To introduce students to theoretical debates on democratisation;

To enable students to make considered judgments on the democratic process in Latin America;

To give students an understanding of the relationship between citizenship, rights and democracy in Latin America;

To offer an assessment of the developments in political participation since ‘transition’ (roughly post-1980), particularly in relation to shifting state-civil society relations.

(LO1) Read and synthesise material from a range of academic sources.

(LO2) Discuss cogently and synthesise discussions in presentations.

(LO3) Present arguments in writing using a number of sources that are correctly referenced

(LO4) Give an in-depth oral presentation of their material to staff and students.

(LO5) Debate articulately the various models of democracy and their usefulness in explaining Latin American politics.

(S1) Communication (oral, written and visual) - Academic writing (inc. referencing skills)

(S2) Communication (oral, written and visual) - Presentation skills – oral

(S3) Critical thinking and problem solving - Critical analysis

(S4) Working in groups and teams - Negotiation skills

(S5) Research skills - All Information skills

(S6) Global citizenship - Relevant economic/political understanding

The majority of teaching will be delivered face-to-face on campus. Online delivery will be used to complement the on-campus delivery and where technology affords a better learning experience.

As a final-year specialised module, this course will be taight via a series of on-campus lectures, lecture videos, and other online resources on Canvas, and on-campus seminars. The total study time for this module is 150 hours, which includes lectures and seminara, individual study, reading and essay preparation. Students will have 2 hours of on-campus classes for this module per week (1 lecture and 1 seminar, except in week 7) as well as 1/1.5 hrs of asynchronous lecture videos.

The lecture videos on Canvas introduce the key themes and conceptual material each week, supported by case study examples. Students are expected to have watched the videos and worked through the online learning resources before the on-campus lecture and seminar for that week.

Building on the lecture v ideos, each 50-minute on-campus lecture will elaborate on key concepts introduced in the lecture videos and link them to current affairs in Latin America.

The seminars will focus on concepts and theories, as well as a variety of case studies from Latin American countries. The seminars will usually centre around group discussions, but we will also have debates and other discussion formats. Throughout the semester, students are expected to focus your preparations on one or two country case studies, which are also intended to help prepare for the assessment.

There are the following non-modular requirements:

This module is particularly suitable for students who already have a background in either Latin American studies or modern history / Politics. Others need to be prepared to spend extra time during the first few weeks of the module catching up with relevant reading. The lecturer will provide additional support and suggestions for reading.

Topics covered may include:

Introduction to democracy;

The Cold War in Latin America;

US-Latin American relations;

Revolutions in Cuba and Nicaragua;

Breakdown of democracy and military regimes;

Democratisation, civil society and social movements;

Human rights and transitional justice;

Left and right-wing politics in Latin America;

Prospects for democracy in Latin America.