POSC 202: Intro. To Comparative Politics

Sathyan Sundaram

Course Description

• Local government, political policies, constitutions, and executive, legislative, and judicial branches of central governments. (LMC Catalog).

Texts

• Diamond, Larry. The Global Divergence of Democracies. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001. (ISBN: 0-80-186842-4) [D]

•  Huntington, Samuel. The Third Wave. Norman, OK: Univ. Oklahoma Press, 1993. (ISBN: 0-80-612516-0)[H]

• Internet access and a BlackBoard account. 

Texts

• Students are also expected to stay current with daily political and public policy news (Syllabus, pg. 5). 

• Recommended: Annual Editions: Comparative Politics: 05/06. NY: McGraw-Hill, 2006. (ISBN: 0-07-312385-4)

• Recommended: Allen, John L. Student Atlas of World Politics. NY: McGraw-Hill, 2006. (ISBN 0-07-352773-4)

BlackBoard

• Bb account

• http://blackboard.lakemichigancollege.edu

Requirements

• Midterm Examination 100 pts. • State Profile 050 pts.• Term paper/presentation 200 pts. • Attendance and Participation 100 pts.• Non-cumulative Quiz 030 pts.• Current events 020 pts.• Total Points Available 500 pts.

Examination

• There will be one examination for this course. It may be composed of multiple choice, short answer and/or essay. Some latitude in terms of choice will be provided with respect to the essay questions. The examination must be taken on the date scheduled.

State Profile

• A brief description of a state other than those covered in class. (See handout)

Non-cumulative Quiz:

• This quiz covers material relating to specific states covered after the midterm. Questions will be short answers with some degree of choice.

Term paper and presentation

• A 7-10 page paper (see questions attached to syllabus).

• Students will briefly present to the class and address questions. See syllabus for more details.

• The APA documentation style is required for all citations (Please review the guidelines in Publication manual of the American Psychological Association available at the William Hessel Library).

Participation

• Each student will be expected to be present in class, to remain current with reading assignments, and to be ready for discussion of those assignments on the first day they are due.

• Points are granted for participating consistently, extensively and substantively in class discussion, not for mere attendance.

Current events

• Students are expected to stay up to date with current events involving foreign states. Two times this semester, each student is to submit a one page summary and critique of an article relating to the broad issues of governance discussed in class. On the day submitted, the student will be asked to discuss the article with the class.

Current events

• If able, students are encouraged to read non-English news sources but the paper must be submitted in English.

Policy on Academic Honesty

• Please see the college catalog for details. "The principles of truth and honesty are recognized as fundamental to a community of teachers and scholars.  Lake Michigan College expects that both faculty and students will honor these principles and in doing so protect the integrity of College grades. 

Policy on Academic Honesty

• This means that all academic work will be done by the student to whom it is assigned without giving or receiving unauthorized aid of any kind.  Instructors will exercise care in the planning and supervision of academic work so that honest effort will be positively encouraged.  Cheating and plagiarism are the two most obvious violations of academic honesty. 

Policy on Academic Honesty

• In brief, plagiarism is borrowing ideas, words, organization, etc. from another source or person and claiming them as original.   

Policy on Academic Honesty

• Any dishonest activity may result in failure of specific assignments or an entire course. Flagrant and/or repeated violations of Academic Honesty will result in disciplinary action up to and including expulsion from Lake Michigan College."

Policy on Academic Honesty

• Students are expected to do their own work; nothing else will be tolerated.

Consequences of Plagiarism

In this class, the policy is:

• First offence – zero points for the specific assignment

• Second offence – referral to the administration for disciplinary action

Topics addressed

• Conducting Research• Environmental Explanations• Nations, States and Autonomy • Democracy and Regimes • Democratic Institutions • Interest Groups and Parties • Political Economy, Budgeting and Public Policy

Countries to be studied

• United Kingdom

• India

• Germany

• Iran

• Plus your selections

ESO Pre-Test

Why compare?

• Better understand our own system

• See what other options are available

• Understand why certain choices were and are made

• Understand causation

Political Science

• The systematic study of Politics

– Politics

• Power

–Coercion

–Persuasion

–Institutional authority –Class

Disaggregations of Power

• Visibility

• Location

• Source and Use