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2015/16 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

SLSP2160 Tourism and Culture

20 creditsClass Size: 30

Module manager: Dr Rodanthi Tzanelli
Email: R.Tzanelli@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable

Year running 2015/16

Pre-requisite qualifications

At least 20 credits at Level 1 from a social science related discipline or the appropriate discovery theme.

This module is approved as a discovery module

Module summary

The module provides a comprehensive analysis of the phenomenon of tourism as part of globalization processes.Placing emphasis on the diversity of sociological traditions on which tourism theory draws and the cultural origins of these influences, it will enable the students' critical thinking on tourism’s relationship with phenomena such as migration, nationalism, labour movement, resistance to tourist development and (post)colonization.Questioning claims over the 'European origins' of tourism, mergers between production and consumption in tourist contexts, the importance of imagery in the generation of tourism and the relationship of tourism with other cultural industries, Tourism & Globalization revisits key sociological questions from a fresh thematic perspective.

Objectives

The module is a comprehensive introduction to the sociological and anthropological underpinnings of the phenomenon commonly known as 'tourism'.

It aims to:
(a) unpack implicit and explicit connections between tourism and macro-social processes such as globalization, nationalism, colonialism and migration, and
(b) equip students with the necessary methodological tools to explore various aspects of travel and tourism.

Learning outcomes
On completion of this module, students will be able to:

1. Relate tourism and travel to macro-social phenomena such as globalization, migration, racialization or national belonging/nationalism
2. Understand the main theoretical approaches to travel and tourism and how these intersect with classical sociological debates
3. Use appropriate theories and methods to interpret a variety of empirical materials/instances of tourism
4. Be able to discern the usefulness of tourism theory in developmental social policy agendas.

Skills outcomes
By the end of this course the students should have developed abilities and skills:
- to engage with relevant concepts through written work and re-contextualise ideas and theories
- to communicate ideas and concepts in coherent ways
- to distinguish between normative and positive ideas in the field of tourism
- to critically read key texts on relevant topics and to present them in seminars and short reports
- to undertake independent research, including practical research in types of tourism, where applicable (participant research)
- to research with a range of tools and across a range of sites, such as the library, the Internet, and the media
- to understand media not only as research tools but also as subjects of study in the sociology of tourism.


Syllabus

1. ‘Tourism’, the ‘tourist’ and the social world
2. Sociology of (European) Tourism
3. ‘Tourist Industry’ as ‘consciousness industry’?
4. Pilgrimage and neo-pilgrimage
5. Thanatourism and dark tourism
6. Slum tourism
7. Medical tourism
8. Cinematic Tourism
9. Internet Tourism
10. Rethinking Methods in Tourism
11. Overview & Essay Questions

Teaching methods

Delivery typeNumberLength hoursStudent hours
Lecture111.0011.00
Tutorial101.0010.00
Private study hours179.00
Total Contact hours21.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)200.00

Private study

- 10 hours reading for seminars and online report submission: 10 x 11 = 110 hours
- Preparation and writing for assessed work: 69 hours.

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Progress will be monitored by attendance and participation in tutorials.

Methods of assessment


Coursework
Assessment typeNotes% of formal assessment
Essay3,000 words70.00
AssignmentTutorial Contributions: 500 words per week from relevant readings30.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)100.00

The essay will introduce a practical/experiential perspective in the module: students will be asked to use personal experience of vacations, if possible, to implement theory. Relevant practical exercise/report might also be introduced, but will be examined only informally.

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 04/11/2015

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