POLS 260: Foreign and Comparative Politics
Fall 2004,
Sections 2-3; DuSable 459: MW
Gregory
D. Schmidt
Office:
Zulauf 308
Phone:
753-7058
Office Hours: MW
& by appointment
E-mail:
gschmidt@niu.edu
Welcome
to the world of comparative politics!
This course is NIU’s introduction to the study of political systems
outside of the
Course
Policies and Requirements
1. The Learning
Environment. Your instructor is committed
to the principle of active learning. For
me, this means that learning cannot take place without students’ active
involvement in, commitment to, and responsibility for their own education. Hence, it is important that students conduct
themselves in ways that indicate respect for the learning community and the
learning process. During lecture
segments, please raise your hand if you have a question. We can, however, be less formal during class
discussions, so long as we remember to treat one another with common courtesy. Respect for the learning community precludes
such behavior as persistent tardiness, leaving the room during class time
(unless one has previously advised the instructor or there is an emergency),
falling asleep, reading the newspaper, and studying for another class. NIU policies regarding classroom conduct are
discussed in the 2004-05 Undergraduate
Catalog, pp. 49 and 307.
2. Attendance. Regular attendance is expected and will account for
10 percent of your final grade. Two
absences and two tardies are automatically excused but documentation will be
needed to excuse any additional absences.
I will subtract 1 point for each unexcused absence and a half point for
each additional tardy. Students with
extremely poor attendance will receive negative grades for attendance.
In general, I will excuse
absences for illness (with doctor’s note), a documented emergency or family
tragedy, an occasional school activity that is scheduled at the same time, and
other reasonable conflicts. I will not
excuse absences for regular commitments (e.g. sports practices, play
rehearsals, student teaching) that may be scheduled at the same time. If you have such a conflict, you should take
another section of this class or consider another course. Nor should you schedule commitments at the
time of class (e.g. routine doctor’s visits, dentist appointments, waiting for
your cable to be installed, etc.).
3.
at
the
Michael
G. Roskin, Countries and Concepts:
Politics, Geography, Culture, 8th edition (Prentice Hall, 2004)
Gregory D. Schmidt, Peru: The Politics of Surprise (McGraw-Hill, 2004) (available later
in the semester).
Some
short readings may also be handed out in class or placed on Blackboard.
Lectures
will parallel and complement, but not merely repeat, the material in the textbook. You are responsible for material covered in
the readings but not in the lectures and vice versa. You should complete reading assignments for
each date before coming to class.
4. Study Guides, Quizzes,
and Website. Study guides and other
ancillary materials will be posted on Blackboard before most, if not all,
classes. These resources and the website
for Roskin (http://wps.prenhall.com/hss_roskin_countries_8)
will help you prepare for
the
6-8 unannounced quizzes to be given in class on the reading assigned for that
day.
Make-ups
of quizzes will be given only under extraordinary circumstances at the discretion
of the instructor.
You should review the relevant study guide,
especially any “quizzable” questions, before
coming to class. The study guides should
also help you to integrate material from the readings and lecture for the
exams.
Materials for Monday classes will be posted no
later than
5.
Accessing Blackboard. You
can access Blackboard by following these steps:
1. Type the URL http://webcourses.niu.edu/
in the address box of your browser (Internet Explorer works best) or go
to the NIU homepage and click on "Current Students," then
"Academics," and then "Blackboard Course Server." You can also access Blackboard with the A-Z
feature of the NIU homepage.
2. Click the Login Button.
3. Type username (Novel ID = student ZID) and
password. For help with your password,
please go to password.niu.edu or phone 753-8100.
4. Click Login.
5. Click on the title of this course, .
6. Click on assignments.
7. Open and print out the relevant assignment.
If you have problems in accessing Blackboard,
please call 753-8100.
6.
Videos. I will
show a number of videos on course-related topics to the extent that time and
scheduling permit. These are not
"blow-off" classes; indeed, some exam questions will be based on
audiovisual materials. I will help you
to focus on the most pertinent information and perspectives. You should print out any study guides for the
videos before coming to class.
7. Exams. A mid-term exam, scheduled for October 20,
will be comprised of multiple choice and true/false questions. The final exam, scheduled for December 6,
will follow the same format. Each exam
will cover a discrete section of the course, though some of the material has a
cumulative character. If necessary, exam
grades will be curved in accordance with overall student performance. I will
hand back the mid-term for review in class, however, departmental policy requires
me to retain all objective questions and answers on file. The final exam will remain on file and
available for review until the end of the Spring 2005 semester.
Make-up
exams will be given only in the case of a documented medical or personal
emergency. In such an event, you must
notify me before the exam. Make-up exams may be all short answer, a format
that requires more intensive preparation.
8. Paper. Drawing on recent periodicals, academic
journals, and/or on-line sources, each student will write a 5 page paper
analyzing a major contemporary political issue or
significant
recent event in
9. Extra
Credit and Class Participation. I will not
accept extra credit projects to improve low quiz or test grades. I will, however, be glad to help students
improve their study habits. Moreover,
you can earn up to 3 points of extra credit through class participation. I will add 1 point to the final averages of
those students who, in my judgment, made a significant contribution to class
discussion. I will add 2 points for
above-average class participation and 3 points for outstanding
participation. In assessing class
participation, I will emphasize quality, rather than mere quantity.
10. Course Grade. The following weights will be use in
determining your course average:
Attendance 10%
Quizzes 20%
Paper 20%
Mid-term 25%
Final 25%
__________________
100%
Any
extra points for class participation will be added to this average.
Course
Grades will be distributed as follows:
Final Average and Extra Credit Final
Grade
90-100%
A
80-89%
B
65-79%
C
50-64%
D
Below 50%
F
11. Seating and Checking
Attendance. After the first week of class, all students
will sit in permanently assigned seats to facilitate the checking of attendance
and so that I can learn your names. If
you arrive after roll is checked, please notify me at the end of class and I will
mark you tardy.
Please
do not leave class early without prior permission, as this is very
distracting. I will count any “walkouts”
as absences unless the student has permission or there is an emergency.
12. Incompletes. No incompletes will be given for reasons
other than a medical or personal emergency and then only after presentation of
verifiable documentation. Academic
hardship does not qualify as an acceptable excuse.
13. Adjustments in Course
Schedule. I will do my best to follow the course schedule
outlined below, but I reserve the right to make reasonable adjustments with adequate
warning if unforeseeable or uncontrollable circumstances (e.g. weather,
illness, travel) so warrant. It is not
fair, however, to modify the class schedule or previously set exam dates simply
to accommodate the preferences of some students, since other students inevitably
suffer.
14. Academic Integrity. Students are expected to know and comply with
NIU policies on academic integrity (see p. 49 of 2004-05 Undergraduate Catalog). Any student found guilty of cheating will
receive an “F” for the course. He or she
may also be subject to additional sanctions imposed by the University.
Course Outline
AUGUST
23
Introduction to Course
AUGUST
25
Basic Concepts: Nation and State
Roskin, pp. 1-9, box on p.
17.
AUGUST
30
Democratization
Roskin, boxes on pp. 9 and
15.
SEPTEMBER
1
Roskin, pp. 20-35.
SEPTEMBER
8
Video: Margaret Thatcher: “The Iron Lady”
SEPTEMBER
13
Social Cleavages and Political Culture: Comparative
Perspectives and
Roskin, pp. 11-12, boxes on
pp. 13-14, 53-65.
SEPTEMBER
15
Electoral Systems and Parties: Comparative
Perspectives and
Roskin, p. 10 (paragraph on parties), pp.
50-51; review pp. 56-58 and 61;
pp. 66-73.
Video on Proportional Representation
SEPTEMBER
20
Governmental Institutions: Comparative Perspectives
and
Roskin, pp. 9-10, 12-16,
36-50, 73-77.
SEPTEMBER
22
Video: Order!
Order! Britain’s Parliament at Work
SEPTEMBER
27
Quarrels: Comparative Perspectives and
Roskin, pp. 17-18, 79-93.
SEPTEMBER 29
Roskin, pp. 96-112.
Video: The
French Revolution
OCTOBER
4
Roskin, pp. 130-145.
Video, The
Essential History of
OCTOBER
6
Roskin,
box on p.119, pp. 124-126, review boxes on pp. 136
and 144; pp. 147-157.
OCTOBER
11
Video, François
Mitterrand: A Tale of Power
OCTOBER
13
Roskin, pp. 113-124, 127-128
157-160.
OCTOBER
18
Roskin, pp. 162-175.
Review
OCTOBER
20
Mid-Term Exam
OCTOBER
25
Go Over Mid-Term Exam in Class
Roskin, pp. 340-350, box on
p. 352.
OCTOBER
27
Video: Meiji:
NOVEMBER
1
Roskin, pp. 350-352.
Video: Reinventing
NOVEMBER
3
Roskin, pp. 367-381.
Roskin, pp. 359-363, 387-389.
NOVEMBER
8
Roskin, pp. 354-359, 363-366,
382-386, 389-394.
NOVEMBER
10
Roskin, pp. 396-411.
Video, Bursting
the Bubble
NOVEMBER
15
Schmidt, pp. TBA
NOVEMBER
17
Schmidt, pp. TBA
Video, Mario
Vargas Llosa: The Story of the Novelist Who Would be President
(selected portions)
NOVEMBER
22
Schmidt, pp. TBA
Video, The
Fujimori Empire (selected portions)
Video, Peruvian News Coverage of
2000 election
NOVEMBER
29
Schmidt, pp. TBA
Schmidt, pp. TBA
Schmidt, pp. TBA
DECEMBER
1
Schmidt, pp. TBA
Teacher Evaluation
Review
DECEMBER 6
Final Exam: