Course Catalogue

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This course introduces students to discourses and practices of terror, terrorism and counter-terrorism, examining their relationships and significance.

Seminar: two hours per week, for 10 weeks

Entry to Honours Politics or IR requires a grade point average of 12 (Grade C) over Politics 2A and Politics 2B as a first attempt.

None

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Essay 2000 words (40%)

Exam (50%)

Participation (10%)

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. Where, exceptionally, reassessment on Honours courses is required to satisfy professional/accreditation requirements, only the overall course grade achieved at the first attempt will contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below.

- To introduce students to the origins, histories and meanings of terms 'terror', 'terrorism' and 'counterterrorism' and their relationships to other key concepts and categories in international relations including territory, sovereignty and the nation state

-To familiarize students with key theoretical and political debates surrounding 'terror', 'terrorism' and 'counterterrorism' including questions about definitions, typologies, causes and psychological/political motivations

- To identify the multiple ways in which 'terror' and 'terrorism' have been managed/governed at multiple scales (municipal, national, international, global) through military operations and the production of expert knowledge and evaluate the consequences of these interventions

- To equip students to understand the multiple and highly contested meanings and classifications of terror, terrorism and counterterrorism as well as how these have emerged and transformed over time

- To train students to evaluate key empirical dynamics related terror, terrorism and counter-terrorism through an examination of a number of key case studies

- To enable students to critique policy interventions related to 'terror', 'terrorism' and 'counterterrorism'

By the end of this course students will be able to:

- To identify, compare, and contrast the key theoretical and political debates related to 'terror', 'terrorism' and 'counterterrorism'

- To explain why, despite recurring challenges to develop consensual definitions of these terms and associated phenomena, they remain central to conduct of local and global politics and international relations

- To evaluate whether and/or to what extent counter-terrorism policies and practices fulfil their self-described aims and explore the limitations of measuring success and failure

- To situate the academic discussions about terror, terrorism and counter-terrorism in the broader context of international relations scholarship on conflict, political violence, policing, peace and security

-To develop independent inquiry, research design, and writing skills necessary to identify and assess key debates about terror, terrorism and counterterrorism

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.