Terrorism To Be Explored In The Classroom
15 December 2005
Third year students at the University of Derby will begin the new year spending 15 weeks trying to understand the nature of terrorism, its origins, and its aims.
The University's Sociology team has included a module exploring terrorism on its curriculum for the first time.
Terror groups such as al-Qaeda and ETA will be put under the microscope by Sociology students as part of a new degree course.
Senior Sociology Lecturer Dr Frank Faulkner said: "After 9/11, Bali, Madrid, London and elsewhere, it is now accepted that virtually everywhere on earth is on the frontline and that terrorist actions do not distinguish between military personnel and innocent combatants.
"Terrorism now represents one of the greatest threats to human and environmental security in the twenty-first century so students of Sociology should be investigating this subject."
An array of books, journals and videos will be studied during the module including the British Journal of Sociology, The Politics Review, International Studies Quarterly, The New Statesman and websites for organisations such as the Computer Crime Research Centre and the Home Office.
Documents will also be studied, including the UK Government's dossier, Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction: the assessment of the British Government, and the 9/11 Commission's final report on the 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States.
Dr Faulkner said: "Initially, this module will examine the historical dynamics of terrorism, moving on to look at the theoretical approaches that seek to explain, not merely describe, what terrorism is and how it may evolve to accommodate the changing complexion of local-to-global society.
"It will then offer an understanding of the wider subject, including the legal, social, cultural and religious dimensions that make this a highly complex and fascinating academic undertaking."
There are also a number of challenging essay titles for the students to choose to research and write. These will form part of their final mark.
Titles will include:
Other aspects of the course include analysing whether terrorists or international security services benefit most from new technologies through the phenomenon of cyber-terror, and to what extend the West may be responsible for the causes of terrorism.
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For any other information please contact the University of Derby's Senior Press and PR Officer, Simon Redfern, on 01332 591942/ 591891/ 591041 or via email at pressoffice@derby.ac.uk.
