Module information

When ‘development’ is understood as a process of planned change, ‘development in practice’ concerns understanding the planning processes through which that change is imagined and achieved. It also concerns understanding the intended and unintended outcomes of that change. In this module we will closely examine the complexities of development in practice through an in-depth exploration of a case in practice, which will involve an overseas practice engagement in term 3. In the past, overseas practice engagements have taken place in Uganda, Ethiopia and Egypt. The exploration will entail querying the tools and approaches that are used to conceptualise, design, manage, monitor and evaluate development interventions. Focusing on the scale of the individual, we will also examine the role of the practitioner as one who wields these tools and applies these approaches.

The module aim is to introduce you to the complexities of development in practice and of being a development practitioner. The module also aims to provide you with the methodological tools to examine complexity and to learn from it. In term 1 you will be introduced to development in practice through two series of workshops. The first are the ‘Development Workshops’ and the second, workshop known as the ‘Windsor Workshop’. In term two of the module you will develops skills in research design with a focus on a specific case in practice; the location of this case is also the site of the module overseas practice engagement. This module represents 300 hours of student learning time, which includes lectures, seminars, private reading and overseas practice engagement. There are two assignments for this module that will assess your skills in researching and critically reflecting upon development in practice.

By the end of this module you will be able to:

Analyse the institutional and political context within which development practice occurs with reference to a specific case;
 Critically reflect on your (future) role as a development practitioner; and
 Design and implement a basic research project, a skill necessary for monitoring and evaluating development interventions.