• Home
• Study
• Study Information
• Modules
• Module Information

History of Development: Ideologies, Politics, and Projects

Module description

In the Twentieth Century, the concept of ‘development’ became central to the way that we think about and categorise large parts of the world. Divisions of developed/underdeveloped, first world/third world shaped the actions of transnational organisations, colonial and national governments, spurring ambitious (and sometimes drastic) projects of social and environmental engineering. This module will introduce you to the ideologies and politics underpinning ‘development’, and look closely at a number of development projects—including population control, ‘mega-dams’, and the ‘green revolution’.  The module will also allow you to engage with interdisciplinary critiques of development, such as anthropological texts and documentary films.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This course aims to introduce students to key ideas, institutions and projects in the history of development, from colonial projects at the start of the Twentieth Century, through Cold War ‘technical assistance’ programmes, to neoliberal approaches towards the close of the century. The module will equip students with the knowledge and skills to think critically about development. That is, to think of development not as a straightforward ‘social good’, but as a historically contingent, politically- and ideologically-driven project. By the end of the module, students will have a good understanding of the relationship between development and major social, economic and political processes such as colonialism, modernisation, and globalisation.

You will need effective communication and analytical skills, oral and written, to complete many of your modules and in a job after you graduate.  This module aims to help you develop your skills in researching, interpreting, and analysing both primary and secondary material, and in reporting on your work.  It provides you with an opportunity to explore an area of history in more depth, and helps you to develop the depth of understanding you will require to study more specialised areas of history. It will also give you an opportunity to work in a team on a group presentation.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

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

• 1. Critically evaluate the key political, economic, cultural, social and intellectual trends relating to the history of development
• 2. Understand and evaluate different scholarly perspectives in the field of development studies
• 3. Demonstrate an understanding of the key developments in the history of development.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

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

• 4. Analyse the key developments in a complex historical environment
• 5. Demonstrate an ability to handle profoundly different approaches to history in a deeply contested area
• 6. Demonstrate an ability to understand and deploy complex historical terminology in a comprehensible manner

ILO: Personal and key skills

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

• 7. Select, organise and analyse material for written work and oral presentations of different prescribed lengths and formats.
• 8. Present complex arguments orally.
• 9. Present an argument in a written form in a clear and organised manner, with appropriate use of correct English
• 10. Through essay development process, demonstrate ability to reflect critically on your own work, to respond constructively to feedback, and to implement suggestions and improve work on this basis

Syllabus plan

The module will cover ideas and projects of development over the Twentieth Century, from colonial ‘improvement’ to economic liberalisation. Lectures and seminars may cover topics such as: colonial improvement; anti-colonial nationalism and development; development planning and the postcolonial state; modernisation theory and the Cold War; Soviet visions of development; projects including ‘mega-dams’, population control, and the ‘green revolution’; economic liberalisation and structural adjustments; development, terror and international security.

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

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

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

Re-assessment notes

The re-assessment consists of a 3000-word written assignment, as in the original assessment, but replaces participation in the group presentation with an individual presentation equivalent to an individual’s contribution, to be recorded and submitted with all supporting materials as for the original assessment; failing this, students should submit a written script that could be delivered in such a presentation (750 words) along with all supporting materials as for the original assessment.

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Partha Chatterjee, ‘Development Planning and the Indian State’, in Empire and Nation: Selected Essays (New York: Columbia University Press, 2010)
• David Engerman, ‘Learning from the East: Soviet Experts and India in the Era of Competitive Coexistence’, Comparative Studies in South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East,  33:2 (2013), pp. 227-238
• Arturo Escobar, Encountering Development: The Making and Unmaking of the Third World (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995)
• James Ferguson, The Anti-Politics Machine: “Development,” Depoliticization, and Bureaucratic Power in Lesotho (Minneapolis; London: University of Minnesota Press, 1994)
• James Ferguson, Global Shadows: Africa in the Neoliberal World Order (Durham; London: Duke University Press, 2006)
• Sunil Khilnani, The Idea of India (London: Penguin, 1999)
• Michael E. Latham, Modernization as Ideology: American Social Science and Nation Building in the Kennedy Era  (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2000)
• Robert J. McMahon (ed.), The Cold War in the Third World (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013)
• Timothy Mitchell, Rule of Experts: Egypt, Techno-Politics, Modernity (Berkeley; LA; London: University of California Press, 2002)
• Carl E. Pletsch, ‘The Three Worlds, or the Division of Social Scientific Labor, c.1950-1975’, Comparative Studies in Society and History , Vol. 23, No. 4 (Oct., 1981), pp. 565-590
• Arundhati Roy, The Cost of Living  (New York: Modern Library, 1999)
• Benjamin Zachariah, Developing India: An Intellectual and Social History, c.1930-50 (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2005)

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=11331
• Friends of Narmada: http://www.narmada.org/
• Global Health Chronicles, http://www.globalhealthchronicles.org/
• Navdanya: http://www.navdanya.org/
• Rockefeller Foundation 100 Years documents: http://rockefeller100.org/
• United Nations Official Documents System: http://www.un.org/en/documents/ods/
• USAID Development Experience Clearinghouse: https://dec.usaid.gov/dec/home/Default.aspx
• World Bank elibrary: http://elibrary.worldbank.org/
• Wellcome Images: http://wellcomeimages.org/ 
• Government of India, Planning Commission documents: http://planningcommission.nic.in/plans/
• World Health Organization archives and library: http://www.who.int/archives/en/ 
• Gates Foundation: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/ 
• Truman Library: http://www.trumanlibrary.org/whistlestop/study_collections/pointfourprogram/

Indicative learning resources - Other resources

Films: 

• Episode III: Enjoy Poverty (Renzo Martens, 2008)
• Narmada: A Valley Rises (Ali Kazimi, 1994)
• Something Like a War (Deepa Dhanraj, 1991)

Key words search

Development, twentieth century, colonial, postcolonial, cold war, nationalism