Module Catalogue 2024/25

Pre Requisite Comment

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Co Requisite Comment

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Aims

The aim of this module is to develop a deep understanding of how refugee and asylum geographies are produced, experienced and governed, often unevenly. Students will gain a critical understanding of the relationship between displacement and development, exploring key questions around how particular development modules deepen rather than alleviate displacement, and whether alternative modules of development (e.g. refugee-led) provide for more empowering, sustainable response to the challenges of displacement. The module will include examples from across the global south but will also investigate Newcastle as a city of sanctuary and engage with displacement people living in the local area.

Outline Of Syllabus

This module is separated into two main sections. In the first section, you will be introduced to key readings,
theories and concepts relevant to the study of refugee and asylum geopolitics. In each class, we will reflect on the key questions assigned for that week. Following this, you will also have the chance to hear from invited guest lecturers, each of whom provides expert knowledge about the challenges and possibilities of responses from a, variety of perspectives.

The second section of this module offers more "hands-on" learning through in-class workshops. In this
section, you will have an opportunity to participate in an in-class workshop led by a local resettlement agency.
During this section of the module you will also be given workshop time during scheduled lectures to prepare
your final zine project. You will be taught the skills to develop your own zine (a zine is a short magazine that is self-published; for more information on the power of the zine as a tool for engaged research please read my coauthored article on the value of this form of research Zine: Re purposing the Neoliberal University).

Examples from previous years include a student zine entitled "U-Volunteer" identifying opportunities for volunteer work in refugee support on campus. I am always very excited and impressed with the creative ideas students come up with! To ensure the legacy of your work, you will have the (optional) opportunity to present your final zine on the website City of Sanctuary, and share hard copies in the newly created 'zine library' in the Geography department.

Intended Knowledge Outcomes

By the end of this module you will be able to:
1. Analyse the issue of refugees and displaced people from a range of scales (global to local).
2. Analyse the issue of refugees and displaced people from a range of perspectives (from first-hand accounts to the views of the UNHCR and UNICEF).
3. Understand how local responses link to the seemingly distant geographies refugees and displaced people.

Intended Skill Outcomes

By the end of this module you will be able to:
1. Apply a range of development theories to analyse the issue of refugees and displaced people.
2. Apply your knowledge to contribute to refugee asylum support in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

The module will be taught through lectures with small group workshops focusing on specific case studies and supporting one of the two assessments. The lectures introduce key concepts and examples enabling students to develop knowledge of key development approaches and the places in which they have been used. Guest lecturers will be invited from UN development agencies as well as from the city of sanctuary movement to provide students with ‘real world’ examples and insight. Films will also be shown to enable detailed discussion on specific case studies. The workshops will focus on the first assessment, creating a zine (a small magazine). This format will enable students to develop their assessment ideas in a small group setting.

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

The module is assessed by two assessments that relate to different elements of understanding the geographies of displacement and development. The first assessment is a zine, a short magazine in which students will communicate ideas from the module for a non-academic audience. The second assessment is a 2000-word essay, which is set at the end of the module and requires students to reflect on the process of creating the zine and how its content relates to academic scholarship on displacement and development.

General Notes

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