Modiwl HXH-1012:
Britain: Blitz to Brexit: UK politics and the post-war world

Ffeithiau’r Modiwl

Rhedir gan School of History, Law and Social Sciences

20.000 Credyd neu 10.000 Credyd ECTS

Semester 2

Trefnydd: Dr Marc Collinson

Amcanion cyffredinol

This module considers Britain's political history since 1939 from global and historical perspectives. It explores how the United Kingdom adapted from being the world’s leading imperial power to post-1945 realities, and how this was discussed by contemporary and academic commentators. The module familiarises students with diverse events, processes, and relationships that shaped the development of the post-war British state, and acquaints students with key events in contemporary UK political history. It explores how a major world power adapted to its changed ‘place in the world’, taking a global perspective that considers Britain’s interaction with Europe, North America, the Middle East, and the Commonwealth of Nations.

Cynnwys cwrs

Lectures and Seminars may cover, but are not limited to, topics including: Britain and Ireland; Appeasement, war, and political change; Decolonisation; Britain, NATO, and the UN; post-war Middle East crises; deindustrialisation and economic change; Cold War; Britain and anti-Apartheid; Birth of ‘international development’; the Commonwealth of Nations; Britain and European cooperation; the Special Relationship; domestic terrorism; the Falklands War; End of the Cold War; Hong Kong; Tony Blair’s contested diplomatic legacy; the origins of Brexit and ‘Global Britain’.

The module seminars will delve into specific events and processes, and consider types of historical sources, from traditional written evidence to oral testimonies and photographs. Students will reflect on their potential and shortcomings for the study of modern British politics.

Meini Prawf

da

B+ (68%) Work will receive a B+ mark if it is consistently strong in: covering the necessary ground in depth and detail; advancing a well structured, relevant, and focused argument; analysis and deployment of an appropriate range of historical evidence and consideration of possible differences of interpretation; and is correctly presented with references and bibliography where appropriate. B (65%) Work will receive a B mark if it: is clear that it is based on solid reading; covers the necessary ground in depth and detail; advances a well-structured, relevant, and focused argument; analyses and deploys an appropriate range of historical evidence and considers possible differences of interpretation; and is correctly presented with references and bibliography where appropriate. B- (62%) Work will receive a B- mark if it: is clearly based on solid reading; covers the necessary ground in some depth and detail; advances a properly-structured, relevant, and focused argument; analyses and deploys an appropriate range of historical evidence and considers possible differences of interpretation; and is correctly presented with references and bibliography where appropriate.

trothwy

D+ (48%) Work is marked D+ if it: shows evidence of acceptable amounts of reading, but does not go much beyond what was referenced in lecture notes and/or a basic textbook; covers much of the necessary ground but fails to discuss one or a few vital aspects of a topic; deploys relevant material but partly fails to combine it into a coherent whole, or sustains a clear argument only for the greater part of the piece; deploys some evidence to support individual points, but sometimes fails to do so, or shows difficulty in weighing evidence, or chooses unreliable evidence; displays an awareness that the past can be interpreted in different ways but without devoting sustained discussion to this; is for the most part correctly presented but has sections where there are serious problems in presentation, style, spelling, grammar, or paragraph construction (but see section on dyslexia below); and uses references and bibliography where needed but occasionally misunderstands their appropriate use or makes mistakes in their presentation. D (45%) Work is marked D if it: shows evidence of an acceptable minimum of reading, based partly on lecture notes and/or a basic textbook; covers some of the necessary ground but fails to discuss some large and vital aspects of a topic; deploys some relevant material but partly fails to combine it into a coherent whole or sustains a clear argument for only some parts of the piece; deploys some evidence to support individual points but often fails to do so or shows difficulty weighing evidence or chooses unreliable, atypical or inappropriate evidence; shows some awareness that the past can be interpreted in different ways but the differences will not receive sustained discussion or analysis; is often correctly presented but has sections where there are serious difficulties in presentation, style, spelling, grammar, or paragraph construction (but see section on dyslexia below); and uses references and bibliography where needed but sometimes misunderstands their appropriate use or makes serious mistakes in their presentation. D- (42%) Work is marked D- if it: shows evidence of an acceptable minimum of reading, based largely on lecture notes and/or a basic textbook; covers parts of the necessary ground but fails to discuss some large and vital aspects of a topic; deploys some potentially relevant material but fails to bring it together into a coherent whole or sustains a clear argument for only parts of the piece; occasionally deploys evidence to back some individual points but often fails to do so or shows difficulty weighing evidence or chooses unreliable, atypical, or inappropriate evidence; may show some awareness that the past can be interpreted in different ways but the differences will not receive sustained discussion or analysis; is in part correctly presented but has sections where there are serious difficulties in presentation, style, spelling, grammar, or paragraph construction (but see section on dyslexia below); and uses references and bibliography where needed but sometimes misunderstands their appropriate use or makes serious mistakes in their presentation.

ardderchog

A+ (87%) At this level, first-class work will also have its argument supported by an impressive wealth and relevance of detail, but will further deploy the evidence consistently accurately and give indications of deploying unexpected primary and secondary sources. It will habitually demonstrate a particularly acute and critical awareness of the historiography, including conceptual approaches, and give a particularly impressive account of why the conclusions reached are important within a particular historical or archaeological debate. It will show a particularly sophisticated approach to possible objections, moderating the line taken in the light of counter-examples, or producing an interesting synthesis of various contrasting positions. It will be original work. The standards of content, argument, and analysis expected will be consistently first-class work. In essays standards of presentation will be very high. A (80%) At this level, first-class work will have its argument supported by an impressive wealth and relevance of detail. It will usually also demonstrate an acute awareness of historiography, and give an impressive account of why the conclusions reached are important within a particular historical or 2 of 5 30 Mar 2017 archaeological debate. It may show a particularly subtle approach to possible objections, moderating the line taken in the light of counter-examples, or producing an interesting synthesis of various contrasting positions. Overall, the standards of content, argument, and analysis expected will be consistently superior to top upper-second work. In essays and dissertations standards of presentation will be high. A- (74%) A first-class mark at this level is often earned simply by demonstrating one or more of the features of a good upper-second essay to a peculiar degree, for example presenting a particularly strong organization of argument, strong focus, wide range of reading, engagement with the historiography, depth of understanding, an unobjectionable style, and strong presentation.

C- i C+

C+ (58%) Work will receive a C+ mark if it: shows evidence of solid reading, but remains partially superficial; covers the important aspects of the relevant field, but in some places lacks depth; advances a coherent and relevant argument; employs some evidence to back its points; and is presented reasonably well with only a few or no mistakes. It will also contain appropriate references and bibliography, which may, however, be slightly erratic and/or partially insufficient. C (55%) Work will receive a C mark if it: shows evidence of solid reading, but remains superficial; covers most of the important aspects of the relevant field, but lacks depth; advances a coherent and largely relevant argument; employs some limited evidence to back its points; and is presented reasonably well with only limited mistakes. It will also contain appropriate references and bibliography, which may, however, contain some mistakes or be slightly erratic and/or partially insufficient. C- (52%) Work will receive a C- mark if it: shows evidence of solid reading, but little knowledge of in-depth studies (for first-year work the student may not have read beyond a few standard works; at second or third year the student may not have read a good selection of journal articles and specialist monographs); covers most of the important aspects of the relevant field, but lacks depth or misses a significant area (for second- and third-year work this may mean that it fails to deploy the historical details found in specialist literature); advances a coherent, and sometimes relevant argument, but drifts away from tackling the task in hand (for example, by ordering the argument in an illogical way, becoming distracted by tangential material, or lapsing into narrative of only partial pertinence); usually employs evidence to back its points, but occasionally fails to do so or deploys an insufficient range; displays an awareness that the past can be interpreted in different ways, but may fail to get to the heart of the central scholarly debate or fully understand a key point (in second- and third-year work this may extend to a failure to discuss important subtleties or ambiguities in the evidence, or to a lack of awareness of the current state of historical debate); is reasonably well presented and contains appropriate references and bibliography, but makes some mistakes in presentation or appropriate use.

Canlyniad dysgu

  1. Communicate ideas clearly and lucidly in seminar discussions.

  2. Demonstrate knowledge of some of the major events, concepts and problems relating to post-war British politics.

  3. Develop and reinforce foundational study skills taught across Year 1 e.g. using reading lists, applying scholarly apparatus, reflecting on feedback

  4. Construct historical arguments by utilising a range of sources as evidence in assessed work (summative) and in seminar debates.

  5. Differentiate between ‘academic’ and ‘public’ history

Dulliau asesu

Math Enw Disgrifiad Pwysau
CYFLWYNIAD UNIGOL Audio-Visual Presentation 30.00
INDIVIDUAL BLOG Political History Blog 30.00
ARHOLIAD Exam 40.00

Strategaeth addysgu a dysgu

Oriau
Private study

Although the teaching methods utilised in this module will provide you with a strong foundation in the topic, it also requires you to be proactive in terms of reading extensively around subjects, preparing for classes, writing assignments and responding to feedback.

 166
Tutorial

There will be 2 drop-in sessions, where you can discuss with the course leader any thoughts of yours on how to structure and what to include in your podcast and your book review.

 4
Seminar

During the seminars you will critically reflect on various scholarly approaches to modern politics. You will also familiarise yourselves with primary sources used by historians who examine modern politics.

 10
Lecture

The lectures will provide you with knowledge and understanding of the key themes and issues related to this module. They will also provide an overview of the historiography and access to primary sources

 20

Sgiliau Trosglwyddadwy

  • Llythrennedd - Medrusrwydd mewn darllen ac ysgrifennu drwy amrywiaeth o gyfryngau
  • Defnyddio cyfrifiaduron - Medrusrwydd wrth ddefnyddio ystod o feddalwedd cyfrifiadurol
  • Hunanreolaeth - Gallu gweithio mewn ffordd effeithlon, prydlon a threfnus. Gallu edrych ar ganlyniadau tasgau a digwyddiadau, a barnu lefelau o ansawdd a phwysigrwydd
  • Archwilio - Gallu ymchwilio ac ystyried dewisiadau eraill
  • Adalw gwybodaeth - Gallu mynd at wahanol ac amrywiol ffynonellau gwybodaeth
  • Sgiliau Rhyngbersonol - Gallu gofyn cwestiynau, gwrando'n astud ar atebion a'u harchwilio
  • Dadansoddi Beirniadol & Datrys Problem - Gallu dadelfennu a dadansoddi problemau neu sefyllfaoedd cymhleth. Gallu canfod atebion i broblemau drwy ddadansoddiadau ac archwilio posibiliadau
  • Cyflwyniad - Gallu cyflwyno gwybodaeth ac esboniadau yn glir i gynulleidfa. Trwy gyfryngau ysgrifenedig neu ar lafar yn glir a hyderus.
  • Gwaith Tîm - Gallu cydweithio'n adeiladol ag eraill ar dasg gyffredin, ac/neu fod yn rhan o dîm gweithio o ddydd i ddydd
  • Dadl - Gallu cyflwyno, trafod a chyfiawnhau barn neu lwybr gweithredu, naill ai gydag unigolyn neu mewn grwˆp ehangach

Sgiliau pwnc penodol

  • problem solving to develop solutions to understand the past
  • understanding the complexity of change over time; in specific contexts and chronologies
  • being sensitive to the differences, or the "otherness" of the past, and the difficulty to using it as a guide to present or future action
  • being sensitive to the role of perceptions of the past in contemporary cultures
  • producing logical and structured arguments supported by relevant evidence
  • planning, designing, executing and documenting a programme of research, working independently
  • marshalling and critically appraising other people's arguments, including listening and questioning
  • presenting effective oral presentations for different kinds of audiences, including academic and/or audiences with little knowledge of history
  • preparing effective written communications for different readerships
  • making effective and appropriate forms of visual presentation
  • making effective and appropriate use of relevant information technology
  • making critical and effective use of information retrieval skills using paper-based and electronic resources
  • collaborating effectively in a team via experience of working in a group
  • appreciating and being sensitive to different cultures and dealing with unfamiliar situations
  • critical evaluation of one's own and others' opinions

Adnoddau

Goblygiadau o ran adnoddau ar gyfer myfyrwyr

No

Rhestrau Darllen Bangor (Talis)

http://readinglists.bangor.ac.uk/modules/hxh-1012.html

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