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Study information

Anthrozoology Residential

Module titleAnthrozoology Residential
Module codeANTM107
Academic year2024/5
Credits15
Module staff

Dr Fenella Eason (Lecturer)

Duration: Term123
Duration: Weeks

1

Number students taking module (anticipated)

20

Module description

In this module you will attend a three-day residential either as a virtual event or (pandemic circumstances permitting) at the University of Exeter. The residential will provide you with a unique opportunity to engage with other postgraduates and academics also involved in theoretical and/or empirical research on human-animal relations at the University of Exeter. Academic speakers will come from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds including (non-exhaustively) Sociology, Philosophy, Environmental Sciences, Geography, Psychology and Anthropology and will present their own research to student attendees in the form of guest lectures, workshops, seminars and film screenings. Student attendees will also be given opportunity to engage in reflexive analysis and critical debate during roundtable discussions stimulated by the presented academic content, set readings and in the light of wider current debates in Anthrozoology and cognate disciplines.

 

As it is expected that the general themes of the residential will change every year, multiple attendance for students taking the course will be allowed and encouraged. However the module can only be taken as an accredited module (i.e. count towards your degree) on one occasion. This module will be assessed through the production of a 4000 word portfolio review of the papers presented at the residential, incorporating a critical discussion of the theoretical and/or methodological and/or ethical issues raised by the different speakers.

 

Full attendance at, and participation in, all aspects of the entire residential event is expected from all accredited-module attendees. Non-accredited attendance, including partial attendance, is open to all other students registered on the MA Anthrozoology programme, regardless of whether they have previously taken the accredited module or not, as well as to newly-admitted MA students in Anthrozoology who have yet to embark on their studies.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The primary aim of the module is to provide distance-learning students on the MA Anthrozoology with the opportunity to participate in an immersive, interactive, face-to-face learning environment with their peers and established scholars. Through attendance at the residential and active participation in and contribution to academic and non-academic debates in Anthrozoology students will develop a good understanding of the interdisciplinary scope inherent to Anthrozoological research. The format of the residential will enable students who usually study at a distance to experience more traditional approaches to the dissemination of academic research and to engage directly with the theoretical, methodological and ethical issues encountered by practicing academics from a range of disciplinary backgrounds. Participating academics will present their research in the form of lectures, workshops and conference papers which will be followed by interactive, student-led group discussions.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

  • 1. demonstrate a thorough engagement with and understanding of a range of multi-disciplinary approaches to human interactions with other animals
  • 2. discuss and critically assess the implications of approaching human interactions with other animals from a range of disciplinary perspectives
  • 3. show a good understanding of the different theoretical and methodological approaches which scholars studying human-animal interactions utilise in order to understand these varied interactions

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

  • 4. demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the ways in which different academic disciplines approach and analyse human interactions with other animals
  • 5. engage with and critically assess some of the current debates (theoretical, methodological, ethical) relating to human interactions with other animals
  • 6. make reflexive, theoretically informed comparisons between the work of practicing scholars from a range of academic disciplines and your own research and/or experiences relating to human interactions with other animals

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

  • 7. demonstrate critical, analytical thinking and synoptic skills
  • 8. demonstrate the confidence/ability to discuss in a critically analytical manner the arguments presented by other academics
  • 9. express complex ideas in a clear, coherent and reflexive manner through the formulation and dissemination of cogent arguments (both verbally and in writing)
  • 10. demonstrate the ability to participate as a productive member of a team during group discussions

Syllabus plan

The residential will take place over a period of three days, and will comprise a series of workshops, seminars and lectures run by academics from the University of Exeter and, where possible, appropriate external speakers.

Based on a previous non-accredited residential held at the University of Exeter in May 2014, the residential will be structured in a manner similar to that described below:

Day 1

09.00-10.00 Refreshments and networking

10.00-10.50 Welcome and introductory lecture by Programme director/MA tutors

11.00-11.50 Guest lecture by member of academic staff

12.00-12.50 Student led discussion

13.00-14.00 Lunch

14.00-14.50 Guest lecture by member of academic staff or PGR student

15.00-15.50 Guest lecture by member of academic staff

16.00-18.00 Student led discussion


Day 2

09.00-10.00 Refreshments and networking

10.00-10.50 Guest lecture by member of academic staff

11.00-11.50 Student led discussion

12.00-12.50 Guest lecture by member of academic staff

13.00-14.00 Lunch

14.00-16.00  Student led discussion

16.00-18.00 Film screening and discussion convened by member of academic staff

Day 3

09.00-10.00 Refreshments and networking

10.00-10.50 Guest lecture by member of academic staff

11.00-11.50 Student led discussion

12.00-12.50 Guest lecture by member of academic staff

13.00-14.00 Lunch

14.00-14.50 Guest seminar convened by member of academic staff

15.00-17.00 Concluding discussion led by MA tutors and goodbyes.


Academic content will vary according to staff availability and current staff research interests/projects. However, topics could include:

  • Biopolitics and wildlife conservation
  • Animal ethics
  • Multispecies ethnography
  • Advocacy and applied research in animal welfare
  • Visual representations of animals
  • Literary representations of animals
  • Historical representations of animals
  • Animals in the archaeological record

Because of the variable nature of the annual programme of the residential, the details of learning activities and teaching methods below are indicative, based on prior experience, but not a guarantee of the precise number of hours afforded to each activity year-by-year.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Scheduled Learning and Teaching ActivitiesGuided independent studyPlacement / study abroad
201300

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

CategoryHours of study timeDescription
Scheduled learning and teaching12Academic-led lectures, papers, seminars
Scheduled learning and teaching2Staff-led film screening and discussion
Scheduled learning and teaching6Student-led discussions relating to lectures and seminars
Guided Independent Study30Non-assessed preparatory readings
Guided Independent Study100Research and writing of summative assessment

Formative assessment

Form of assessmentSize of the assessment (eg length / duration)ILOs assessedFeedback method
Reflexive blog500 words1-9Written feedback from module tutor.

Summative assessment (% of credit)

CourseworkWritten examsPractical exams
10000

Details of summative assessment

Form of assessment% of creditSize of the assessment (eg length / duration)ILOs assessedFeedback method
A portfolio review of the lectures/papers presented at the residential, incorporating a critical discussion of the theoretical and/or methodological and/or ethical issues raised by the different speakers 702250 words1-9Written feedback
A focused response to a single presentation given at the residential. 3010001-9
0
0
0
0

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Original form of assessmentForm of re-assessmentILOs re-assessedTimescale for re-assessment
PortfolioPortfolio (2,250 words)1-9August/September reassessment period
Presentation responsePresentation response (1000 words)1-9August/September reassessment period

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

DeMello, M. 2010. Teaching the animal: Human-animal studies across the disciplines (pp. xi-xix). Lantern Books.

DeMello, M. 2012. Animals and society: an introduction to human-animal studies. Columbia University Press.

Herzog, H. A. 2007. Gender differences in human–animal interactions: A review. Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals, 20(1), 7-21.

Irvine, L. 2012. Sociology and anthrozoology: Symbolic interactionist contributions. Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals, 25(Supplement 1), 123-137.

Kalof, L., & Fitzgerald, A. J. (Eds.). 2007. The animals reader: the essential classic and contemporary writings. Oxford and New York: Berg.

Kirksey, E. 2014. The Multispecies Salon. Duke University Press

Lloyd, N., & Mulcock, J. 2006. Human-animal studies in Australia: perspectives from the arts, humanities and social sciences. Australian Zoologist, 33(3), 290-294. http://www.rzsnsw.org.au/Volumes%20of%20RZS%20papers/2006%20vol33%283%29/Lloyd%20N%20Mulcock%20J%20Human-animal%20studies%20in%20Australia%20-%20perspectives%20from%20the%20arts,%20humanities%20and%20social%20sciences.pdf

Ogden, L. A., Hall, B., & Tanita, K. 2013. Animals, plants, people, and things: A review of multispecies ethnography. Environment and Society: Advances in Research, 4(1), 5-24.

Rose, D. B., van Dooren, T., Chrulew, M., Cooke, S., Kearnes, M., & O’Gorman, E. 2012. Thinking through the environment, unsettling the humanities. Environmental Humanities, 1(1), 1-5.

Shapiro, K., & DeMello, M. 2010. The state of human-animal studies. Society & Animals, 18(3), 307-318.

Smart, A. 2014. Critical perspectives on multispecies ethnography. Critique of Anthropology, 34(1), 3-7.

Key words search

Anthrozoology, residential, human-animal, animal ethics, anthrozoological research

Credit value15
Module ECTS

7.5

NQF level (module)

7

Available as distance learning?

Yes

Origin date

18/06/2015

Last revision date

28/02/2022