Universität Wien

230212 SE The Politics of Environmental Knowledge (2017S)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 23 - Soziologie
Continuous assessment of course work

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 25 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Tuesday 07.03. 14:00 - 15:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien (Kickoff Class)
  • Monday 27.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 28.03. 14:00 - 16:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Wednesday 29.03. 12:00 - 15:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Monday 03.04. 10:00 - 13:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Wednesday 05.04. 12:00 - 15:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Thursday 06.04. 15:00 - 17:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Monday 24.04. 10:00 - 13:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 25.04. 14:00 - 16:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Wednesday 26.04. 12:00 - 14:00 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

In environmental governance, we have become acutely aware of the social and political life of science. Discussions about what nature areas and species to protect, the risks of genetically modified organisms, or the acceptable levels of atmospheric CO2 often focus on numbers and model projections produced by environmental science. The contestation of scientific knowledge in the context of these discussions is commonly referred to as the politics, or politicization, of science. While important, this is only one of the ways in which the politics of knowledge can be understood. This course introduces various theoretical and conceptual resources to develop a fuller understanding of the different dimensions of the politics of knowledge, including power/knowledge, coproduction, and performativity. The course continues by using these to reflect on the democratization of environmental knowledge and the creation of productive relationships between science, policy and society. The course will use a variety of didactic methods including lectures, assignments, group work and essay writing to help students understand and apply the concepts and theories to real life examples from environmental governance and nature conservation.
After successful completion, students are expected to be able to:
· Understand the different dimensions of the politics of environmental knowledge
· Understand the main concepts and theories discussed in the course
· Critically evaluate these and apply them to empirical examples

Assessment and permitted materials

To pass the seminar, students are expected to complete the following tasks:
Prepare and participate actively in lectures, tutorials and other course activities
Complete a portfolio of 3 online assignments (assignment 1)
Complete a group report about a selected case (assignment 2)
Complete an individual essay about a selected topic (assignment 3)

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Grading Scheme
The course is graded on the basis of three assignments. The grading scheme is based on a total of 100 points per assignment. These points will be awarded in relation to students’ performance in meeting the course learning aims in the different obligatory tasks. Each assignment counts as one third of the grade.
Assignment 1: portfolio, 100 points, assessed individually, no feedback
Assignment 2: individual essay, 100 points, assessed individually, feedback by lecturer
Assignment 3: group case report, 100 points, assessed as group work, feedback by lecturer

Minimum requirements
To pass the course, you must score a minimum of 50 points for each assignment. Assignment deadlines must be respected. The following rules apply for late submissions:
Assignment 1: For the first late submission, 10 points will be subtracted from the grade. For the second late submission an additional 15 points will be subtracted from the grade. For the third late submission, an additional 25 points are subtracted from the grade.
Assignments 2 and 3: Failure to submit on time results in a subtraction of 10 points for each hour that the assignment is submitted late (1 minute late counts as 1 hour, 61 minutes late counts as two hours).

Grades
300-260 points Excellent (1)
259-224 points Good (2)
223-188 points Satisfactory (3)
187-150 points Sufficient (4)
149-0 points Unsatisfactory (5) (fail)

Attendance
Presence and participation is compulsory. Absences of four hours at maximum are tolerated, provided that the lecturer is informed about the absence. Absences of up to eight hours in total may be compensated by either a deduction of grading points or/and extra work agreed with the lecturer. Whether compensation is possible is decided by the lecturer.
Absences of more than eight hours in total cannot be compensated. In this case, or if the lecturer does not allow a student to compensate absences of more than four hours, the course cannot be completed and is graded as a ‘fail’ (5), unless there is a major and unpredictable reason for not being able to fulfil the attendance requirements on the student’s side (e.g. a longer illness). In such a case, the student may be de-registered from the course without grading. It is the student’s responsibility to communicate this in a timely manner, and to provide relevant evidence to their claims if necessary. Whether this exception applies is decided by the lecturer.

Important Grading Information
If not explicitly noted otherwise, all requirements mentioned in the grading scheme and the attendance regulations must be met. If a required task is not fulfilled, e.g. a required assignment is not handed in or if the student does not meet the attendance requirements, this will be considered as a discontinuation of the course. In that case, the course will be graded as ‘fail’ (5), unless there is a major and unpredictable reason for not being able to fulfill the task on the student's side (e.g. a longer illness). In such a case, the student may be de-registered from the course without grading. It is the student’s responsibility to communicate this in a timely manner, and to provide relevant evidence to their claims if necessary. Whether this exception applies is decided by the lecturer.
If any requirement of the course has been fulfilled by fraudulent means, be it for example by cheating at an exam, plagiarizing parts of a written assignment or by faking signatures on an attendance sheet, the student's participation in the course will be discontinued, the entire course will be graded as ‘not assessed’ and will be entered into the electronic exam record as ‘fraudulently obtained’. Self-plagiarism, particularly re-using own work handed in for other courses, will be treated likewise.

Examination topics

Reading list


Association in the course directory

Last modified: Mo 07.09.2020 15:39