International Political Economy

Aims of Assessment: There are two central aims of assessment via presentations. Firstly students have to engage in serious in-depth research on a, for most of them, novel topic. Aim is that the research can be done in a way, which allows the production of well-written supporting documents from which then a presentation can be derived. Secondly the presentations challenge students to deliver in a concise and appealing matter. Each student required to give one 20 minute (maximum) presentations Assessment Criteria Students must demonstrate good awareness of general presentation skills: ? Clear, engaging and appropriate style ? Appropriate use of any audio-visual aids o You may use such aids, including Powerpoint, but you do not have to ? Good task management: o Appropriate amount of material well-prepared o Coherent presentation ? Engagement with audience ? Substantive content o Relevant to topic area o High interest value o Meaningful examples o Grounding in literature ? Excellent time management (i.e. does not under-run or over-run by more than 10%) Supporting Documentatio n – 1000 words part 1 Each student must submit supporting documentation in respect of that presentation. The supporting documentation is like a condensed mini-essay in which a key aspect of the presentation is critically and in-depth analysed. It is NOT a mere summary or description of how the research and presentation was done. Assignment Topic End of Washington Consensus 2 Supporting Papers to Include: ? Overview of Topic ? Significance of subject area ? Evidence and assessment of student-specific research ? Print-out of slides used in presentation (if any) ? Bibliography The documentation should have a brief introduction including a few sentences on an overview of the topic and its significance. The key part of the supporting documentation is the research part. Ideally the student will engage with one aspect/problem or question of the presentation more in-depth. It can be understood as a mini-essay. It should be linked to the overall topic of the presentation and provide evidence that you conducted a well-informed, structured analysis possible linking to theories and relevant examples. It is strictly forbidden to use any free collaborative web-based encyclopaedias such as Wikipedia. Non-compliance results in a severe deduction of marks. Assessment Criteria – Excellent research skills – Critical analysis – Clear, appropriate and critical application of theory to practice – Good grounding in International Relations literature – Critical evaluation of contemporary political affairs and actors, that delivers insights into why events unfold and/or actors behave in the way they do – Persuasive commentary on theoretical and empirical events – Communicate appropriately academic arguments persuasively – Demonstrated ability to assess evidence in a properly academic fashion Critical Essay – 2, 500 words part 2 Assignment Topic CHINA THE NEW JAPAN. Students have to engage in serious in-depth research on a specific topic from the course content. It is advised that the topic of the essay is in some relation to the presentations. Thus module leader and peer feedback can be taken into consideration. It is important that students learn to use a variety of high quality academic resources, including monographs, academic journals and databases. Students will learn how to write in a good academic style including correct referencing, citations and working with secondary sources. Novel ideas in research are strongly encouraged. Students will learn how to organise their overall workload, find solutions how to organise the time between research and writing and meet deadlines. Assessment Criteria 3 – Viable research question/hypothesis – Clear organisational structure – Application of appropriate theoretical and methodological framework – Excellent research skills – Identification of relevant scholarly debates – Clear, appropriate and critical application of theory to practice – Persuasive communication of appropriately academic arguments – Broad literature base – Good understanding of the academic literature, including demonstrated capacity to provide relevant evidence – Critical analysis – Demonstrated understanding of how to reflect and the need to do so It is strictly forbidden to use any free collaborative web-based encyclopaedias such as Wikipedia, ask.com etc. Non-compliance results in a severe deduction of marks. The essay should demonstrate that you are able to do independent research using the available academic literature (periodicals, monographs) and assess it critically and analytical. It is not recommended to use textbooks and non-academic online resources.

By admin in Essays on October 22, 2015