Module Information
Course Delivery
Delivery Type | Delivery length / details |
---|---|
Seminars / Tutorials | 18 Hours. (1 x 2 hour seminars per week) |
Assessment
Assessment Type | Assessment length / details | Proportion |
---|---|---|
Semester Assessment | Essays: 1 x 3,000 words | 50% |
Semester Assessment | Essays: 1 x 3,000 words | 50% |
Supplementary Exam | Students may, subject to Faculty approval, have the opportunity to resit this module, normally during the supplementary examination period. For further clarification please contact the Teaching Programme Administrator in the Department of International Politics. |
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this module students will:
- have been introduced to the key issues and ideas in contemporary strategic thought and will have evaluated the various positions in key debates
- have appropriate familiarity with the terms utilized in contemporary strategic discourse and be competent in their use
- be able to apply these ideas to a range of policy issues and strategic problems
- have described and analysed the course and outcomes of a modern conflict and presented the results accordingly
Brief description
The module examines contemporary strategic thought and practice. It focuses on a number of key theoretical debates (such as the transformation of war, nuclear strategy and terrorism) and relates them to contemporary policy issues (such as the West's use of air power, the future of nuclear weapons and counter-terrorism policy). It concludes with an examination of the conduct of contemporary war.
Aims
It aims to give students an understanding of contemporary strategic thought; to allow students to apply this to a range of contemporary problems/policy issues. Each of the seminar topics is self-standing, addressing a particular issue or theory; taken together, the seminars lead students to identify and reflect on common threads and themes which inform contemporary strategic discourse. The presentations will lead to an understanding and comparison of modern conflicts.
Content
The module begins with a discussion of the nature of contemporary war, specifically the transformation of war thesis. It then addresses in a series of seminars key areas of contemporary strategic thought, including: the use of force; nuclear strategy; arms control proliferation; terrorism; and contemporary military campaigns. Each seminar includes a consideration of the `state of the art' in terms of theory and its application to a particular policy problem. Although each seminar is stand-alone, together they give a thorough understanding of the contemporary state of the discipline and the manner in which theory relates to policy debates.
Transferable skills
Throughout the module students will practice and enhance their reading, comprehension and thinking skills, as well as self-management skills. In seminars, students will enhance listening, explaining and debating skills, as well as oral presentational skills. Essay writing will encourage students to practice independent research skills including data retrieval, assembly and organization, writing, IT and time management.
Reading List
Barry Buzan and Eric Herring The Arms Dynamic in World Politics Primo search Colin Gray Modern Strategy Primo search Colin McInnes Spectator Sport War: The West and Contemporary Conflict Primo search
Notes
This module is at CQFW Level 7