Undergraduate Module Descriptor

POC2118: Land, Power and Politics: a Critical Problem-Based Approach

This module descriptor refers to the 2018/9 academic year.

Please note that this module is only delivered on the Penryn Campus.

Module Aims

In this module you will cover a number of important areas giving historical and critical context to understandings about the ideas and notions of land, power and politics; rooted in the critical political ecology tradition.  These include:

  • Understanding why land equates to power, and the exercise of power
  • Understanding about the political ecology academic tradition
  • Understanding contemporary land settlement, and why and how this should be critiqued
  • Understanding emergent global political science discourse about what we use land for
  • Through a seminar series and assessments specifically designed to role-play the consultancy experience problem-solve critical real world political land-based problems

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here – you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills1. demonstrate a good understanding of the key historical trends and events that have shaped the contemporary normative global land-use and land management order.
2. understand the key theory and theoretical debates that underpin the politics of land, demonstrated through the assessed critical summative essay.
3. demonstrate an emerging awareness of how and why the normative consensus of this global land-management order can (and should) be critiqued.
4. demonstrate a good level of problem-solving skills necessary for addressing critical contemporary politicised land ‘problems,’ in styles cognate with the commercial forms and processes expected in consultancy roles.
Discipline-Specific Skills5. locate and demonstrate a good level of understanding about key theory, concepts, and debates in wider political science discourse.
6. apply theory, knowledge, and research to the problem-solving contemporary real world challenges.
7. demonstrate a good understanding of the rationale and barriers to policy and governance problem-solving.
Personal and Key Skills8. demonstrate constructive team working skills in formats cognate with commercial/employment settings.
9. demonstrate a good understanding of the forms and processes that will be expected in professional commercial consultancy-style roles.
10. communicate effectively in individual and group settings the synthesised solutions to complex problems for different audiences.