977123 In-country Study and Fieldwork Project 1: Latin Americas

Description

This subject is the first part of the capstone in the Latin Americas major in the BA in International Studies, which involves two sessions of study overseas at a UTS partner institution. In-country study is designed to enable students to experience living and studying in another country and is guided by the principles of cultural immersion and reflection, inquiry-based learning and self-reliance. It fosters in students a capacity for critical reflection – in particular the ability to identify and question one’s cultural assumptions, values and beliefs, and thus to acknowledge and empathise with the perspective of people from other cultures.

Through experiential learning in a partner university, and reflective and research assessments, the subject develops students' intercultural capabilities via critical reflection on host and home culture(s). It also scaffolds the learning and work toward a major project (to be completed in ICS 2) investigating an aspect of contemporary relevance for the host society. Students work with an academic supervisor to devise an appropriate topic for a project, engage with relevant secondary sources to deepen their understanding and conduct small-scale investigations using a social science or humanities research methodology.