Understanding Russia
| Module title | Understanding Russia |
|---|---|
| Module code | MLR3121 |
| Academic year | 2024/5 |
| Credits | 15 |
| Module staff | Dr Emily Lygo (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 20 |
|---|
Module description
Employers who need experts on Russia will expect knowledge of relevant cultural affairs, politics, and ideology, and the ability to understand these through the lens of Russian history. This module will help you research and develop and present such specialist knowledge, think critically about common questions and oversimplifications about Russia, and access the necessary information to discuss them: Does Russia need a strong leader? Is Russia really so different from the West? Why is Putin so popular? Who are ‘the people’ and do they matter in Russia? This module will complement your study of Russian history, culture, and politics in other modules.
Module aims - intentions of the module
The module aims to:
- interrogate common assumptions or generalisations about Russia
- explore some recurring questions about Russian history and culture that are often answered in terms of stereotypes and prejudices
- equip you to research your own answers to questions about Russian artistic and political culture, history, and current affairs
- guide you in making judicious use of the mass of information and opinion published about Russia, and forming nuanced and insightful opinions
The teaching will be shared by all lecturers in the Russian department, who will share how their research intersects with these questions and helps illuminate them.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Develop subject-specific knowledge a sophisticated and nuanced understanding of some of the key themes in the study of Russian culture
- 2. Make interdisciplinary connections between Russian culture, politics, history
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 3. Develop further and refine research skills using libraries and the internet, in particular dealing with a large amount of information
- 4. Recognise a range of paradigms for understanding Russia and be able to discuss and analyse them to a sophisticated level
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 5. Further develop skills in expressing intellectual ideas for a variety of fora and audiences, e.g. blogs, round-table discussions
- 6. Understand how to bring the ideas studied academically on the module to bear on discussions of modern Russian culture and even Russia in the news and to do so effectively and convincingly
- 7. Reflect critically on individual performance in group work and express this in a sophisticated way.
Syllabus plan
Whilst the content may vary from year to year, it is envisioned that it will cover some or all of the following topics:
- The State and Leaders in Russia: the strong, the real, and the pretenders
- Stuck between myth and reality: ‘The People’ (narod) in Russia
- Russia’s identity – between East and West
- The Russian Soul – religion, spirituality, and myths of uniqueness
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | 134 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching | 10 | 10 x 1-hour Seminars |
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching | 5 | 5 x 1-hour Lectures |
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching | 1 | Conclusion |
| Guided Independent Study | 134 | Private study: reading and preparation for lectures and seminars, preparation of formative and summative assignments |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blog entry | 550 words | 1-6 | Written feedback and opportunity for further discussion |
| Annotated bibliography | 550 words | 1, 3, 6 | Written feedback and opportunity for further discussion |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | 0 | 50 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participation in a round table discussion between 3-4 people | 50 | 25 minutes | 1, 2, 4-6 | Written feedback and opportunity for further discussion |
| Reflective report in which student evaluates their performance in the module | 50 | 1000 words | 1-7 | Written feedback and opportunity for further discussion |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participation in a round table discussion (25 minutes) | Submission of recorded individual presentation (15 minutes) | 1-6 | Referral/Deferral period |
| Reflective report in which student evaluates their performance in the module (1000 words) | Reflective report in which student evaluates their performance in the module (1000 words) | 1-7 | Referral/Deferral period |
Re-assessment notes
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
- Barker, A and Grant, eds., The Russia Reader, Duke University Press, 2010
- Janes Billington, The Icon and the Axe, Random House,1970
- Robert Service, A History of Twentieth-Century Russia, Allen Lane, 1997
- Peter Pomerantsev, Nothing is True and Everything is Possible. Adventures in Modern Russia Faber and Faber, 2015
- Anna Politkovskaya, Putin’s Russia Harvill Press, 2004
- Caryl Emerson, ed., The Cambridge Introduction to Russian Literature, Cambridge University Press, 2011.
- Nicholas Rzhevsky, ed., The Cambridge Companion to Modern Russian Culture, CUP, 2012
- Robin Milner-Gulland, The Russians, Blackwell, 2017
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
- ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=6230
- Russia Beyond the Headlines http://rbth.com/
- Open Democracy https://www.opendemocracy.net/
- Radio Free Europe http://www.rferl.org/
- Russia Today https://www.rt.com/
- Carnegie Moscow Centre (http://carnegie.ru/?lang=en )
- Memorial (http://www.memo.ru/eng/)
| Credit value | 15 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 7.5 |
| Module pre-requisites | None |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 6 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 14/02/2024 |
| Last revision date | 21/02/2024 |
