DEPARTMENT OF
POLITICAL SCIENCE
COLLEGE OF
HUMANITIES
SEMESTER
2
2017/2018 ACADEMIC YEAR
COURSE
SYLLABUS
POLI
214: Introduction to Comparative Politics (3-CREDITS)
Instructors: Dr. Hassan Wahab
Office:
Pol. Sci. Dept. Room #13
Office Hours: Tues. 2:30-3:30PM or by Appointment
Wed. 10:00-Noon or by Appointment
Course
Location & Times:
Main
Campus:
JQB14
(Group A): Wed. 7:30-9:20AM
JQB22
(Group B): Thur. 9:30-11:20AM
City
Campus:
NLC Left Wing 3rd Floor: Tues.
10:00AM-12:00PM
Course
Summary and Objectives:
This course offers an introduction to comparative
politics. Politics is the authoritative allocation of resources. Comparative
politics compares the pursuit of power across states. The goal of comparative
politics is to understand the political diversity that exists in the world, and
the ways that politics and policy shape people’s opportunities to lead
fulfilling lives. Over the course of the semester, we will study political
institutions, processes, and outcomes both across and within developed and
developing states. We will also learn
about democratic and non-democratic regimes. When possible, I will invite guest
speakers—academics from different institutions around the world, political
practitioners and policy makers—to make presentations to the class.
Learning
Outcomes:
By the end of the course, I expect students to be able
to:
1. identify,
describe and/or analyze various elements of comparative politics, including the
need for why questions, operational definitions, common concepts in comparative
politics, etc.;
2. identify,
describe, and/or analyze the manifestations and features of key institutions in
comparative politics, particularly constitutions and the branches of
government: the legislative, executive, and judiciary;
3. familiarize
yourself with four country profiles and cases—United Kingdom, United States of
America, Russia, and Nigeria (Note: it is presumed that all students in this
course know the country profile of Ghana), and
4. share
your knowledge with friends, family and peers.
Academic
Honesty:
All University policies regarding academic honesty
will be strictly enforced. Plagiarism, cheating or academic misconduct in any
manner will not be tolerated. While most
examples of misconduct are blatantly obvious (i.e., you may not pay someone to
take your final exam for you!), knowing when and how to acknowledge and
appropriately cite sources is something you may have to learn. For example, even if you acknowledge the
source, you cannot stay too close to the language of the original source when
paraphrasing. If you are not sure about anything, please do not hesitate to see
me, and we can go over it together. I encourage you to familiarize yourselves
with the University’s policy regarding academic misconduct. This policy is
available at http://www.ug.edu.gh/aqau/policies-guidelines.
Students
with Special Needs:
Students with special needs
should register with the Office of
Students with Special Needs, located
in the University of Ghana Computing Services (UGCS) building, next to the
Student Financial Aid Office; Tel: +233-24-457-5177; E-mail: ossnug@gmail.com.
Please contact me as soon as possible so that appropriate accommodation can be
arranged.
Assessment:
TWO assessment mechanisms will be used in this course:
(1) Interim Assessment exams, and (2) Final Exams. The format for these exams
will be one or a combination of multiple choice, fill-in-the-blanks, short
essay, and long essay questions.
Interim Assessment (IA):
This assessment component will comprise two in-class IA exams. These exams will
take place on the fourth and eighth weeks of the semester. Each IA will be
worth 15%. The IA exams will be based on the content of the readings, lectures,
discussion sections, and news items covered at that stage of the course.
Final Exam:
Worth 70% of the final grade, this exam will be based on the content of the
readings, lectures, and discussions covered over the entire course.
Grading Scale:
Please refer to the Undergraduate Handbook
Disclaimer: I
reserve the right to change any readings, dates and requirements listed in this
syllabus. If this occurs, every effort
will be made to announce the changes well in advance. You are responsible for any changes made and
announced in class.
Course
Policies
Regular attendance is a key determinant of success in
this course and is required. While students are expected, nay, required, to do
their readings before they come to class, the readings serve as a background,
not as a substitute, for the lectures and class discussions. Not only do I
expect students to attend classes, I also expect students to ask questions and participate
in class discussions. I strongly encourage students to ask questions during
class. I will not entertain students who come to me immediately after a class
session to ask questions pertaining to that class when they could have asked
those questions during the class to the benefit of all students.
You may use laptops and tablets to take notes during
class. If you choose to do so, you MUST ask permission from me, and you MUST
sit in the front row.
Please turn off your cell phones, MP3 players, etc.
before class begins. The use of cell phones in class is PROHIBITED. If your
cell phone rings/vibrates up to three times in class during the semester, you
will be asked to leave the class for DISRUPTION. Additionally, please refrain
from: frequently arriving late for class; talking, sleeping, texting, or
studying other materials in class; and leaving class early. In general, please
be polite and respectful to everyone in this class. I reserve the right to apply
appropriate sanctions for consistently discourteous classroom behavior in
accordance with the University of Ghana policies.
During both the IA and
final examinations, please note that you may NOT be allowed to leave the
examination room until you have submitted your exam.
NOTE: I
have indicated my office hours above. Please respect that. I reserve the right
to NOT see any student who shows up in my office outside office hours and
without appointment.
Text
Books:
O’Neal, Patrick H., Karl Fields and Don Share (OFS). Cases in Comparative Politics, 5th ed.
New York: W. W. Norton & Company Ltd, 2015.
Caramani, Daniele, ed. Comparative Politics, 3rd ed. New York: Oxford University Press,
2014.
All class readings will be provided to students as
PDFs
Course
Reading and Class Schedule:
Week
1 (Feb 5 – 9): Introduction to the Course
Readings:
Week
2 (Feb 12 – 16): Comparative Politics
Readings:
OFS, Chapter 1
Week
3 (Feb19–Feb 23): Democracies
Readings:
Caramani, Chapter 5
Week
4 (Feb 26–March 2): Authoritarian Regimes
Readings due:
Caramani, Chapter 6
Week
5 (Mar 5–March 9): Legislatures (Note: First IA)
Readings:
Caramani, Chapter 7
Week
6 (Mar 12-March 16): Governments and Bureaucracies
Readings:
Caramani, Chapter 8
Week
7 (Mar 19-Mar 23): Constitutions and Judicial Power
Readings:
Caramani, Chapter 9
Week
8 (Mar 26-Mar 30): Federal and Local Government Institutions
Readings:
Caramani, Chapter 11
Week
9 (Apr 2-Apr 6): Political Parties (Note: Second IA)
Readings:
Caramani, Chapter 12
Week
10 (Apr 9-Apr 13): United Kingdom
Readings:
OFS, Chapter 2
Week
11 (Apr 16-Apr 20): United States
Readings:
OFS, Chapter 3
Week
12 (Apr 23-Apr 27): Russia
Readings:
OFS, Chapter 7
Week
13 (Apr 30-May 4): Nigeria
Readings:
OFS, Chapter 14
Week
14 (May 7-May 11):
REVISION
Week
15 (May 12-May 27):
FINAL
EXAMS
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