Year 2010-11

  

20th Century History (21977)

  

Qualification: Degree in Political and Administration Sciences
Year: 2nd
Term: 3rd
Number of ECTS credits: 4 credits
Hours of student dedication: 100 (number of credits x 25)
Teaching language: Catalan
 

  

  

1. Introduction to the course

 

This Teaching Plan aims to adapt the subject Contemporary Political and Social History II to the Bologna guidelines. This implies a new educational paradigm which aims to promote the active participation of teachers and students, continuous assessment and students' autonomous learning (guided by teachers).  Through this teacher as well as student learning is hoped for.

 

The aim of 20th century history is to train students of political science in the knowledge and analysis of the twentieth century, understood as the period between the First World War (1914) and the collapse of the Soviet bloc (1989 / 1991).

 

The course is designed to development general skills (aimed at enhancing and developing students' skills and qualities) and specific skills (knowledge of the interwar period).  It does this through lectures (in which the basic knowledge required for the subjects is introduced), seminars on specific aspects of the syllabus (in which students' work is essential) and tutorials. Coursework and oral presentations related to the seminars and an exam will serve to allow students to demonstrate the work done throughout the course.

  

2. Competencies to be achieve

 

The generic competencies to be achieved are:

  

Instrumental


1.1. Oral and written communication skills

- Formal, clear and accurate oral and written communication.

- Ability to summarize: ability to extract and communicate the main ideas of a text.

- Ability to defend arguments in front of teachers and colleagues

- Ability to criticise readings, teacher's interpretations and colleague interventions.
- Initiative: ability to interact in lectures and seminars.

 

1.2. Research skills

- Ability to deal with primary and secondary documents.
            - Ability to select and then organise information
            - Ability to offer clear and structured results

 

1.3. Analytical skills
            - Ability to identify and understand the different elements of a text.
            - Ability to rank and organise them
            - Ability to offer clear and structured results


1.4. Initiative and ability to use set texts to support given information

- Searching for bibliography
- Computer Skills: using the internet for research, etc.
- Graphic skills: read and devise graphics and such like

 

2. Interpersonal

  

2.1. Ability to work in a group
2.2. Ability to interact with others and be aware of how work is advancing
2.3. Responsiveness to diversity

 

3. Systemic

  

3.1. Ability to learn.
3.2. Ability to integrate knowledge and methods from various disciplines.
3.3. Willingness to work independently.
3.4. Ability to answer questions on political, economic, social or cultural history.
3.5. Ability to apply acquired knowledge.

3.6. Ability to apply theoretical knowledge to reality and practice

 

The subject specific competencies to be achieved are:

1.1. Recognition of the historical dimension of political and social processes.


Knowledge and ability to interpret political, social and historical frameworks to explain today's set up and to better understand current world reality. 

1.2 Knowledge on:
            - The interwar period (1914-1945).

- The Cold War (1945-1989/91).

- Decolonization.
- The political systems of capitalist and real socialism.
-  Sources from the period: texts, recordings, pictures, films, etc., and ability to place them in their historical period.
- Acquisition of basic concepts, skills and reasoning related to the history of the twentieth century.

 

1.3. Professional knowledge (know how):

- Ability to dwell into the language and reasoning of the different political and cultural actors of the period studied.
- Ability to differentiate between global, regional and local historical events.
- Ability to obtain historical information from some basic web pages.
- Ability to contextualize different historical sources within their political and social context.
- Ability to interpret historical and social developments of the twentieth century.
- Ability to establish comparative analysis to identify factors of continuity and discontinuity in periods or events of historical change.
- Ability to critically relate current events and political processes to twentieth century precedents.

  

3. Contents

 

The study of the main historical processes of the twentieth century primarily from a political perspective, but also from a social, economic and cultural angle.

 

  • Unit 1. The end of the "Belle Epoque": empires, wars and revolutions.
  • Unit 2. The interwar period: the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression and the beginning of Stalinism.
  • Unit 3. The world at war: World War II and the beginning of the Cold War.
  • Unit 4. From a bipolar world to unilateralism: wars, decolonization, development and the collapse of the USSR.

  

4. Assessment

 

The mark obtained in the exam set at the end of the term will account for 70% of the final mark.  The remaining 30% will be assessed in the seminars through continuous evaluation.

 

5. Readings and resources

  

5.1. Basic bibliography

  

General textbooks:

 

HOBSBWAM, E.J., Historia del siglo XX, 1914-1991, Barcelona, Crítica, 1995.

JACKSON, J., Europa, 1900-1945, Barcelona, Crítica, 2003.

NOUSCHI, M., Historia del siglo XX. Todos los mundos, el mundo, Madrid, Cátedra, 1996.

NOUSCHI, M., Petit atlas historique du XXè siècle, París, Armand Colin, 1997.

PALMER, R. and COLTON, J., Historia Contemporánea, Madrid, Akal, 1981.

PAREDES, J. (coord.), Historia universal contemporánea, Barcelona, Ariel, 1999.

PROCACCI, G., Historia general del siglo XX, Barcelona, Crítica, 2001.

VILLARES, R. and BAHAMONDE, Á., El mundo contemporáneo siglos XIX y XX, Madrid, Santillana, 2001.

VILLANI, P., La edad contemporánea, Barcelona, Ariel, 1997, 2 vols.

  

Textbooks on Social history:

 

AMBROSIUS, G., Historia Social y económica de Europa en el siglo XX, Madrid, Alianza, 1992.

  

Textbooks on Economic history:

 

ALDCROFT, D.H., Historia de la economía europea, 1914-1980, Barcelona, Crítica, 1989.

ARACIL, R. and SEGURA, A., Història econòmica Mundial i d'Espanya, Barcelona, Teide, 1993.

MICKLETHWAIT, J. and WOOLDRIGE, A., La empresa. Historia de una idea revolucionaria, Barcelona, Mondadori, 2003.

MADDISON, A., Historia del desarrollo capitalista, sus fuerzas dinámicas: una visión a largo plazo, Barcelona, Ariel, 1991.

  

Textbooks on cultural history:

 

WATSON, P., Historia intelectual del siglo XX, Barcelona, Crítica, 2002.

 

Books on the Cold War:

 

Veiga, F., La  Guerra Freda, Barcelona, UOC, 2005.

Veiga, F., Ucelay-Da Cal, E., y Duarte, Á., La paz simulada. Una historia de la Guerra Fría 1941-1991, Madrid, Alianza, 1997 [2ª ed. 2006].

McMahon, R. J., La  Guerra Fría. Una breve introducción, Madrid, Alianza, 2009.

  

5.2. Educational resources

 

The e-book on the internar period (Pich, J., Les dues guerres mundials i el període d'entreguerres (1914-1945), Barcelona, UPF, 2008) can be found at: http://www.upf.edu/materials/fhuma/ebook/

 

Webpage: http://www.upf.edu/materials/fhuma/hcu/

 

6. Methodology

 

The teaching method is not based only on lectures but also includes other teaching activities such as:

 

  1. Classroom based: lectures where the basic points are introduced.
  2. Classroom based: seminars related to the content and skills to be achieved in this subject.  Students are expected to actively participate through the preparation of the set readings, written work and the verbal participation in the seminars.
  3. Guided (non-classroom based): preparation for the Seminars and the possible use of audiovisuals to contextualize the historical period. These activities are aimed at student participation in the process of learning the history of the interwar period.
  4. Autonomous (non-classroom based): searching, reading and using primary and secondary sources and the study of materials related to the subject.

 

7. Programme of activities

  

Details yet to be set.

  

  • Unit 1: session 1 and 2
  • Unit 2: session 3 and 4
  • Unit 3: session 5
  • Unit 4: session 6 and 7

Seminars:

·         1st seminar: from the great game to revolution.

·         2nd seminar: from the right to self determination to the peak of totalitarianism

·         3rd seminar: the collapse of the soviet empire.