Thursday 10 October 2013

COURSE OUTLINE AND READING LIST: POLI 111 - INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE



DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON

POLI 111: INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

COURSE OUTLINE AND READING LIST: FIRST SEMESTER, 2013/2014

LECTURERS:
KWAME ASAH-ASANTE                         email: rasahte@yahoo.com
DR SEIDU MAHAMA ALIDU                  email: smalidu@ug.edu.gh
AWAISU I. BRAIMAH                               email: braawaisu@yahoo.com

COURSE OUTLINE AND READINGS
COURSE TITLE
INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE
COURSE CODE
POLI 111
PURPOSE
AND
OBJECTIVES
Like any other human endeavour, the laying of a solid foundation in academic pursuit is crucial for the appreciation and understanding of the discipline. For this to be achieved, it is always important for beginners to get the basics right before building upon it subsequently. This explains why this course, Introduction to the Study of Political Science, is offered, particularly at this level, to introduce students to some basic ideas and concepts in the field of Political Science. Apart from the nature and scope of the subject matter of politics, the course will focus on traditional political concepts like nation, state, power, influence, authority and sovereignty. Other concepts to be considered include government, democracy and good governance due to their relevance in modern societies. The successful completion and understanding of this course are necessary for the preparation of students for a future in-depth study of other Political Science courses.
WEEK NO.
DATE
LECTURE TOPIC
TUTORIALS
VENUE
ASSESSMENT
1
23/09/13

Nature and Scope of Political Science

JQB 09, 14 & 24

2
30/09/13

Nature and Scope of Political Science

JQB 09, 14 & 24

3
07/10/13
Nature and Scope of Political Science

JQB 09, 14 & 24

4
14/10/13
Nation, State and Nation-State

JQB 09, 14 & 24

5
21/10/13
Nation, State and Nation-State

JQB 09, 14 & 24

6
28/10/13
The Concepts of Power, Authority, Influence, Legitimacy and Sovereignty

JQB 09, 14 & 24

7
04/11/13
The Concepts of Power, Authority, Influence, Legitimacy and Sovereignty

JQB 09, 14 & 24
Continuous Assessment
8
11/11/13
The Concepts of Power, Authority, Influence, Legitimacy and Sovereignty

JQB 09, 14 & 24

9
18/11/13
Ideology

JQB 09, 14 & 24

10
25/11/13
Ideology

JQB 09, 14 & 24

11
02/12/13
Ideology

JQB 09, 14 & 24

12
09/12/13
Government

JQB 09, 14 & 24

13
16/12/13
Democracy and Good Governance

JQB 09, 14 & 24

14
REVISION
15-17
EXAMINATION (70%)

READINGS
1.      Miller, J.D.B. The Nature of Politics (London: G. Duckworth, 1962)
2.      Crick, B. In Defence of Politics, rev ed. (Harmondsworth and New York: Penguin, 2000)
3.      Duverger, M. The Study of Politics (London: Nelson and Sons, 1972)
4.      Dahl, R. Modern Political Analysis (Englewood Cliff: Prentice-Hall, 1976)
5.      Heywood, A. Politics, 3ed. (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007)
6.      Dahl, R. A. and Stinebrickner, B. Modern Political Analysis, 6ed. (New Dehli: 2005: Prentice-Hall of India Private Ltd.)
7.      Lasswell, H. Politics: Who Gets What, When and How? (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1936)
8.      Roskin et al. Political Science: An Introduction, 4ed. (New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1991)
9.      Leftwich, A. (ed.) What is Politics? The Activity and Its Study (Oxford and New York: Blackwell, 1984)
10.  Bealey, F., et al. Elements in Political Science (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1999)
11.  Laski, H.J. Grammar of Politics (London: Allen and Unwin, 1967)
12.  Magstadt, T.M. and Schotten, P.M. Understanding Politics: Ideas, Institutions and Issues, 4ed. (New York: St Martin’s Press, 1996)
13.  Marsh, D. And Stoker, G. Theory and Methods in Political Science, 2ed. (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2002)
14.  Jackson, R.J. and Jackson, D. (eds.). An Introduction to Political Science: Comparative and World Politics, 4ed. (Toronto: Prentice-Hall, 2003)
15.  Easton, D. The Political System (New York: A Knopf, 1965)
16.  Nnoli, O. Introduction to Politics (Singapore: Longman Singapore Publishers Pte Ltd., 1986)
17.  Bluwey, G.K. Political Science: An Introduction (Accra: Yamens Press Ltd., 2002)
18.  Hague et al. Political Science: A Comparative Introduction (New York: St. Martin’s, 1992)
19.  Godwin, K.R. and Wahlke, J. Introduction to Political Science: Reasons, Reflections and Analysis (New York: Harcourt Brace, 1997)
20.  Shiverly. W.P. Power and Choice: An Introduction to Political Science, 5ed. (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2002)
21.  MacIver, R.M. The Modern State (Princeton, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1984)
22.  Vincent, A. Theories of the State (New York: Blackwell, 1987)
23.  Appadorai, A. The Substance of Politics (India: Oxford University Press, 1968)
24.  Donovan, J.C., et al. People, Power and Politics (USA and Canada: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 1981)
25.  Palmer, N.D. and Perkins, H.C. International Relations: The World Community in Transition (Krishan Nagar, Dehli: A.I.T.B.S. Publishers, 2002)
26.  Coulter, E.M. Principles of Politics and Government (Boston:Allyn and Bacon, Inc., 1987)
27.  Lipset, S.M. Political Man: The Social Bases of Politics (New York: Doublebay, 1960)
28.  Lawson, K., The Human Polity: An Introduction to Political Science (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1985)
29.  Willhoite, F.H., Power and Governments: An Introduction to Politics (California: Brooks/Cole Publishing Company)
30.  Barnes, J.F. et al. The World of Politics (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1984)
31.  Kohn, H. Political Ideologies of the Twentieth Century, 3ed. (New York: Harper and Row, 1966)
32.  Ball, T. and Dagger, R. Political Ideologies and the Democratic Ideal (New York: Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers, 1999)
33.  Baradat, L.P. Political Ideologies (New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1997)
34.  Sargent, L.T. Contemporary Political Ideologies (Pacific Grove, California: Brooks/Cole Publishing Company, 1990)
35.  Skidmore, M. J. Ideologies: Politics in Action (Philadelphia: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1993)
36.  Oakeshott, M. et al. Ideologies of Politics (Cape Town: Oxford University Press, 1975)
37.  Janda, K. et al. The Challenge of Democracy (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1989)
38.  Turner, M. J. et al. American Government: Principles and Practices (Westerville, Ohio: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 1991)
39.  Dickerson, M. O. and Flanagan, T. An Introduction to Government and Politics: A Conceptual Approach (Scarborough, Ontario: Nelson Canada, 1990)
40.  Dyke, V.A. Introduction to Politics (Chicago: Nelson-Hall Publishers, 1992)
41.  Coulter, E.M. Principles of Politics and Government (Boston:Allyn and Bacon, Inc., 1987)
42.  Danziger, J.N. Understanding the Political World (New York: Longman, 1998)
43.  Burnheim, J. Is Democracy Possible? (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1986)
44.  Dahl, R.A. Democracy and Its Critics (New Haven, C.T.: Yale University Press, 1989)
45.  Diamond, L. et al.  (eds) Democracy in Developing  Countries: Persistence, Failure and Renewal, (Boulder: Lynne Rienner,1997)
46.  Dickerson, M. O. and Flanagan, T. An Introduction to Government and Politics: A Conceptual Approach (Scarborough, Ontario: Nelson Canada, 1990)
47.  Gyimah-Boadi, E. (2001) Governance, Institutions and Values in National Development (Legon: Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research)
48.  Good Governance and sustainable human development. Available at F:\ Good governance – and sustainable human development – UNDP accessed on 09/07/07
49.  Governance: Sound Development Management. Available at F:\Governance Sound Development Management - Good Governance defined- ADB_org.htm.
50.  Oduro, F. (2001) An Evaluation of the Commission on Human Rights and  Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), 1993-1999. Unpublished M.Phil. Thesis, Department of Political Science, University of Ghana.
51.  Leftwich, A. “Governance, Democracy and Development in the Third World,” Third World Quarterly, Vol. 14, No.3, 1993.
52.  Dieter, F. “Good Governance,” The Courier, No. 177, Oct.-Nov. 1999, p.71.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
1.      The course will last for thirteen weeks. 
2.      Each class will have a two-hour lecture in addition to a one-hour tutorial per week.
3.      To ensure effective teaching and learning, lectures will be organized in an interactive manner. Students will be allowed to ask and answer questions in class.
4.      There will be a Continuous Assessment (CA) test and end of semester examination. The test will take place at the end of the Seventh week. Students will be required to answer only one essay question. The CA test will carry 30 per cent of the final examination mark. The end of semester examination will carry 70 per cent. During this examination, students will be required to answer three essay questions.