BA Art and History of Art

Title:

Art Studio

Code:

FA1ART

Convenor:

MISS Wendy McLean

Summary:

This is a studio-based Art module designed to introduce key methods and approaches towards the development of a self-directed and informed studio practice

Assessment Method:

Project 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Modernisms & Mythologies

Code:

FA1MM

Convenor:

MS Kelly Lloyd

Summary:

This module will provide a broad, introductory survey of key developments in the history, theory and criticism of art during the modern period. Its starting point will be theories of the development of modernity and its social, political and economic components, and the ways in which modern art functions in and on its historical contexts. It will continue to look at the retrospective modernist critical and theoretical accounts of modern art's development.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Drawing skills

Code:

FA1DS

Convenor:

MISS Beverley Bennett

Summary:

In this module you will develop your drawing skills in a series of focused practical sessions, drawing from various subjects, including life drawing, still life, spatial and architectural/landscape contexts. Through the module you will develop your skill-set in terms of foundational techniques such as line, tone, scale; you will also develop applied drawing skills including planning, scaling and gridding up; and develop an understanding of the relationship of the whole subject to detail and internal form. Practical teaching will support a focus on drawing as a way to record, document and communicate observations, as well as a way to explore, realise and communicate ideas and imagination. 

Assessment Method:

Project 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Expanded Drawing

Code:

FA1ED

Convenor:

DR Florian Roithmayr

Summary:

In this module you will develop your drawing skills in a series of practical sessions focused on ‘expanded’ or experimental drawing techniques. This will include working from still and moving subjects including life drawing, animals, still life, spatial and architectural/landscape contexts but also exploring other approaches to drawing such as sculptural, performance and conceptual-based strategies, digital drawing, dry point and mono-print drawing techniques and the inter-section of drawing and painting.  Through the module you will develop your skill set in terms of foundational skills such as line, tone, scale but you will also develop an understanding of the varied contemporary and historical contexts, uses, ideas and techniques of expanded drawing.  

Assessment Method:

Project 90%, Report 10%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Postmodernisms & Other Fictions

Code:

FA1PF

Convenor:

DR Linda Stupart

Summary:

This module will provide a broad, introductory survey of key developments in the history, theory and criticism of art during the postmodern period (c. 1960s on). Its starting point will be theories of the development of postmodernity and its social, political, and economic components, and the ways in which modern, postmodern and contemporary art functions in and on its historical contexts.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Towards Sustainability: Positive Action for a Better World

Code:

AP1A35

Convenor:

PROF Julian Park

Summary:

This is a 20 credit University-Wide module offered at Part 1 the aim of which is to better understand the sustainability challenges facing the world and to consider the positive actions that can be taken either collectively or at the individual level that aids the sustainability agenda. The module will consist of lectures, case studies, discussions and speakers from external organisations as well as a group project work.

Assessment Method:

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Introduction to Marketing

Code:

AP1EM1

Convenor:

MR Nick Walker

Summary:

Gain fundamental knowledge of the key concepts of marketing and relate these critically to contemporary practice. Examine traditional approaches to marketing such as strategic marketing, segmentation, targeting and positioning, as well as the marketing mix, and discuss issues arising within marketing theory and practice, which bring into question some of the foundational principles of the discipline. Through lectures, readings, and the analysis of case studies, address the latest thinking within the marketing discipline.

Assessment Method:

Class test 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

The Fundamentals of Business and Marketing

Code:

AP1EM2

Convenor:

MR Nick Walker

Summary:

Gain an introduction to management science and its relevance to businesses. Interactive in-class activities and the use of online apps will help you learn techniques for inspiring teamwork in an organisational context, discover the importance of strategic management design for achieving an organisation's goals, and understand the roles of the manager and the responsibilities this carries. You will also have a range of opportunities to gain hands-on practising decision making through case studies. Develop your leadership skills to motivate and guide a team towards the achievement of an organisation’s objectives. 

Gain fundamental knowledge of the key concepts of marketing and management, and relate these critically to contemporary practice. Examine fundamental marketing concepts such as strategic marketing, market segmentation and the marketing mix. You will also begin to explore these concepts through the lens of Digital Marketing.

You will discuss issues arising within marketing theory and practice, which bring into question some of the foundational principles of the discipline. Through lectures, readings, and the analysis of case studies, address the latest thinking within the marketing discipline.

Assessment Method:

Class test 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Introduction to Management

Code:

AP1SB1

Convenor:

PROF Julian Park

Summary:

This module provides a contemporary and comprehensive introduction to management science and its relevance to businesses. Interactive in-class activities and the use of online apps will help you learn techniques for inspiring teamwork in an organisation context, discover the importance of strategic management design for achieving an organisation's goals, and understand the roles of the manager and the responsibilities this carries. You will also have a range of opportunities to gain hands-on practising decision making through case studies. Furthermore, develop your leadership skills to motivate and guide a team towards the achievement of an organisation’s objectives.  

Assessment Method:

Class test 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Early Empires: Mesopotamia, Egypt & Rome

Code:

AR1EMP

Convenor:

PROF Roger Matthews

Summary:

This module introduces the archaeology and historical context of the world’s early empires, dating from 2500 BC to AD 395. We focus on the great empires of ancient Mesopotamia (Akkad, Babylonia and Assyria), Egypt, the Persian Achaemenid Empire and the Roman Empire. We will review other imperial entities of the world, including examples from China and the Far East, and the Americas. We will examine special themes relevant to the topic of empires, including ideology, imperial cult, trade, urbanisation, warfare, agriculture and the everyday lives of imperial subjects. You will study the rise and fall of some of the greatest, and the most fearsome, socio-political entities to have existed on our planet.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 70%, Practical 10%, Report 20%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Early Empires: Mesopotamia, Egypt & Rome [10 credits]

Code:

AR1EMP10

Convenor:

PROF Roger Matthews

Summary:

This module introduces the archaeology and historical context of the world’s early empires, dating from 2500 BC to AD 395. We focus on the great empires of ancient Mesopotamia (Akkad, Babylonia and Assyria), Egypt, the Persian Achaemenid Empire and the Roman Empire. We will review other imperial entities of the world, including examples from China and the Far East, and the Americas. We will examine special themes relevant to the topic of empires, including ideology, imperial cult, trade, urbanisation, warfare, agriculture and the everyday lives of imperial subjects. You will study the rise and fall of some of the greatest, and the most fearsome, socio-political entities to have existed on our planet.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Forensic Anthropology and the Archaeology of Death

Code:

AR1FOR

Convenor:

DR Gundula Müldner

Summary:

This module investigates the archaeological methods employed in the scientific study of the dead, both from modern crime scenes and within older archaeological contexts. You will have the opportunity to analyse skeletal remains, and carry out fieldwork in the form of a cemetery survey, learning how to analyse and interpret these results. Through a series of case studies, you will explore the role of forensic archaeologists and anthropologists (working within the context of the ethics, law and politics) behind the examination of human remains.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 50%, Report 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Forensic Anthropology and the Archaeology of Death [10 credit]

Code:

AR1FOR10

Convenor:

DR Gundula Müldner

Summary:

This module investigates the archaeological methods employed in the scientific study of the dead, both from modern crime scenes and within older archaeological contexts. Through a series of case studies, you will explore the role of forensic archaeologists and anthropologists (working within the context of the ethics, law and politics) behind the examination of human remains.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Revolutions and Transitions: The Human Journey from 6 Million Years Ago to the Present Day

Code:

AR1RAT

Convenor:

PROF Steve Mithen

Summary:

This module investigates the development of human society from a long-term and global perspective. It traces the human journey from our earliest ancestors of c. 6 million years ago to the present day. The module considers the key revolutions and transitions that have affected human thought, behaviour and society, focussing on the evidence from material culture. Key themes include human evolution, the development of complex societies, the inventions of metallurgy and writing, the industrial and agricultural revolutions, and globalisation. The module is taught by a combination of online lectures, face-to-face seminars and lectures, and practical classes.

Assessment Method:

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Revolutions and Transitions: The Human Journey from 6 Million Years Ago to the Present Day

Code:

AR1RAT1

Convenor:

PROF Steve Mithen

Summary:

This module investigates the development of human society from a long-term and global perspective. It traces the human journey from our earliest ancestors of c. 6 million years ago to the present day. The module considers the key revolutions and transitions that have affected human thought, behaviour and society, focussing on the evidence from material culture. Key themes include: human evolution, the development of complex societies, the inventions of metallurgy and writing, the industrial and agricultural revolutions, and globalisation. The module is taught by a combination of online lectures and face-to-face seminars and lectures.

Assessment Method:

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Contemporary world cultures: an introduction to social anthropology

Code:

AR1SOC

Convenor:

DR Alanna Cant

Summary:

This module provides a general introduction to social anthropology, the study of human societies and cultures. It will introduce you to major themes in the discipline of anthropology through focused study on topics that may include: kinship and marriage, gender and sexuality, the roles of religion, ritual and witchcraft in modern life, the concepts of ethnicity and race, and contemporary hunting and gathering societies. The module will also consider how anthropology can help us understand key issues in today’s world, such as ethnicity, race and decolonisation, and the role that work and consumption play in forming identities. Teaching is focused on real-world case studies from different cultures and regions around the globe, including the research expertise of the lecturer(s). 

Assessment Method:

Assignment 70%, Set exercise 30%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Contemporary world cultures: an introduction to social anthropology [10 credits]

Code:

AR1SOC10

Convenor:

DR Alanna Cant

Summary:

This module provides a general introduction to social anthropology, the study of human societies and cultures. It will introduce you to major themes in the discipline of anthropology through focused study on topics that may include: kinship and marriage, gender and sexuality, the roles of religion, ritual and witchcraft in modern life, the concepts of ethnicity and race, and contemporary hunting and gathering societies. The module will also consider how anthropology can help us understand key issues in today’s world, such as ethnicity, race and decolonisation, and the role that work and consumption play in forming identities. Teaching is focused on real-world case studies from different cultures and regions around the globe, including the research expertise of the lecturer(s). 

Assessment Method:

Set exercise 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Ancient Song

Code:

CL1SO

Convenor:

PROF Ian Rutherford

Summary:

This module introduces students to the lyric poetry of ancient Greece and Rome, studying authors from both civilisations and considering a range of thematic approaches to the surviving corpus of poetry. It is intended to be suitable for beginners and for those who have studied some ancient literature before; there is no language requirement, but there will be an opportunity for students who do have relevant skills to employ them in their coursework and exams.

Assessment Method:

Exam 50%, Assignment 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Texts, Readers, and Writers

Code:

CL1TR

Convenor:

PROF Eleanor Dickey

Summary:

This module explores the history of texts, reading, and writing in the ancient Greek and Roman worlds. We shall look at literature, papyri, inscriptions, letters, Linear B, etc. Attention will also be given to the invention of the alphabet and to ancient writing materials and technologies. No knowledge of Latin, ancient Greek, or the ancient world more generally is required.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 40%, Oral 50%, Set exercise 10%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Approaches to Film

Code:

FT1ATF

Convenor:

DR Adam O'Brien

Summary:

How do films tell stories, make meanings, and contribute to our culture? What questions can, and should, we ask of a film?

This module includes a mix of cinema screenings, seminars and lectures, exploring a range of fiction and non-fiction films. Class discussions and assignments will challenge you to explore the meanings and cultural significance of moving images, across the 20th and 21st centuries.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Analysing Theatre and Performance

Code:

FT1ATP

Convenor:

DR Matt McFrederick

Summary:

How do theatrical stories allow us to examine and reimagine our impression of the world today?  What practical qualities do theatre makers return to - or reinvent - in creating meaning in performance?

In this introduction to theatre and performance, you will share your interpretations and expand the ways you see and think about theatre in relation to the world today. You will learn how to be a confident spectator and reader of theatre through a range of diverse and topical performances in local or in London-based venues - previous trips have included the National Theatre, RSC Live, Peking Opera, the West End and smaller, innovative fringe venues.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 70%, Oral 30%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Approaches to Television

Code:

FT1ATT

Convenor:

DR Faye Woods

Summary:

In an era of intensified competition for audiences and technological innovation, the box in the corner has expanded to include a vast universe of televisual content that can be slipped into your pocket. In this module you will learn the tools to both analyse this wealth of programming and the industry that produces it. Considering contemporary developments alongside the extensive history of the form, it examines continuities rather than disruption. Centred on close analysis and critical reading, you will explore a range of exciting viewpoints and frameworks through which to approach television.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 60%, Set exercise 40%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Comedy on Stage and Screen

Code:

FT1CSS

Convenor:

DR Tonia Kazakopoulou

Summary:

This module gives you the opportunity to study comedy on stage and screen, encompassing film, television, theatre and stand-up comedy. You will engage with the relevant critical vocabulary and contextual knowledge to explore how humour is created, consumed and debated, across a range of genres and practices. Case studies may include classic and contemporary film comedies (e.g. screwball comedy, black comedy); musical comedies (e.g. The Book of Mormon); stand-up comedy (e.g. Ali Wong, Hannah Gadsby); sitcoms (e.g. Friends); or the work of specific creative practitioners (e.g. Joe Orton).

Assessment Method:

Assignment 60%, Set exercise 40%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Wildlife Documentary: Ecology and Representation

Code:

FT1WD

Convenor:

DR Adam O'Brien

Summary:

This module gives you the opportunity to study wildlife documentaries, and filmmaking addressing ecological issues. You will engage with the relevant critical vocabulary and contextual knowledge to explore how meanings on screen are made. Case studies may include David Attenborough’s landmark BBC series, nature documentaries such as March of the Penguins, and climate change films such as An Inconvenient Truth. There may be a Q&A with a guest speaker from the creative industries. 

Assessment Method:

Assignment 60%, Oral 40%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Introduction to Environmental Science

Code:

GV1B1

Convenor:

DR Hazel McGoff

Summary:

The module provides an overview of the scope of Environmental Science, and introduces the scientific processes that control and affect our environment.

Assessment Method:

Exam 60%, Assignment 40%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Intercultural Competence and Communication

Code:

IL1GICC

Convenor:

MRS Daniela Standen

Summary:

In this module students develop the skills and understanding needed for communicating effectively in a multi-cultural global environment, including the university and the workplace.  Intercultural competence and communication will be considered from a range of disciplinary perspectives, including Language Education, Film, and Curriculum. During the course of the module you will tackle questions such as: How do you work successfully in multicultural Teams? Are nationality and identity the same thing? Why do stereotypes exist?

Students will demonstrate their learning through reflections and by defining and explaining a real-world situation. The module will be delivered at the University of Reading Whiteknights campus.

Assessment Method:

Oral 10%, Portfolio 30%, Project 60%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Modern Britain: Society, History and Politics

Code:

IL1GMB

Convenor:

DR Lucy Watson

Summary:

This module aims to provide an introduction to key aspects of modern British society, politics and history, identifying past and present issues.

Topics explored include the historical and political landscape of Post war Britain, British identities, patterns of inequality, education, religion, and Britain’s relationship with Europe.

In the Summer term students will work independently to explore a specific from the range taught in Term 1, to develop knowledge of the underlying concepts and principles and demonstrate an ability to evaluate and interpret these.

Assessment Method:

Oral 40%, Project 60%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Globalization and Language

Code:

LS1GL

Convenor:

DR Tony Capstick

Summary:

In this module students will explore the role of language in globalization. They will examine the reasons for the spread of languages around the globe historically and in the future (especially in the context of political developments such as Brexit, and the increasing importance of World languages such as English). They will also explore debates about linguistic imperialism and the political dimensions of language use and language policies. Finally, they will explore the effects of technology and migration on the linguistic situation in Latin America, New Zealand and the Middle East, including how urban centers are becoming increasingly multilingual and ‘superdiverse’, and the political and social consequences of this. Teaching is drawn from across the School of Literature and Language.

Assessment Method:

Set exercise 10%, Project 90%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Presenting the Past

Code:

MC1PP

Convenor:

DR Rhi Smith

Summary:

Museum display environments create representations of the past through a complex process of design, curatorship, and interpretation. This module uses museological theory and practice to interrogate the way that heritage organisations present the past to the public.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Greats of European Cinema

Code:

ML1GEC

Convenor:

DR Marta Simo-Comas

Summary:

The aim of this module is to provide students with an understanding of the ways in which European Cinema – and the various national cinemas that comprise it – reflects the changing political, social and cultural climate of the twentieth century. The course is designed to introduce students to key features of film analysis and to develop their ability to apply these to the films studied.

Assessment Method:

Exam 55%, Set exercise 45%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Student Enterprise

Code:

MM1F10

Convenor:

MS Linghe Lei

Summary:

This is a dynamic module introducing students to key concepts of business start-up. Students work in a team to identify and develop a new business opportunity, and then seek to test their idea through ‘lean start-up’ experiments. Students will be introduced to key concepts of entrepreneurial management including design thinking, business model creation, entrepreneurial finance and marketing. This is a highly interactive and practical module, with a focus on experiential learning.

Assessment Method:

Project 60%, Class test 40%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

The Science of Climate Change

Code:

MT1CC

Convenor:

PROF Nigel Arnell

Summary:

This module provides an introduction to the science of climate change, aimed at students who do not necessarily have a scientific background.

Assessment Method:

Exam 70%, Assignment 30%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

British Society

Code:

PO1BRI

Convenor:

DR Dawn Clarke

Summary:

The module draws on theories and approaches from Politics, Sociology, Psychology, History and Philosophy to consider some of the main contours of contemporary British Society. The module will explore a number of images of Britain including: Britain as a Welfare State, Multicultural Britain and Britain as a Class Society. It will also explore crime and deviance in Britain, the role of the mass media and the increasing power of the food industry. 

Assessment Method:

Exam 50%, Assignment 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Inequality

Code:

PO1INE

Convenor:

DR Jonathan Golub

Summary:

Inequality is everywhere around us: different individuals earn different salaries, people of different genders and backgrounds have access to different economic opportunities, and those at the top of the income distribution have radically distinct life chances than those at the bottom. What explains rising inequality, is it fair and what are the consequences? Should anything be done to reduce inequality, and if so, what? This course aims to answer these questions by providing students with the analytical tools and knowledge to understand and explain the evolution of earnings, racial and gender inequality over time and its variation across developed countries. It also considers the economic, normative and political implications of different forms of inequality, in particular gender and racial inequality. Is inequality at the top of the income distribution (i.e. the 1% v. the rest of us) the inevitable outcome of a well-functioning market system or does it suggest problems in the way democracy works? Does inequality undermine democracy for instance by affecting political participation or increasing the appeal of non-liberal populist parties? Take the course and you will find out more about these fascinating questions and more!

Assessment Method:

Assignment 40%, Oral 10%, Project 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Introduction to Political Ideas

Code:

PO1IPI

Convenor:

DR Andrew Reid

Summary:

An introduction to political theory, covering central topics like the state and its authority, democracy, rights and liberty, equality and social justice, and war and intervention, as well as some of the basic methods for understanding them all. 

Assessment Method:

Exam 50%, Assignment 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

War and Warfare

Code:

PO1WAR

Convenor:

DR Vladimir Rauta

Summary:

What is war? How do we classify war? What causes war? How are wars fought? What kinds of warfare can we identify and how have these changed throughout history? How do we make sense, theoretically and empirically, of the growing spectrum of contemporary war - including, but not limited to, great power war, nuclear inter-state war, civil wars, hybrid/cyber/proxy/grey zone warfare? This is an introductory module for students seeking foundational knowledge of war in international relations. The emphasis is on concepts and types of war, their causes, and how they relate to real world issues in international relations and international security. By thinking through and examining a subset of wars and types of warfare the ultimate objective is to have students embrace a range of theoretical arguments about both historical and contemporary examples, to apply these insights to current debates about war in international relations and to prepare students for future scholarly research and security/strategy-focused analysis.

Assessment Method:

Exam 50%, Assignment 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Global Justice

Code:

PP1GJ

Convenor:

MISS Michela Bariselli

Summary:

Global traditions of philosophy  from the Buddha and Confucius to Simone Weil, Frantz Fanon, Martin Luther King Jr., and African and Native American thinkers advocate ideas of justice and freedom that extend far beyond contemporary conceptions. This course shows how these thinkers question our  ideas of justice, and  transform how we approach injustice and freedom in the  context of race and colonialism, nature and  indigenous communities, identity  and sexuality, family and polity, through radically different conceptions of freedom and violence,  love, equality and harmony.

Some of the claims we will examine include: Justice is freedom from suffering!  Revolutionary violence is cathartic and emancipatory! Political justice  requires mental training! Nature is alive and has rights! Gender and sexual freedom are gained by  dissolving bodily boundaries!  Truth lies in pleasure! Justice is  love! Social justice comes with harmonising differences! 

Assessment Method:

Assignment 90%, Class test 10%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

The Meaning of Life

Code:

PP1ML

Convenor:

DR Luke Elson

Summary:

What is the meaning of life? This is perhaps the most important philosophical question we can ask. What is the answer? Indeed, what is the question really asking? In this module, we seek the answers. Along the way, we will consider a series of fascinating questions which promise to enlighten our understanding of ourselves and our place in the world. What makes life worth living? Is there any reason to fear death? Could life in artificial reality be better or more fulfilling than life in the real world?

Reading:

A list of required readings will be posted online. All or nearly all core readings are available electronically.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 90%, Class test 10%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Reason and Argument

Code:

PP1RA

Convenor:

DR George Mason

Summary:

This module enhances students’ ability to understand and construct complex arguments through the study of logic and the psychology of human reasoning. Reading: A module guide will be available. Recommended: Jamie Carlin Watson and Robert Arp, Critical Thinking: An Introduction to Reasoning Well, 2nd edition, Bloomsbury, 2015.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 90%, Class test 10%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Radical Philosophy

Code:

PP1RP

Convenor:

PROF Maximilian De Gaynesford

Summary:

From Plato and Marx to contemporaries like Judith Butler, Slavoj Zizek, and Catharine MacKinnon, there is a long tradition of radicalism in philosophy. This course is about how radical philosophy can usefully question our deepest assumptions and challenge our deepest beliefs. Poets should be outlawed from our society! We can secure knowledge by doubting everything! Capitalism will be destroyed by the very forces it creates! Gender is a social performance! Pornography silences women! Torture is permissible in extreme circumstances, e.g. post 9/11! These are some of the claims this course investigates philosophically.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 90%, Class test 10%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Introduction to Psychology

Code:

PY1IPY

Convenor:

DR Katie Barfoot

Summary:

This module is delivered at the University of Reading, for students who are interested in but not studying Psychology.  

Assessment Method:

Exam 60%, Report 40%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

History of Graphic Communication

Code:

TY1HGC

Convenor:

DR Rob Banham

Summary:

The module provides students with an introduction to the history of graphic communication over the past 150 years, and the changing role of the graphic designer during that time. We will study the key design movements of the 20th century and the work of some of its most influential graphic designers and typographers.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 50%, Oral 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Printing and printmaking

Code:

TY1PRI

Convenor:

DR Rob Banham

Summary:

The invention of printing, and the resulting spread of knowledge, played a crucial part in the development of modern society. This module will provide students with a broad overview of advances in printing and printmaking over the past 500 years. We will study how technological advances and the changing needs of readers affected the production, distribution, and reception of printed documents of all kinds. Students will also gain practical experience of printing, including letterpress, copper-engraving, and stone lithography, and will have opportunities to handle books, prints, and artefacts produced by some of the great printers and printmakers of the past.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 50%, Set exercise 10%, Portfolio 40%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

What the font? Making and using typefaces

Code:

TY1WTF

Convenor:

DR Rob Banham

Summary:

You are surrounded by fonts. Social media, text messages, email, branding, advertising, websites, books, magazines … Human (and machine) communication relies extensively on fonts, but what do you really know about them? How and why are new fonts created? And is it ever OK to use comic sans?! This module will introduce you to the world of typeface design, exploring the history, theory, and practice of making and using fonts and giving you the opportunity to design a typeface of your own. No background in design is required.

Assessment Method:

Set exercise 50%, Project 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

International Study

Code:

FA2IS

Convenor:

PROF Alun Rowlands

Summary:

This module involves a week long supervised study trip to a major European art centre (there is also 1 lecture in Week 2 of the Autumn term). Students see and experience contemporary art at first hand and also benefit from the knowledge and expertise of accompanying academic staff. Recent centres have included Berlin, Madrid, Vienna, Cologne, Paris and Venice.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Part 2I Studio

Code:

FA2IS2

Convenor:

MISS Julia Crabtree

Summary:

This is an Art studio module that is supported by tutorials, group critiques, material sessions, weekly seminars, exhibitions, and a program of visiting artist talks. There is also an option to take a study abroad module or take up a work placement in the Autumn term. The aim of the module is to support and challenge students in their development of an independent, creative and critically informed art practice. The module encourages students to identify and investigate particular (individual) interests and concerns through practical engagement in the studio and workshop areas. Students are further supported in the development of research skills relevant to both the development of an art practice and an understanding of its relationship to the broad field of contemporary art. Through the visiting artist program and placement schemes, students are encouraged to enhance their knowledge of career opportunities and reflect upon skills required to make effective applications.

Assessment Method:

Practical 33%, Portfolio 33%, Report 34%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Part 2 Studio including Career Management Skills

Code:

FA2S2

Convenor:

MS Tina O'Connell

Summary:

This is a studio-based module where students are supported and guided in the development of an individual art practice. Studio tutors are available from Monday to Friday and they encourage students to be experimental, creative and

to become knowledgeable about contemporary art and culture. Material sessions where students can learn new skill in a range of media from painting to digital are available in the Autumn and Spring term. Weekly lectures by visiting artist give insight into diversity in the art world and the different ways artists make and practice today. Through staging exhibitions students learn about group working and this is further advanced through a program of group tutorials. During the module students learn appropriate methods of documenting and writing about their work. Through making, documenting and writing students learn what materials and ideas matter to them and how their concerns are informed by and relate to relevant contemporary art practices. The university careers team and alumni visit the department in the Autumn and Spring term to give practical and creative advice on the range of careers open to arts graduates.

Assessment Method:

Project 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Visual Thinking and Material Writing

Code:

FA2IMW

Convenor:

PROF Alun Rowlands

Summary:

This is a seminar based module designed to develop writing skills and the awareness of the scope of writing within art and art history. It will focus on the range of writing that constitutes the current discourses in art. The module will look at writings from Art Historical and critical theory approaches to genre in order to expand the student's expectations of what approaches are acceptable and useful within writing about art and art writing. Each week the group will look at different models of art writing in order to think through and begin to find a position on the appropriate forms for different contexts.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Philosophies and Theories of Art

Code:

FA2IPA

Convenor:

DR James Hellings

Summary:

This module explores a range of philosophical and political ideas and tracks their impact on the histories and discourses of art. Over the course of 10 lectures students will be introduced to a range of historical and contemporary expositions and their use in Art, art criticism and theory. The module will develop through a combination of lectures, seminar discussion, exhibition visits, screenings and a written assignment.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

International Study

Code:

FA2IS

Convenor:

PROF Alun Rowlands

Summary:

This module involves a week long supervised study trip to a major European art centre (there is also 1 lecture in Week 2 of the Autumn term). Students see and experience contemporary art at first hand and also benefit from the knowledge and expertise of accompanying academic staff. Recent centres have included Berlin, Madrid, Vienna, Cologne, Paris and Venice.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

International Study 2

Code:

FA2IS3

Convenor:

PROF Alun Rowlands

Summary:

This module involves a week long supervised study trip to a major European art centre (there is also 1 lecture in Week 2 of the Autumn term). Students see and experience contemporary art at first hand and also benefit from the knowledge and expertise of accompanying academic staff. Recent centres have included Berlin, Madrid, Vienna, Cologne, Paris and Venice.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Independent study with Work Placement

Code:

FA2ISP

Convenor:

MRS Lauren Little

Summary:

Students undertake an intensive investigation into an organisation, museum, gallery, studio complex, selected in consultation with a supervisor. Students will develop and present a portfolio consisting of elements such as an annotated list of sources; a critical bibliography including an analysis of a selected number of key sources; an exhibition and reproduction history, including illustrations; a visual analysis; a short discursive text accounting for the significance of their chosen investigation.  It may also be an exhibition or key texts in the field.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

What is the Contemporary? 3

Code:

FA2IWC3

Convenor:

DR Pil Kollectiv

Summary:

This module provides a rigorous critical forum where students consider their own artistic concerns in relation to the experiences of visiting speakers. Module content will centre on Contemporary Art's debates and trajectories as well as diverse models of practice through presentations by visiting artists, theorists, writers, curators, and others involved in visual culture. Students will critically analyse the artist presentations through seminar discussion, course reading, art historical research and written response.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

What is the Contemporary? 4

Code:

FA2IWC4

Convenor:

DR Pil Kollectiv

Summary:

This module provides a rigorous critical forum where students consider their own artistic concerns in relation to the experiences of visiting speakers. Module content will centre on Contemporary Art's debates and trajectories as well as diverse models of practice through presentations by visiting artists, theorists, writers, curators, and others involved in visual culture. Students will critically analyse the artist presentations through seminar discussion, course reading, art historical research and written response.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Visual Thinking and Material Writing

Code:

FA2MW

Convenor:

PROF Alun Rowlands

Summary:

This is a seminar based module designed to develop writing skills and the awareness of the scope of writing within art and art history. It will focus on the range of writing that constitutes the current discourses in art. The module will look at writings from Art Historical and critical theory approaches to genre in order to expand the student's expectations of what approaches are acceptable and useful within writing about art and art writing. Each week the group will look at different models of art writing in order to think through and begin to find a position on the appropriate forms for different contexts.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Philosophies and Theories of Art

Code:

FA2PA

Convenor:

DR James Hellings

Summary:

This module explores a range of philosophical and political ideas and tracks their impact on the histories and discourses of art. Over the course of 10 lectures students will be introduced to a range of historical and contemporary expositions and their use in Art, art criticism and theory. The module will develop through a combination of lectures, seminar discussion, exhibition visits, screenings and a written assignment.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Study Abroad

Code:

FA2SSA

Convenor:

MISS Beverley Bennett

Summary:

Module code to indicate that a student has undertaken a period of Study Abroad at a partner institution as part of their single or joint honours Art degree.

Assessment Method:

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

What is the Contemporary? 1

Code:

FA2WC1

Convenor:

DR Pil Kollectiv

Summary:

This module provides a rigorous critical forum where students consider their own artistic concerns in relation to the experiences of visiting speakers. Module content will centre on Contemporary Art's debates and trajectories as well as diverse models of practice through presentations by visiting artists, theorists, writers, curators, and others involved in visual culture. Students will critically analyse the artist presentations through seminar discussion, course reading, art historical research and written response.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

What is the Contemporary? 2

Code:

FA2WC2

Convenor:

DR Pil Kollectiv

Summary:

This module provides a rigorous critical forum where students consider their own artistic concerns in relation to the experiences of visiting speakers. Module content will centre on Contemporary Art's debates and trajectories as well as diverse models of practice through presentations by visiting artists, theorists, writers, curators, and others involved in visual culture. Students will critically analyse the artist presentations through seminar discussion, course reading, art historical research and written response.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

The Colonial Experience: Africa, 1879 to 1980

Code:

HS2O10

Convenor:

DR Heike Schmidt

Summary:

This module explores the impact of colonialism in Africa, considering this impact in broad terms but with a particular focus on the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and reflects on how historians can understand the colonial past without reproducing a Eurocentric point of view.

Assessment Method:

Exam 50%, Assignment 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Rebel Girls: The Influence of Radical Women 1792-1919

Code:

HS2O14

Convenor:

DR Jacqui Turner

Summary:

This module considers changing perceptions of women in Britain from the late eighteenth century to the early twentieth century, and examines the influence of those women who challenged social stereotypes and the Victorian double standard.

Assessment Method:

Exam 50%, Assignment 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

‘The brightest jewel in the British crown’: The Making of Modern South Asia, 1757-1947

Code:

HS2O16

Convenor:

DR Rohan Deb Roy

Summary:

This module introduces students to the history of modern South Asia. Students learn how British colonial rule and anti-colonial Indian nationalism shaped modern South Asia.  

Assessment Method:

Exam 50%, Assignment 50%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Black Britain: Race and Migration in Post-war Britain

Code:

HS2O58

Convenor:

DR Natalie Thomlinson

Summary:

Black Britain is an optional module that looks at race and migration in twentieth century Britain, a period in which Britain became ‘multicultural’. It looks at the lived experience of migration, and the political debates around it, though the various lenses of political, social, and cultural history. 

Assessment Method:

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Society, Thought and Art in Modern Europe

Code:

HS2STA

Convenor:

DR Veronica Heath

Summary:

This module aims to provide students with a systematic historical and cross-national understanding of the key ideas, institutions and symbols that have come to constitute and represent modernity in Europe and, at the same time, new conceptions of Europe. This module examines the birth of modern men and women in Europe in the late eighteenth century and the broad intellectual, cultural, economic, political and social conditions which have been shaping and re-shaping them since. The module further shows a) the contributions of different European nations to a common European reaction to and re-evaluation of tradition and modernity; and b) the diffusion of modernity (Westernisation) from Europe to Asia and Africa and its role in the creation of a global world. Finally, it shows how art has played a leading role in the transformations of modernity; not only recording it but also constituting one of its central components.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 80%, Class test 20%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Curatorship and Collections Management

Code:

MC2CCM

Convenor:

DR Rhi Smith

Summary:

A practical introduction to researching, cataloguing, interpreting and displaying museum objects. The module is based on work with objects from the University of Reading's collections. Students will choose one object from the stores, and are assessed on three assignments based on researching, labelling and displaying the object.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Museum Learning and Engagement

Code:

MC2LE

Convenor:

DR Rhi Smith

Summary:

This module critically examines the learning role of museums in society. Students are introduced to learning theory, programme and event management, while also learning about resource design, evaluation, and visitor research. During the course students will hear from museum-based learning and engagement professionals and observe and evaluate learning resources and events. Interactive lectures, seminars and museum visits encourage students to contextualise and apply learning. Work is assessed through design and planned evaluation of a learning resource, evaluation of an educational event, and an analysis of a museum's learning programme.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 90%, Oral 10%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Studio (joint honours)

Code:

FA3HS2

Convenor:

PROF Susanne Clausen

Summary:

This is an Art studio module that is supported by tutorials, group critiques, material sessions, weekly seminars, exhibitions, and a program of visiting artist talks.  The aim of the module is to support and challenge students in their development of an independent, creative and critically informed art practice. The module encourages students to consolidate and develop particular (individual) interests and concerns through practical engagement in the studio and workshop areas, to prepare them for future public exhibitions and to state their positions as artists. Students are further supported in the development of research skills relevant to both the development of an art practice and an understanding of its relationship to the broad field of contemporary art and to locate their practice both historically and theoretically. Through the visiting artist program students are encouraged to enhance their knowledge of career opportunities to enable them to plan and make effective applications for future postgraduate opportunities, employment, professional practice. 

Assessment Method:

Project 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Art and History of Art Dissertation

Code:

FA3VCD

Convenor:

DR Florian Roithmayr

Summary:

This module aims to provide the occasion for students to identify, research, and organize an extended written project. The focus of the module is on independent learning. The module also challenges students to reflect and build upon knowledge gained from lectures, seminars and studio tutorials in parts 2 and 3 of the programme.

Assessment Method:

Dissertation 100%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Greek & Roman Painting

Code:

CL3AP

Convenor:

PROF Amy Smith

Summary:

In this module students will explore the range of styles, techniques, and contexts for painting in the Greek and Roman world, whether it was used to decorate architecture or free-standing objects.

Assessment Method:

Assignment 40%, Oral 10%, Portfolio 30%, Report 20%

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.

Title:

Sexual Politics: Gender, Sex, and Feminism in Britain after 1918

Code:

HS3T100

Convenor:

DR Natalie Thomlinson

Summary:

Sexual Politics examines histories of gender, sex and sexuality, and feminism, in Britain since 1918, when the vote was first won for women (albeit only over the age of 30). A mixture of social, cultural and political history, it challenges students to ask why our understandings of these concepts have changed so much over the last 100 years.

Assessment Method:

Disclaimer:

The modules described on this page are what we currently offer. Modules may change for your year of study as we regularly review our offerings to ensure they’re informed by the latest research and teaching methods.