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PO311 Topics in Comp Pol: Liberty, Peace, Propserity in the 21st

SYLLABUS

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INTRODUCTION

The goal of this course is to understand, through comparative political analysis, the formidable challenges to and favorable conditions for political freedom, domestic stability, and economic prosperity in the world's nations. During the twentieth century, great-power wars, colonial aggression, and a global depression subjected people worldwide to massive killing, destruction, and suffering. The Cold War brought the world to the brink of nuclear annihilation. Most of humanity, during that time, was impoverished and economically stagnant while only a small fraction experienced life in emerging, dynamic and developed economies. Despite the political turmoil and economic trials and tribulations of the twenty-first century, it marks a major, worldwide improvement in the human condition politically and economically. The range of freedoms and realm of liberty have expanded in ways unimaginable in the previous century. Warfare has been transformed by non-state actors and sub-national forces into more of a diffuse, domestic and regional phenomenon. Episodes of economic decline, growth and emergence are products of rapid globalization. Citizens in rich, emerging and poor nations have grown accustomed to international threats that are more economic and cultural than military in nature. We will closely study these transformations and, accordingly, examine the forces of progress and setbacks in the liberty, peace and wealth of nations. Franklin Pierce Learning Outcomes: SS (Social Sciences), IA (Inquiry & Analysis), IL (Information Literacy), QL (Quantitative Literacy).

READING MATERIAL

GENERAL ITEMS OF IMPORTANCE

1. Office hours are when I engage you regarding individual concerns. (Not the five minutes before class; not during class; not the five minutes after class.)
2. All course business and work outside of the classroom is conducted on CampusWeb. So, make a routine of being of checking our course site daily.
3. Assume that there is a new assignment every class day.
4. Computer/tablet use in the classroom is welcomed and encouraged, but proper, academic and scholarly use of technology is expected.
5. Tardy work is accepted but penalized. However, all work is zeroed after the "accepting late work" deadline for each piece of coursework.
6. Calendar, Coursework, and Assignments in the CampusWeb course make crystal clear all requirements, deadlines, and penalties for infractions. Knowing such things is as easy as logging onto the system and clicking on the course. Therefore, there is absolutely no excuse, including being absent from class, for not knowing what is exactly expected of you and when it is expected.
7. Academic dishonesty (Plagiarism, Cheating). Ignorance is no excuse for plagiarism and cheating. It’s either academic dishonesty or it’s not. A single instance of academic dishonesty will result in a FAILURE for the entire course. In addition, a report will be immediately forwarded to the Office of Academic Affairs so that the University may take action. The Franklin Pierce Academic Catalogue provides a precise definition of plagiarism.
 
Plagiarism is the act of stealing or passing as one’s own the ideas or words of another. Diana Hacker identifies three specific acts that constitute plagiarism: “(1) failing to cite quotations and borrowed ideas, (2) failing to enclose borrowed language in quotation marks and(3) failing to put summaries and paraphrases in your own words” (359 and 418). Specifically, this includes: copying the words of another student from examinations, themes, term papers, or theses; copying the printed words or ideas of a writer without giving credit to the author; using, borrowing, stealing, presenting or downloading another student’s ideas or writing and submitting such material as one’s own work; or resubmitting work in whole or in part that has previously been submitted in another course, without permission of the current instructor.
 
Hacker, Diana. A Writer’s Reference. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s Press.
 
For a more detailed explanation and specific examples, please refer to sections MLA-2, APA-2, and CMS-2 in Diana Hacker’s A Writer’s Reference.
 

LEARNING DIFFERENCES

If you have a documented learning disability, it is important that you work with the Academic Services Center to be sure you maximize the benefit of your efforts in this course.  It is imperative that you be proactive and a self-advocate.  Please talk to me. I can help! Additional information can be found at the  Center for Academic Excellence.

REQUIREMENTS (Course Grade Weights)

See Gradebook  for weights, grading scale and grades on all assessed work. Also, check it for your continuously updated course grade.
 
I. Daily Work (55%).
 
Your daily, graded coursework consists mostly of timed quizzes (See Coursework.), ranging from 3-10 minutes: 1) reading-assignment quizzes due before class; 2) classroom-session quizzes due after class; 3) occasional teamwork quizzes due during class. Take thorough notes on the reading assignments and in the classroom in order to perform well on quizzes. Quizzes ARE open-note/reading. Occasionally, I will ask you to submit daily work other than quizzes.
 
Extra credit for daily work is awarded every time a student posts notes in the Class Session Notes thread in Forums. (See instructions in that thread.) These posted notes are especially helpful to absent students but generally helpful to all students when taking class-session quizzes. See instructions in that thread. Other opportunities (e.g., oral presentations, attending guest lectures, etc.) for extra credit may be made available to you by the instructor but may not be requested by students.
 
II. Final exam (15%).
 
The final exam is comprehensive, with questions drawn from the semester's "Daily Work." It is NOT open-note/reading. It will be taken in Coursework during the time designated by the university. You MUST take it, 10:15 AM, December 14.
  
III. Research Project (30%).
 
This section of the course is devoted to the research paper. Though I provide instruction in this area, you will find From Inquiry to Academic Writing (which some of you have) and its guide to citation protocols, to be a helpful tool box for drafting research papers from start to finish. Also helpful is this online summary of Diana Hacker's A Writer's Reference, which also has a guide to research and source documentation.
 
The research project is conducted in four stages: 1) research question/annotated bibliography (9%); 2) outline (9%); 3) rough draft (a penalty for failure to submit one); 5) final draft (12%) Guidelines and specifications for the each stage will be provided in "Assignments" when they are assigned.

Calendar

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