Corso di laurea magistrale in
Lingue dell'Asia e dell'Africa
per la comunicazione e la cooperazione internazionale

Inserire qui il testo in italiano. Non eliminare l’indicazione “Italiano” tra le parentesi quadre; è necessaria per la creazione dell’etichetta di visualizzazione del testo in italiano. Una volta inseriti i testi eliminare queste indicazioni in modo che non risultino visibili agli studenti.

This is a postgraduate course with a substantial research component. It is designed as the first step leading students to write their final dissertation. Students will acquire:

• a deeper understanding of their chosen area of Asian or African studies and the critical debates within it (KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING)
• a conceptual and technical understanding that enables the evaluation of current research and methodologies, as well as the technical skills necessary to pursue primary research in their chosen area (APPLYING KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING, MAKING JUDGEMENTS and COMMUNICATION SKILLS)
• the ability to situate their own research within current and past methodological and interpretative developments in the field (LEARNING SKILLS)

By the end of the course, the students should have acquired:

• the skills necessary to locate, read, interpret and analyze the primary source material relevant to their area of interest;
• the skills necessary critically to evaluate their own and others' work;
• the ability to formulate a research proposal using the appropriate primary materials and to place this within its relevant academic context, to locate and assimilate relevant secondary source material and to discuss pertinent interpretative debates;
• the ability to reach an independent judgement, based on their own research; and
• a facility in communicating the results of their ideas, research and its conclusion in a written form as a work of historical scholarship.

Students will be trained with regard to the collection, processing, critical assessment and initial analysis of data, individually or in a team of several students, as a preparation for their work on the Master thesis. Based on a preliminary project description for the master thesis, and under guidance of a supervisor, they will identify and collect different kinds of data. Depending on the topic of research, these may include data from:

• literary, historical, political or other kinds of texts
• interviews, participant observation, other kinds of fieldwork
• online sources, radio and TV programmes, films, etc.

All methodologies of collecting relevant data require a conscious and critical approach. Therefore, an important part of the course implies a reflection on methodologies and practices of data collection, treatment and analysis.

Module#1 F. Grande (6 h)

A reflection on the methodologies of data collection, treatment and analysis in the domain of linguistics, with particular reference to non-Indo-European languages.

Module#2 F. Grande (6 h)

The analysis of fairytale and related narrative phenomena (myth, legend) as an instance of anthropological research. Emphasis will be placed on textual analysis. This three-lecture part of the course includes a theoretical introduction to faitytale, myth and legend, as well as an introduction to text-oriented practices of interpretation of these narrative materials.

Module C. Martone (6 h)

This module focuses on research methodology, with special emphasis on the languages and cultures of Asia and Africa, including Hebrew. The module will cover the following topics:
Identifying the Dissertation Topic; Organizing the Work for the Dissertation; Key Online Bibliographical Resources (Zotero, Jstor, Archive); How to access online bibliographic resources from home.

Module D. Moro (12 h)

Research Question, Thesis Statement and Conclusion

This module of 6 hours illustrates briefly the whole process of writing a paper, from looking for a research question to creating a thesis statement and ends with some tips to write the conclusion of your paper. It makes use of videos and short written explanations, trying to help you avoid the usual errors made by students while writing a dissertation. The assignment will be about a reflection on your Bachelor's Degree dissertation on the basis of the contents of this module. You will need to pick a research question, a thesis stetement and write a brief conclusion of max 500 words. 

Searching, Citing and Referencing

This module of 6 hours regards the process of research from the search for keywords, to the writing of a bibliography through a selection of tutorials and some concrete examples. In particular, it is aimed at learning how to find the right keywords for searching for the existing material on search engines and databases both in English and transliteration from other languages and on how to look for specific titles and get them from the web or the libraries. Last but not least, it shows the importance of distinguishing between the two main citation styles used for writing a scientific text and the relevant bibliography. The assignment will be 1) Finding a title for a possible research on Asian or African studies. 2) Finding the right keywords corresponding to the research question 3) creating a brief bibliography in either notes-bibliography or author-date style form by making use of the Chicago Manual of Style (online quick guide). 

Module S. Stafutti (6 h)

Decolonizing practices, from Museums to Universities.

These lessons examine how museums today face the problematic legacies of colonialism and the political and economic exploitation out of which museum collections were formed, with particular reference to the local, more or less relevant museums (from the Egyptian Museum to the Anthropology Museum of our University). A focus will also be on the power structures that continue to lie behind display and interpretation practices.

This online course is structured into 36 hours of academic teaching in a seminar setting. The course is divided into 5 modules, each having a different focus on the course content. Texts, materials and activities will be available on the Moodle platform.

In order to obtain a pass for this exam, students have to do all the activities related to the five sections of the course at least two weeks before the exam date.