 January 2012 Spring term Monday 9 January 2012 to Friday 23 March 2012 Easter closure The College will close at 6pm on Wednesday 4 April 2012, re-opening at 9am on Wednesday, 11 April 2012. Summer term Monday 23 April 2012 to Friday 6 July 2012 May Day bank holiday The College will be closed on Monday, 7 May 2012. Spring bank holiday and No teaching and most services will be unavailable on 4 and 5 Queen's Diamond Jubilee June 2012. The library may have reduced hours. August bank holiday Most services will be unavailable from 8pm on Friday 24 August 2012 to Monday 27 August 2012. Reading Weeks There are reading weeks in the middle of Term 1 and Term 2. Unless arranged with your class lecturers, no classes are held in reading week. Term 1 reading week: week commencing 7th November 2011 (NGO reading week commences 24th October). Term 2 reading week: week commencing 13th February 2012 106744344 9 Module Start Dates/Times DEVELOPMENT STUDIES PROGRAMME Core Modules (Taken by all full-time and 1st year part-time students) Term 1 FDDV023S7 Development Studies: Wed 6-9pm** Theoretical Approaches* Thurs 11-1pm** Start date 5th October 2011 6th October 2011 Term 2 FDDV024S7 The Political Economy of Development 11th January 2012 12th January 2012 Wed 6-9pm** 11-1pm** * Taken by all students. ** All students will need to be available for lectures and workshops between 6-8pm. Students will be allocated to seminar sessions held either after the lecture and workshops on Wednesday evening (up to 9pm). Depending on student numbers, full-timers may be allocated Thursday morning seminars. Option Modules 2011-2012 (Full-time and 2nd year part-time students must choose two option modules) Term 1 Dates/start date FDDV005S7 Non Governmental Tues 6-9pm 4th October 2011 Organisations - Policy and Practice FDDV020S7 War, Conflict and Mon 6-9pm 3rd October 2011 Development FDDV025S7 International Political Mon 6-9pm 3rd October 2011 Economy of Childhood Term 2 FDDV019S7 Migration and Refugees Mon 6-9pm 9th January 2012 FDDV004S7 Development Management Tues 6-9pm 10th January 2012 FDDV002S7 Gender and Development Thurs 6-9pm 12th January 2012 Modules which may be available in 2012/13 FDDV021S7 Material and Visual Cultures of Development FDDV016S7 106744344 Would only be available as a day time module. 'Race', Ethnicity and Development 10 Dissertation Module: Research methods classes and supervision For full timers and 2nd year part-timers ONLY The dissertation module combines taught elements, peer learning, academic guidance and student-led research. The classes run on Thursdays in Term 1 and Tuesdays in Term 3 (see time table below). After submission of an adequate research proposal and initial literature review each student will be allocated a supervisor. The supervision schedule is also available on Blackboard. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Topic AUTUMN TERM Date Thursday Doing a literature review (1): constructing an annotated bibliography Doing a literature review (2): synthesising the literature Choosing a qualitative method (1): Interview transcripts, field notes and visual data Choosing a quantitative method (2): Surveys, statistical data-sets and content analysis Clarifying the research question and writing a research proposal Writing an ethics proposal SUMMER TERM October 6 Analysing interview transcripts Analysing visual data Analysing documents and narratives Analysing field notes Analysing survey data Writing up May 1 May 15 May 29 June 19 July 3 July 17 106744344 11 October 20 November 3 November 17 December 1 December 15 Tuesday DEVELOPMENT STUDIES AND SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY PROGRAMME Core Modules (All students take both modules; part-time students take one module in each year of study) Term 1 Start date FDDV023S7 Development Studies: Wed 6-9pm** 5th October 2011 Theoretical Approaches* Thurs 11-1pm** 6th October 2011 Term 2 SSGE007S7 Anthropology: Theory and Wed 6-9pm January 2013 Method*** (not offered in 2012) * Taken by all full-time and 1st year part-time students. ** All students will need to be available for lectures and workshops between 6-8pm. Students will be allocated to seminar sessions held either after the lecture and workshops on Wednesday evening (up to 9pm). Depending on student numbers, full-timers may be allocated Thursday morning seminars. *** Taken by all full-timers and (from 2012-13) by 2nd year part-time students. Option Modules 2011-2012 (Full-time and current 2nd year part-time students must choose two option modules; Current 1st year part-time students will choose one option running in Term 2 and in their second year will choose one option running in Term 1) Term 1 Dates/start date FDDV005S7 Non Governmental Tues 6-9pm 4th October 2011 Organisations - Policy and Practice FDDV020S7 War, Conflict and Mon 6-9pm 3rd October 2011 Development FDDV025S7 International Political Mon 6-9pm 3rd October 2011 Economy of Childhood Term 2 FDDV019S7 Migration and Refugees Mon 6-9pm 9th January 2012 FDDV004S7 Development Management Tues 6-9pm 10th January 2012 FDDV024S7 The Political Economy of Development Gender and Development Wed 6-9pm 11th January 2012 Thurs 6-9pm 12th January 2012 FDDV002S7 Modules which may be available in 2012/13 FDDV021S7 Material and Visual Cultures of Development FDDV016S7 106744344 Would only be available as a day time module. 'Race', Ethnicity and Development 12 Dissertation Module: Research methods classes and supervision For full timers and 2nd year part-timers ONLY The dissertation module combines taught elements, peer learning, academic guidance and student-led research. The classes run on Thursdays in Term 1 and Tuesdays in Term 3 (see time table below). After submission of an adequate research proposal and initial literature review each student will be allocated a supervisor. The supervision schedule is also available on Blackboard. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Topic AUTUMN TERM Date Thursday Doing a literature review (1): constructing an annotated bibliography Doing a literature review (2): synthesising the literature Choosing a qualitative method (1): Interview transcripts, field notes and visual data Choosing a quantitative method (2): Surveys, statistical data-sets and content analysis Clarifying the research question and writing a research proposal Writing an ethics proposal SUMMER TERM October 6 Analysing interview transcripts Analysing visual data Analysing documents and narratives Analysing field notes Analysing survey data Writing up May 1 May 15 May 29 June 19 July 3 July 17 ATTENDANCE Students are expected to attend the entire programme. should notify Shirley Collins (s.collins@bbk.ac.uk) at whose assignment submissions are not commensurate class/supervision performance may be subject to a viva may be revised accordingly. 106744344 13 October 20 November 3 November 17 December 1 December 15 Tuesday Those unable to attend any session the earliest opportunity. Students with their attendance level or their examination, and assignment marks LIBRARY, COMPUTING FACILITIES AND VITUAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT Library Once you receive your Library card/College ID from Registry, it can be used straight away. You will also receive information on Information Technology Services resources. Any queries about library membership should be to the Reader Services Librarian on Tel: 020 7631 6063. E-mail: library-help@bbk.ac.uk or visit the library website: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/. All new students will be offered a library induction session Other Libraries Students frequently make use of other college libraries, particularly libraries at the School of Oriental and African Studies, the London School of Economics, the Senate House Library, the Institute of Education, and University College London. You will need to join Birkbeck Library first as this provides the Birkbeck ID other colleges will require. Go to http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/otherlibs/ for information on other libraries available to you, and to follow links to their catalogues. Electronic Access to Journals and Research Databases You have full electronic access to all journals and electronic databases in the Birkbeck Library You will need your Information Technology Services username and password for this (see below). Details will be provided at the library induction. You can then access journals from any computer. Academic databases from the library, not just search engines such as Google Scholar, should be used for literature searches for essays and dissertations. Information on all of this is provided in the library and help is provided for those unfamiliar with using them. You also have full electronic access to all the journals in the Senate House library, including a number of key Development Studies ones so please make sure you join Senate House. You will need the barcode on your Senate House library card to access journals but can then do so from any computer. Information Technology Services (ITS) All students enrolled on the programme are entitled to an ITS user account which grants access to: library workstations, library electronic resources (including ATHENS), the Birkbeck wireless network, the Blackboard Virtual Learning Environment, and remote access to College IT facilities. You are expected to be familiar with the College Computing Regulations if you use the account. Further information about our services can be found on the ITS website: www.bbk.ac.uk/its. Blackboard Blackboard is a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), permitting the provision of online learning materials and allowing various forms of communication. Blackboard will be used as a supplement to your classes and all students will need to make continuous use of it. The material you will be able to access through Blackboard will include lecture notes and key readings. Blackboard is also a communication tool by which your lecturers will be able to convey important information to you and by which you will be able to contact your lecturer and other students. You will submit your assignments to Turnitin and receive your mark and feedback through Turnitin, which is only accessible through Blackboard. It is therefore vital that you access Blackboard at least once a week. Academic content will be provided individually by each module lecturer. 106744344 14 COMMUNICATION AND TUTORIAL SUPPORT The programme’s normal means of communication with students is through email and Blackboard Once you have your Birkbeck e-mail you can access this from any computer via the internet by webmail, or set up your account to forward your Birkbeck mail to another personal or work e-mail address. We will assume that all e-mails we send to your Birkbeck e-mail address will be read and will not be able to make exceptional arrangements for individual students. From Monday 17th October 2011 all e-mail communication will be sent to your Birkbeck e-mail address only Full details of Birkbeck’s e-mail facilities can be found at http://www.bbk.ac.uk/its/services/email/students Change of Address or Personal Details Please ensure that you notify us of any change in your address, email, telephone number or name. In addition to e-mail Birkbeck will contact students by post, particularly with documentation regarding enrolment and your results. Also the Programme team may need to contact you by phone quickly should a class have to be cancelled or some other arrangement changed. Therefore please ensure you keep your details on My Birkbeck up-to-date. If you change your name during the course of your studies please email Shirley Collins s.collins@bbk.ac.uk. Tutorial Support One to one tutorial support will be offered for all core and option modules. You are offered one 20-minute tutorial per assignment. You should contact your module tutor to arrange oneto-one tutorials. For core courses you will be advised of your tutor via Blackboard. Depending on class sizes it may be necessary to make arrangements for day-time tutorials. 106744344 15 TEACHING STAFF Dr. Maknun Gamaledin Ashami has a PhD in Political and Social sciences from the University of Cambridge. His first degree was in Economics. He is a consultant who has taught for many years on Birkbeck’s Development Studies programme. He has considerable knowledge of the UK’s voluntary sector and experience of and expertise in work with refugees, migrants and on issues of poverty and development funding, notably relating to Africa. He sits on a number of grants and research committees including the Inclusion and Immigration committee of Joseph Rowntree Foundation. His research interests include diaspora, remittances and UK refugee and migration policy. His current research is in the area of young undocumented (irregular) migrants in the UK. Maknun teaches the Migration and Refugees module. Dr. M. Alpha Diedhiou has studied in Senegal and the UK and has gained the following awards: BA (Université CAD, Dakar) MA (University of Wolverhampton) PhD (University of the West of England). His research specialisms include: Governance and Development; Political Economy of State Reform; Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers; sub-Saharan Africa. Alpha’s current research activities include exploring the fiscal sociology of state-making in Africa, drawing on the potential political impact of migrant remittances on governance structures in sub-Saharan Africa. This is part of a research framework that examines the role of societal institutions of accountability in the governance processes of sub-Saharan African states. Alpha teaches the War, Conflict and Development module as well as on the two Core Development Studies modules. Linda Etchart lectured in Globalization, Communications and Diaspora at Anglia Ruskin University 2004-6 following working as a consultant and programme officer at the Commonwealth Secretariat in London specializing in Gender Management Systems and conflict transformation, the gender dimension of UN Peace Support Operations and postconflict reconstruction. She has a BA from the University of London in Modern Iberian and Latin American Regional Studies and an MA in International Relations from the University of Kent, specialising in International Political Economy and Politics of the Global Environment. Her published work is in the area of gender mainstreaming and education in conflict transformation and post-conflict reconstruction. Her current research is in the area of gender, peace support operations and trafficking. Linda teaches on the two Core Development Studies modules. Dr. Jasmine Gideon is Joint Programme Director of Development Studies and has a PhD in Development Studies from the University of Manchester, where she also previously taught Development. Her particular research interests are gender and economic and social rights, social protection, health sector reforms, as well as the role of NGOs in service delivery, with particular reference to Latin America. She has published work on these issues in academic journals including Development and Change, Progress in Development Studies and Global Social Policy as well as in more practitioner-focused spaces. She is currently the co-convenor of the Development Studies Association Social Protection Group. Jasmine teaches the Gender and Development module as well as on the two Core Development Studies modules. Dr Fenella Porter has a PhD in Development Studies from the Open University, focussing on organisational change processes in development organisations. This was a collaborative research project, undertaken with Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO). She has also worked in various capacities for Oxfam, publishing articles on issues such as gender and poverty, violence against women, gender and HIV/AIDS, gender and social exclusion, and gender in organisations, as well as being co-editor of Gender Works, Oxfam 1999. Before all this, she 106744344 16 worked in the women’s movement, was based in Uganda and ran an international leadership training programme for women activists. She was co-convenor of the Development Management module in 2005, and has run the NGOs module since 2006. Fenella teaches the Development Management and NGO: Policy and Practice modules. Dr Penny Vera-Sanso is Programme Director of Social Anthropology and Assistant Programme Director of the MSc Development Studies. She has a PhD in Anthropology from the University of London and previously taught at the University of Kent and at Goldsmiths College. She has conducted extensive field research in India where her interests include rural and urban livelihoods, micro-credit and NGOs, low-income housing and globalisation as well as the constructions of personhood and inter-personal relations in law, cinema and politics. She has published widely including in the peer-reviewed journals Oxford Development Studies, European Journal of Development Research, Contributions to Indian Sociology, Third World Planning Review, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute and was guest editor of Gender and Development special on ageing (2009). Penny is Principal Investigator of a major international research project, Ageing, Poverty And Neo-Liberal Policies in Urban India, on the New Dynamics of Ageing programme, a UK Cross-Council research programme. Penny teaches on the two Core Development Studies modules. Dr Karen Wells is a senior lecturer, Joint Programme Director of MSc Development Studies and the Programme Director of the MSc International Childhood Studies. She has a PhD is in International Relations from LSE. Her research interests are in the political economy of childhood and material and visual culture with a specific focus on the connections between the global and the local. She is currently researching the social networks of young migrants. She has published widely on these issues in peer-reviewed journals including Childhood, Ethnic and Racial Studies, Journal of Visual Communication and Journal of Visual Culture. She is author of Childhood in a Global Perspective (Polity Press 2009). Karen is the Principal Investigator for the ESRC Seminar Series: Childhood and Violence: international and comparative perspectives. Karen teaches the International Political Economy of Childhood module and Research Methods for Dissertations. Dr Kalpana Wilson has taught on the MSc in Development Studies at Birkbeck for a number of years, and is also a Fellow in Transnational Gender Studies at the LSE Gender Institute. She has a background in political economy with a regional focus on South Asia. Her current research interests are interdisciplinary and include the relationships between neo-liberalism, gender and concepts of agency, the experiences of women in rural labour movements in India, and the ways in which 'notions of 'race' are inscribed within discourses of development. She is currently working on a book provisionally titled 'Race', Racism and Development - Interrogating History, Discourse and Practice, to be published by Zed Books in 2011. TAUGHT MODULES AND THE DISSERTATION Core Modules There are two core modules per programme of study. Students on both programmes take FDDV023S7 Development Studies: Theoretical Approaches in Term 1. Students on the Development Studies Programme take FDDV024S7 Political Economy of Development in Term 2. Students on the Development Studies and Social Anthropology Programme take SSGE007S7 Anthropology: Theory and Method in Year 2, Term 2. 106744344 17 The core modules aim to introduce students to key concepts, theories and debates. They aim to improve and enhance students' skills of evaluation and analysis, enabling them to participate critically in debates on the changing nature of development. FDDV023S7 Development Studies: Theoretical Approaches. Convenors: Jasmine Gideon and Penny Vera-Sanso Wednesdays, 6-9pm, Term 1. The module critically examines the key theories and concepts that have shaped thinking on poverty and development. FDDV024S7 The Political Economy of Development. Convenors: Jasmine Gideon and Penny Vera-Sanso. Wednesdays, 6-9pm Term 2. The module explores a number of development themes to critically analyse how core development concepts and theories shape development policy and practice in particular contexts. It investigates the changing role of institutions and organisations in the development process and, in the context of increasing globalisation, demonstrates the expanding scope of the development sector. SSGE007S7 Anthropology: Theory and Method. Lecturer: tbc (not offered 2011-12). The module explores anthropological theory and method, critically evaluating its contribution to development studies and its potential for the development sector. Option Modules FDDV023S7 Development Studies: Theoretical Approaches. Convenors: Jasmine Gideon and Penny Vera-Sanso Wednesdays, 6-9pm, Term 1. The module critically examines the key theories and concepts that have shaped thinking on poverty and development. (This is a core module for Development Studies students but can be taken as an option module by students on the Development Studies and Social Anthropology Programme.) FDDV004S7 Development Management. Lecturer: Fenella Porter. Tuesdays, 6-9pm, Term 2. This module aims to develop a critical awareness of development practice in a variety of contexts and how these create different environments for the management of development. We will explore how development looks when it is 'implemented', and critically analyse whether it is in fact possible to implement the many and varied ideas in development, whether these are actually able to bring about 'good change', or whether development as a practice is more committed to the maintenance of the status quo. We will consider some of the key issues for development practice - such as sustainability, management approaches (including the logframe), participation, gender and rights based approaches and the role of media in development management. FDDV002S7 Gender and Development. Lecturer: Jasmine Gideon Thursdays, 6-9pm, Term 2. This module introduces students to both conceptual frameworks for understanding gendered identities, difference, subjectivities and performance in developing countries, and practical policy applications for gender within development management. Students will explore key debates and use a gendered framework to critically assess contemporary development challenges associated with processes such as industrialization, economic restructuring, globalization and institutional change. Students will also explore the political and social aspects of gender in relation to power, rights, citizenship, poverty, livelihoods, education, conflict, governance, HIV/AIDS and environmental change. 106744344 18 FDDV021S7 Material and Visual Cultures of Development. Lecturer: Karen Wells (not offered 2011-12) Economic development changes objects and their symbolic meanings. It literally changes how the world looks and feels. The importance of material culture and visual culture to understanding how people organise and explain their social and political relationships has long been recognised in anthropology and sociology. This module will draw on these and other disciplines to focus on the relationship between people and things as a way of thinking about how development materially changes people’s lives and why such changes might be resisted. The module is taught in two parts. The first focuses on material culture and is organising around the following themes: the significance of material culture for development studies; development and the destruction of objects; development and the preservation of objects; Capitalism and the object; Symbolic exchange, material culture and representation; Globalisation; Nationalism; Religion. The second part is on visual culture, representation and the gaze of development; it has a particular focus on how Southern filmmakers and photographers represent development. FDDV019S7 Migration and Refugees. Lecturer: Maknun Gamaledin-Ashami; Mondays, 69pm, Term 2. Within this module students will focus on migration and the refugee industry in the UK and EU, including aspects of asylum procedures, legislation, the role of the media, NGOs and community groups. The module critically examines the role of migration and refugees within development policy and practice. FDDV005S7 NGOs - Policy and Practice. Lecturer: Fenella Porter. Tuesdays, 6-9pm This module will critically evaluate development NGOs, examining their history and role in relation to civil society and social movements, both in the UK and in different contexts of the South. It will address fundamental questions of power, and discuss how NGOs have developed relationships with the communities they work alongside, with each other, and with other development organisations (such as donors). In this module we will step back from the practical management issues of NGOs, to look in more depth at how NGOs draw on their values and the values of the people who work with them to ensure the continuation of embedded norms and practices in development work. We will look behind the 'face' of NGOs, and examine some of the constraints and opportunities faced by this diverse array of organisations and the people who work with them in the development sector. FDDV0025S7 The International Political Economy of Childhood. Lecturer: Karen Wells. Mondays, 6.00-9.00pm, Term 1. The module is about the globalisation of a particular discourse of childhood that is intimately connected to the production of the self-governing neo-liberal subject. The module examines how this discourse arose and how it is disseminated through broadcast media, international NGOs, and international law, of which the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) forms a part. This discourse is far from complete or stable. This instability is derived from the circumscribed temporality of childhood and the excess that accompanies the discursive production of any normative subjectivity. This excess is particularly intense in the case of childhood because the conditions necessary for the self-governing neo-liberal individual to exist, even partially, are not available to most children in most of the world. Simply, put the state – which is the duty-holder for the implementation of the CRC – does not have the political will to secure for children the ‘rights’ laid down by the Convention. This module 106744344 19 looks at the gap between the ‘rights’ accorded to children by the Convention and the realities of their lives in the context of other social identities, family life, knowledge, politics and war. FDDV016S7 ‘Race’, Ethnicity and Development. Lecturer: Kalpana Wilson. (not offered 2010/11) This module looks at how changing notions of ‘race’ and ethnicity are inscribed within processes and projects of development. It examines how these notions shape, and are in turn shaped by, changing global economic and political forces. Students trace how ideas of ‘race’ have been central to development discourses from the colonial idea of ‘trusteeship’ and the ‘white man’s burden’ to the contemporary preoccupation with a ‘clash of civilisations’, ‘failed’ and ‘rogue’ states, and calls for a ‘new’ imperialism. They also examine the ways in which a variety of global actors and events redefine the parameters of identity and experience within diasporic communities, redefinitions which may in turn impact on development processes in countries of origin in the ‘Third World’. Themes will include: Images and representations of development, from colonial narratives to contemporary media, aid agency and NGO productions; The construction of ‘Islam’ and its relationship to processes of globalisation and the formulation of development policy, both pre- and post-September 11; Debates surrounding the ‘rehabilitation’ of Empire and their contemporary relevance; Gender, ‘race’ and development; Ethnicity and ‘race’ in the labour market discourse of transnational corporations and international financial institutions. FDDV020S7 War, Conflict and Development. Lecturer: Alpha Diedhiou. Monday 6pm9pm, Term 1. This module aims to introduce students to both conceptual debates and practical policy options associated with the impact of war and conflict for development. Students will look at the debates surrounding the changing nature of war since the end of the Cold War, critically examining notions of humanitarian intervention, failed and rogue states, and the war on terror; evaluating the role of class, ethnicity, gender and identity in shaping contemporary conflicts; and analysing the interventions of international agencies, donors and other key global actors. 106744344 20 Options from Outside the Development Studies Programme Subject to agreement by Jasmine Gideon, Joint Programme Director, and subject to availability, students may take an option from the International Childhood Studies programme. FDDV008D7 Dissertation Research Methods for Dissertation Students. Lecturer: Karen Wells. Thursday, 6-9pm, Term 1 and Tuesday, 6-9pm, Term 3. 6th & 20th Oct; 2nd, 3rd & 17th Nov; 1st & 15th Dec; 1st, 15th & 29th May; 19th June; 3rd & 17th July. The Research Methods for Dissertation classes model the process involved in designing and conducting a research project for dissertation. The course will cover all aspects of the research process from defining the questions and choosing a methodology to data-gathering, analysis and writing-up. This module is taught on alternative Thursdays in Term 1 and Tuesdays in Term 3 and is compulsory for all full timers and part-time second years. ASSESSMENT MODES AND REGULATIONS. The principle assessment methods on the Programme’s taught modules are Learning Journal Critical Annotated Bibliography Critical Literature Review Essay Dissertation Learning Journal From the first week of the module you will be keeping a learning journal for the Core modules Development Studies: Theoretical Approaches and Anthropology: Theory and Method. You will summarise your reading, record your thoughts about each topic and its relationship to the prior weeks’ topics and to development policy, practice and research and, finally, you will reflect on the questions you would pursue to better understand, or test, the theory and concepts under discussion. A template will be provided. To pass the assignment students are required to make complete entries for each of the 10 weeks of the module. The purpose of this journal is to give you an opportunity to relate theory to policy, practice and research and to develop a reflexive approach to your learning. Although we would encourage you to continue keeping a learning journal throughout your programme of study, it is only assessed on the two modules named above. Critical Literature Review The first submitted assignment for the Core modules Development Studies: Theoretical Approaches and Anthropology: Theory and Method is a critical survey of literature in relation to specified theories or concepts. This should be written in an essay format (see below for essay guidelines). Critical Annotated Bibliography The first assignment for Option Modules is a critical annotated bibliography. This assignment gives you the opportunity to demonstrate that: you know how to identify the most important key texts on a concept or issue; you can summarise these texts accurately and briefly; you understand how to read sources critically and you can evaluate/reflect on your own work. This should be written in an essay format (see below for essay guidelines). 106744344 21 Essays The second assignment for Option Modules is a 5000 word essay including references. The Political Economy of Development is assessed by one 8,000 word essay including references. Dissertation The final dissertation should be 12,000 words (including appendices and excluding references). Approved assignment questions: All assignment questions are approved by the External Examiner irrespective of the assessment format, including dissertation titles. All assignments submitted must clearly identify which approved question is being answered. YOU MUST ANSWER A SET QUESTION. If your assignment does not clearly identify the question being addressed, or is written to address a question not on the approved assignment list, the assignment will be classed as a fail. Replication of work: Students are expected to develop a broad knowledge and understanding of their chosen modules and are therefore not allowed to substantially rely on arguments and evidence submitted previously. If you are concerned that an assignment you intend to submit may rely too heavily on work submitted for this programme of study, or for another qualification, you are strongly advised to seek guidance from your lecturer/supervisor. Tolerances on Assignment and Dissertation Word Length All assessed work must fall within 5% of the specified world limit. Footnotes are not encouraged. Markers will not read anything beyond the allowable word limit i.e. any excess words will be deemed as not included in the assessment. ESSAY GUIDELINES AND REFERENCING Substance Essays should always present an argument in answer to the chosen question and should not just rehearse what you know about the subject. An essay should provide an analysis of the subject rather than consisting merely of description. The argument should be put forward coherently, substantiated by factual or textual evidence, and presented in formal language. It should respond precisely to the question posed. Your argument should be sustained from the first paragraph to the last, with each paragraph contributing in some way to the support or elucidation of your argument. The first paragraph is particularly important in organising your essay. It should address the question directly, and introduce the argument that you intend to make. Marks will be awarded according to: the quality, clarity and coherence of the argument presented in the essay; the essay’s structure; how well the main claims of the essay are supported by evidence; and whether reference is made to the relevant literature. Full guidance for marking criteria can be found on the marking guides for each assignment. Students should make sure they have read and understood these guides before attempting an assignment. 106744344 22 Referencing All assignments must be properly sourced. A list of cited books, articles and credible on-line sources at the end of the assignment is essential. References are required when you source ideas that you have borrowed, irrespective of whether you quote directly or not. References are scholarly acknowledgements of work referred to or quoted or ideas borrowed. Failure to acknowledge other people’s work is plagiarism which the University takes very seriously, see the section below entitled ‘Plagiarism in Coursework and Dissertations’. Please note that proper citation of sources is a basic and critical element of the presentation of academic work. On this programme students are required to use the Harvard system which is outlined below. It is important to cite sources properly, giving all the necessary information and to keep consistently to the same convention. You MUST cite the source of the ideas in your assignments. Failure to use in-text referencing is a form of plagiarism. You will need to place in-text bracketed references to the author’s name, year of publication, and relevant page numbers immediately adjacent: i. to quotations, ii. to direct references to an author’s work (as for instance when you write ‘Sen describes famines as ...’). Having given the name of the author in the sentence it is not necessary to repeat it when providing the date and relevant page numbers. iii. to indirect references to an author’s work (as in, ‘famines are no longer thought of as simply a phenomenon of nature’). Here you would cite the authors you have read who argue this. In addition to in-text references the ‘Harvard’ system requires a complete list of all in-text references at the end of the assignment, arranged alphabetically with full bibliographic information. The alphabetical list should only include all the references which have been cited in the text (books, articles, reports, government publications, theses etc.). It should not include a list of any work you have read on a subject but have chosen not to incorporate in your assignment/dissertation. The references in the alphabetical list should contain the name of the author, the date of publication, the title of publication, the place of publication and the publisher (and web source if only available on the web) - set out as follows: For books: Parsons, W (1995) Public Policy (Aldershot: Edward Elgar). For articles: Margetts, H. (1991) ‘The Computerization of Social Security: The Way Forward or a Step Backwards?’ Public Administration 69 (3) pp.325-43. For chapters in edited volumes: Keliher, L. (1995) ‘Core Executive Decision Making on High Technology Issues: The Case of the Alvey Report’, Rhodes, R. and Dunleavy, P. (eds.) Prime Minister, Cabinet and Core Executive (London: Macmillan) pp. 219-247. For government reports or other publications where there is no author’s name: Office of Management and Budget (1997) The US Federal Budget (Washington DC: GPO). For web sources not (easily) available in published hardcopy: Khera R, and Karuna Muthiah (2010) ‘Slow but steady success’ The Hindu, Date: 25/04/2010 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/mag/2010/04/25/stories/2010042550190400.htm accessed on 11.9.2011. 106744344 23 Footnotes (not endnotes) may be used in conjunction with the Harvard system when you have an essential piece of information to give but it is inconvenient to break up the text. The general advice, however, is that footnotes detract from the flow of an argument and should be avoided. Full details of the Harvard system are given at: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/about/learn/citing ASSIGNMENT SUBMISSION PROCEDURES All assignments are automatically checked electronically for plagiarism, without exception, and no assignment will be accepted for assessment without the following statement above the assignment title: ‘I confirm that this assignment is my work alone, that I have not submitted any of this work elsewhere and that all the ideas and work, written or otherwise, of other people or organisations are correctly and fully attributed to them.’ All assignments MUST be submitted through Turnitin on Blackboard. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure, before the assignment deadline, that they know how to do this. Late Submissions and Incomplete Learning Journals Assignments submitted after the specified deadline will attract a bare pass penalty mark, that is a mark of 50%, assuming that it is of a pass standard. A fail will receive the appropriate fail grade. When work is returned to students they will also receive notification of the mark their assignment would have been given had it been submitted on-time. If students successfully apply to the Board of Examiners for mitigating circumstances the mark they would have received, had the assignment been submitted on time, will apply. Only complete learning journals will be assessed; completion requires an entry for each week, covering all the tasks set. Incomplete journals will be returned to students for completion and will incur late penalties if the completed journal is submitted after the submission deadline. Mitigating Circumstances If you are unable to meet coursework deadlines for reasons beyond your reasonable control and can provide evidence for this then you should, if possible, discuss this with your personal tutor. However, you do need to be aware that your personal tutor cannot agree to an extension – such a decision is only made by the Board of Examiners. If you submit coursework late you will need to provide written evidence – medical or otherwise – as to why. This needs to be submitted to Shirley Collins (s.collins@bbk.ac.uk), along with a mitigating circumstances form, who will present them to the Board of Examiners. The examples given below are not exhaustive but will serve as a guide as to what Boards of Examiners will regard as acceptable ‘mitigating circumstances’ when making academic judgements regarding both whether there are mitigating circumstances and the whether the circumstances merit the extent of delay. In all instances, appropriate certification (e.g. medical certificate, crime report etc.) must be provided for a circumstance beyond the reasonable control of the student to become eligible for consideration. 106744344 24 Examples of circumstances beyond the reasonable control of the student include the bereavement of a near relative; serous accident or illness; serious infectious disease; burglary and theft; childbirth. Examples of situations which may be considered beyond the reasonable control of the student: medical operation; hospital tests; significant accident, injury, acute ailment; unanticipated and unavoidable professional obligations. Mitigating Circumstances Forms MUST BE submitted to the office within 7 calendar days of the submission date and, if not possible, as soon as possible with a written explanation for the delay. All claims for mitigating circumstances must be supported by certificated evidence which can be provided after the form has been submitted, but not later than the date of the next internal examination board. www.bbk.ac.uk/mybirkbeck/central-pages/mitigating Fails, reasonable attempt and resubmission Token submission of coursework or attendance at examination, intended to ‘buy time’ to make up for poor time management will not be accepted. Students will be judged to have made a ‘reasonable attempt’ at coursework or written examination, when, in the view of the examiners, the task has been approached seriously and failure is principally the consequence of genuine academic and intellectual weakness, rather than token effort and insincere commitment. If students are judged to have made a ‘reasonable attempt’ at an assignment but have not secured 50% or above they will have one further opportunity to submit the assignment without penalty. Submission deadlines Development Studies: Theoretical Approaches: Learning journal – midday on first Monday of Term 2, Monday 9th January 2012. Critical literature review – midday on first Monday after Reading Week in Term 2, Monday 20th February 2012. Anthropology: Theory and Method: Critical literature review – midday on first Monday after Reading Week. Learning journal – midday on first Monday of Term 3. (Not available in 2011/12) The Political Economy of Development: Essay – midday on first Monday of Term 3, Monday 21st May. Term one option modules: First assignment is due midday on the first Monday after Reading Week in Term 1, Monday 14th November 2011 and the second assignment is due on midday on the first Monday of Term 2, Monday 9th January 2012. Term two option modules: First assignment is due midday on the first Monday after reading week in Term 2, Monday 20th February 2012 and the second assignment is due midday on the first Monday of Term 3, Monday 23rd April 2012. Dissertation: midday on Monday 17th September 2012. 106744344 25 ASSESSMENT PATTERN (Changes to assessment formats may vary from one academic year to the next.) Module code Module name Assignment number and type FDDV023S7 (core module for everyone) Development Studies: Theoretical Approaches The Political Economy of Development 1: learning journal 2: critical survey of literature % of total module mark for each Assignment 1: 50% 2: 50% 1: essay 1: 100% Anthropology: Theory and Method (not available in 2011/12) Gender and Development 1: critical survey of literature 2: learning journal 1: 50% 2: 50% 1: 3,000 word critical annotated bibliography including references 2: 5,000 word essay including references 1: 3,000 word critical annotated bibliography including references 2: 5,000 word essay including references 1: 3,000 word critical annotated bibliography including references 2: 5,000 word essay including references 1: 3,000 word critical annotated bibliography including references 2: 5,000 word essay including references 1: 3,000 word critical annotated bibliography including references 2: 5,000 word essay including references 1: 30% 2: 70% 1: 3,000 word critical annotated bibliography including references 2: 5,000 word essay including references 1: 30% 2: 70% FDDV024S7 (core module for DS students; option module for DSSA students) SS GE007S7 (core module for DSSA students) FDDV002S7 FDDV0025S7 The International Political Economy of Childhood FDDV016S7 ‘Race’, Ethnicity and Development FDDV020S7 War, Conflict and Development FDDV019S7 Migration and Refugees FDDV021S7 Material and Visual Cultures of Development 106744344 26 1: 30% 2: 70% 1: 30% 2: 70% 1: 30% 2: 70% 1: 30% 2: 70% FDDV004S7 Development Management FDDV005S7 NGOs – Policy and Practice FDDV008S7 Dissertation 1: 3,000 word critical annotated bibliography including references 2: 5,000 word essay including references 1: 3,000 word critical annotated bibliography including references 2: 5,000 word essay including references 12,000 words (including tables, endnotes, footnotes, and appendices, excluding references). 1: 30% 2: 70% 1: 30% 2: 70% 1: 100% Changes to assessment formats may vary from one academic year to the next. MARKING Marking Procedures All assignments are marked, so far as is possible, anonymously. When submitting course work it is essential that all personal traces are removed from the copy that is loaded onto blackboard (so no cover sheets and no headers/footers or title pages that include your name). Assignments are moderated internally by the Development Studies team and externally by the External Examiner. All course work will be returned to students with a provisional mark and written comments. The provisional mark may be revised upwards or downwards by the Examination Board when it meets. It is our objective that assignments submitted by the submission deadline will be marked and returned to students within four weeks. Marking Schema All assessed course work, including dissertations, are marked against a set of criteria which are elaborated on in marking guidelines. The criteria and guidelines for each type of assessed work are included with the module outlines for the core module, option modules and the research methods class. Pass Mark and Resubmissions The pass mark on each module is 50% and a student must pass each assignment to pass the module overall. Students who fail one or more assignments may be offered one reassessment opportunity if they are judged to have made a reasonable attempt at the failed assignment. Students will be advised after the Exam Board (held in Term 3) as to whether they can resubmit. If the student fails the resubmission, the student will have to retake the module, after payment of the appropriate fee, in order to progress through the programme or gain the award. Students will only be allowed to retake a module once and will only be allowed to retake one module. (Students who are concerned about their performance on the programme should be contacting their pastoral tutor before significant difficulties arise.) Grading of Awards All modules, including the dissertation, have a credit value and in calculating the final overall grade of the award module marks are weighted according to this credit value. All taught modules (cores and options) are worth 30 credits each and the dissertation is worth 60 credits. 106744344 27 The calculation of each award results in a percentage mark which determines whether the award is a pass, merit or distinction as follows: Pass: 50 to 59% Merit: 60 to 69% Distinction: 70% and above Progression within the Programme of Study Year 1 part-time students should be aware, before progressing on to Year 2 in October, that should they fail any re-submissions they will fail the programme and will not be allowed to Progress to year 2. At the Exam Board students will be exited with the Post-Graduate Certificate or Post-Graduate Diploma, if they qualify. Students who would like to retake a failed module are advised to apply to the Chair of the Board of Examiners within two weeks after the notification of their results. If the application is accepted students will have to take the module the following year, after payment of the appropriate fee, before progressing with the programme. Students retaking a failed module are entitled to one attempt at passing each assessment. The final date for resubmitting failed assignments for students progressing from 201112 to 2012-13 or completing 2011-12 is Monday, 17th September 2011 (ie BEFORE the start of Term 1, 2012-13). PLAGIARISM IN COURSEWORK AND DISSERTATIONS Plagiarism, the act of taking somebody else's work and presenting it as your own, is an act of academic dishonesty, is classed as an assessment offence under Birkbeck’s regulations. It is your responsibility to ensure that you comply with all relevant regulations on plagiarism and assessment offences. A range of sanctions can be invoked in cases of plagiarism up to and including termination of your registration or withdrawal of your award. Examples of plagiarism include (but are not restricted to) doing any of the following without full acknowledgement of the originator of the ideas, work and words you present in your assessments: copying the whole or substantial parts of a paper from a source text (e.g. a web site, journal article, book or encyclopaedia) paraphrasing another's piece of work closely, with minor changes but with the essential meaning, form and/or progression of ideas piecing together sections of the work of others into a new whole procuring a paper from a company or essay bank (including Internet sites) submitting another student's work, with or without that student's knowledge submitting a paper written by someone else (e.g. a peer or relative) and passing it off as one's own representing a piece of joint or group work as one's own. 106744344 28 If you knowingly assist another student to plagiarise (for example, by willingly giving them your own work to copy from), you are committing an assessment offence. You should also note that claimed ignorance of what constitutes plagiarism, or “unwitting” plagiarism through, for example, poor or incomplete referencing of sources, is no defence. Guidance on referencing and the use of sources is available from your lecturers and from the library. For guidance and avoidance of avoiding plagiarism go to: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/about/learn/citing NB: All assignments need to be submitted with the following statement above the assignment title without which they will not be accepted for assessment: ‘I confirm that this assignment is my work alone, that I have not submitted any of this work elsewhere and that all the ideas and work, written or otherwise, of other people or organisations are correctly and fully attributed to them.’ Students whose assignment submissions are not commensurate with their attendance level or their class/supervision performance may be subject to a viva examination, and if plagiarism or another assessment offence is found students will be subject to the College Policy on Assessment Offices (see http://www.bbk.ac.uk/reg/regs/assmtoff). Please refer to http://www.bbk.ac.uk/reg/regs/assmtoff for a full definition of assessment offences. EQUALITIES STATEMENT FOR BIRKBECK COLLEGE Birkbeck is committed to providing equality of opportunity and freedom from discrimination on the grounds of race, gender, class, sexual orientation, religion, disability, age or political belief in both its teaching and in the development of its curricula. DISABILITY STATEMENT FOR BIRKBECK COLLEGE The Disability Office The College has a Disability Office located in the Malet Street building. We have a Disability Service Manager and a Disability Advisor. The Disability Advisor is your first point of referral for disability enquiries at the College. The Disability Office can provide advice and support on travel and parking, physical access, the Disabled Students Allowance, special equipment, personal support, examination arrangements etc. If you have a disability or dyslexia, we recommend you make an appointment to see them as soon as possible. At your first appointment at the Disability Office they will ask you to complete a Confidentiality Consent Form. This allows you to state who in the College can be informed of your disability. Remember, if you wish, we do not need to inform people of the exact nature of your disability, just your disability related needs. They will also complete an Individual Student Support Agreement form, confirming your support requirements and send this to your School and relevant departments at the College so they are informed of your needs. The Disabled Students Allowance Students on postgraduate programmes who meet the eligibility criteria regarding residency may be eligible to apply for the Disabled Students Allowance (DSA). This can meet the cost 106744344 29 of special equipment e.g. computers, cassette recorders, etc, non-medical personal help, for example note-takers, interpreters, readers, etc, book and photocopying allowances and additional travel costs. The Disability Service Manager can assist you in applying to your Local Education Authority (LEA) for this. The Personal Assistance Scheme Some students need a personal assistant to provide support on their course, for example a note-taker, sign language interpreter, reader, personal assistant, disability mentor or dyslexia support tutor. Birkbeck College has a Personal Assistance Scheme to assist you with recruiting, training and paying your personal assistant. These assistants are usually funded by the DSA. Please contact the Disability Office for information on this scheme. Support in your School. The provision which can be made for students with disabilities in the School is set out in the Procedures for Schools for Compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act. This is available from the Disability Office and the Disability website (see below). As mentioned above your School or Department will receive a copy of your Individual Student Support Agreement from the Disability Office. This will make specific recommendations about the support you should receive from the School. STUDENT-STAFF EXCHANGE MEETINGS The programme team are committed to ensuring the highest quality learning experience for students on our programme and we value your feedback and the opportunity to discuss issues of common concern. A key mechanism for this is the Student-Staff Exchange Meetings which take place (in the fourth week of every term) between programme staff and student representatives. Each seminar group in the Core 1 module is asked to select one or two student representatives who will act as student representative in year 1 and year 2 and if any option module does not have representation they too should select one or two representatives. Students should contact their representatives with any issues that they wish to raise at these Student-Staff Exchange meetings. Notes and action points are circulated after each meeting. CAREERS AND DEVELOPMENT Career Development - Information, Advice, Workshops & Insight Courses. Enrolled students of Birkbeck who are following degree and postgraduate courses lasting one year or longer courses may use the services of SICS free of charge up to the end of July of the year they finish [September for postgrads]. You will need to take your student ID card with you. For more information visit The SICS website at: www.careers.lon.ac.uk\sics SICS (Specialist Institutions Careers Services) is located at: Stewart House, 32 Russell Square WC1B 5DN Tel: 0207 863 6030 E-mail: sics@careers.lon.ac.uk 106744344 30