Unit Outline

Political violence appears in many different forms across the world. While in the 2010s the focus has been, in Western democracies, on extremist religious violence, notably so called Islamist terrorism, there has been a rise in right-wing extremist violence in the past couple of years. At the same time, governments, autocratic and democratic alike, have increased the everyday surveillance of their citizens. To a large extent, this has been enabled by the development of what Shoshana Zuboff has called 'surveillance capitalism', i.e. the harvesting and commercial as well as political use of personal data harvested from online usages by private companies. The unit retraces these developments by paying close attention to the intersection of anti-democratic and violent politics, and the development of surveillance technologies.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1	Explain key ideas, debates and theoretical perspectives in the field of political violence and terrorism.
2	Apply theoretical perspectives and debates on political violence and terrorism to real world examples.
3	Analyse the complex and dynamic relationships between political actors and institutions at local, national and/or international levels.
4	Communicate your ideas fluently drawing upon evidence, and apply referencing and style conventions as appropriate.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Pre-requisite	HIR101 - Introduction to International Relations
Anti-requisite (mutual excl)	HIR206

Alterations as a result of student feedback

updates to reading list

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Reflection Note	Week 4	10 %	LO1, LO2
Assessment Task 2:	Major Essay	Week 10	40 %	LO2, LO3, LO4
Assessment Task 3:	Exam	Exam Period	50 %	LO2, LO3, LO4

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Reflection Note

Task Description:

You are required to write a 500-word note that argues an answer to a given question, applying referencing and style conventions.

Task Length:

500 words

Due Date:

Week 4

Weight:

10 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Demonstrate and apply theoretical knowledge and research (on a particular topic) to analyse the selected case.	LO1
2	Identify, analyse and evaluate contrasting arguments using evidence to justify your view.	LO2

Assessment Task 2: Major Essay

Task Description:

Write a 1,000-word essay that analyses the domestic, global, political and socio-economic context in which a given group, that has been classified as terrorist, has emerged. Explain against which kind of political order this group has worked and evaluate its impact.

Task Length:

Essay

Due Date:

Week 10

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Demonstrate and apply theoretical knowledge and research (on a particular topic) to analyse the selected case.	LO2
2	Identify, analyse and evaluate contrasting arguments using evidence to justify your view.	LO3
3	Communicate in writing in the form of an essay.	LO4

Assessment Task 3: Exam

Task Description:

You will be required to answer one question from a list of 6 questions. The answer will be a 3,000-word essay.

Task Length:

Final exam

Due Date:

Exam Period

Weight:

50 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Demonstrate and apply theoretical knowledge and research (on a particular topic) to analyse the selected case.	LO2
2	Identify, analyse and evaluate contrasting arguments using evidence to justify your view.	LO3
3	Communicate in writing in the form of an essay.	LO4

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Academic progress review

The results for this unit may be included in a review of your academic progress. For information about progress reviews and what they mean for all students, see Academic Progress Review in the Student Portal.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is about acting responsibly, honestly, ethically, and collegially when using, producing, and communicating information with other students and staff members.

In written work, you must correctly reference the work of others to maintain academic integrity. To find out the referencing style for this unit, see the assessment information in the MyLO site, or contact your teaching staff. For more detail about Academic Integrity, see Important Guidelines & Support.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.