Communication for development and social change – Engaging communities
International students
International students
About the course
Creating sustainable futures that are inclusive and equitable begins with understanding how communication and media inform, engage and motivate people. In this course, students will explore foundational and contemporary concepts of communicating for development and social change, apply their knowledge to assess communication initiatives from formal and civil-society organizations and social movements, and familiarize themselves with a range of critical views in the evolving field of communication for sustainable development and social change.
The course is structured along three key modules:
- An introduction to historical and contemporary theories and methods of communication for development and social change.
- Practical understanding of the entanglements of power and agency, such as inequality, identity and cultural differences, and ethical considerations that arise within communicating sustainable development and social change.
- Critical discussions on the challenges of communicating impactfully to achieve sustainability at local, regional and international levels.
Upon completion of the course, students will have an understanding of key debates around contemporary usage of communication for development and social change approaches and practices and will be able to engage in complex debates pertaining to the efficacy of contemporary communication campaigns around sustainability issues from “glocal” perspectives.
Course content
The course is structured along three key modules:
1. An introduction to historical and contemporary theories and methods of communication for development and social change.
2. Practical understanding of the entanglements of power and agency, such as inequality, identity and cultural differences, and ethical considerations that arise within communicating sustainable development and social change.
3. Critical discussions on the challenges of communicating impactfully to achieve sustainability at local, regional and international levels.
Entry requirements and selection
Entry requirements
Prior knowledge equivalent to 60 credits in social science or humanities.
Selection
20% Upper Secondary Grades - 20% Swedish Scholastic Aptitude Test (SweSAT) - 60% University Credits
Course literature
Current literature list is available in the syllabus for the course
Course evaluation
Malmö University provides students who participate in, or who have completed a course, with the opportunity to express their opinions and describe their experiences of the course by completing a course evaluation administered by the University. The University will compile and summarise the results of course evaluations. The University will also inform participants of the results and any decisions relating to measures taken in response to the course evaluations. The results will be made available to the students (HF 1:14).
