COURSE OUTLINE AND READING LIST FOR POLI 443: APPLIED POLITICAL RESEARCH

DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

UNIVERSITY OF GHANA

Course:            POLI 443                                              Semester: 1st (Sept) 2014

Instructor:       Prof. A. Essuman-Johnson                Course Title: Applied Political Research

Class Hours:    9:30 –11:20 am Mondays                 Lecture room: NNB 1

                          7:30 – 9:20 am Fridays                      Lecture room: JQB 23

Office:              Political Science Dept.                        Email: essumanj@ug.edu.gh

Office Hours:  10:00- 12:00 noon Fridays

 

Course Description

The course seeks to provide students with the statistical skills that enable them to analyze data for political analysis. The broad topics to be treated in the course of the semester would include (i) Descriptive statistics for univariate data analysis (ii) Measuring relationships, Testing Hypothesis and Bivariate data analysis and (iii) Multivariate data analysis. The course assumes students have passed POLI 344.The course will be examined as follows:

Continuous Assessment:         30%

End of Semester Exam:           70%

Total                                           100%

Texts

The required texts for this course include the following:

1.         Murray R. Spiegel (1972) Theory and Problems of Statistics (Schaum’s Outline Series) New York, McGraw Hill.

2.        Janet B Johnson & Richard A, Joslyn (1986) Political Science Research Methods, Congressional Quarterly Press, Washington.

Requirements and Grading

Students are expected to do all class assignments and hand them in for grading at the time to be stated at the time the assignment is handed out. The course would be examined 100% at the end of the semester.

Week 1 Monday Sept 8 & Friday Sept 12 Introduction: Discussion of course objective, class regulations, and miscellaneous issues.

SPSS Review

Week 2 Monday Sept 15 & Friday Sept 19

Introduction: Review basic knowledge of test of hypothesis: test for the normal distribution.

Week 3 Monday Sept 22 & Friday Sept 26

Contd. Test of hypothesis: test for the normal distribution.

Week 4 Monday Sept 2 & Friday Sept. 6

Test of hypothesis: test for the student t distribution.

Week 5 Monday Sept 29 & Friday Oct 3

Bivariate Data Analysis: Cross tabulations.

  Week 6 Monday Oct 6 & Friday Oct 10

Multivariate Data Analysis: Cross tabulations

Week 7 Monday Oct 13 & Friday Oct 17

Multivariate Data Analysis: Percentage Tables.

Week 8 Monday Oct 20 & Friday Oct. 24

Difference of Means Test

Week 9 Monday Oct 27 & Friday Oct. 11

Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)

Week 10 Monday Oct 14 & Friday Oct. 31  

Multivariate Data Analysis: Linear Regression Analysis.

Week 11 Monday Nov 3 & Friday Nov.7

Contd. Multivariate Data Analysis: Multiple Regression Analysis

Week 12 Monday Nov 10 & Friday Nov. 14

Contd. Multivariate Data Analysis: Multiple Regression Analysis

Week 13 Monday Nov 17 & Friday Nov.21

Teaching ends.

Week 14 Monday Nov 24 & Friday Nov. 28

Revision session

Week 15 Monday Dec 1 - Dec. 20

End of semester exams.

COURSE OUTLINE AND READING LIST POLI 455-POST-CONFLICT PEACEBUILDING AND TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE

DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

UNIVERSITY OF GHANA

FIRST SEMESTER, 2014/2015

LECTURER: A. K. D. FREMPONG

COURSE TITLE	POST-CONFLICT PEACEBUILDING AND TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE
COURSE CODE	POLI 455
PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES	The task of building peace after violent conflict is more arduous than prosecuting the war itself. The situation is made worse particularly in post-Cold War Conflicts in Africa characterized by violation of all tenets of war,  high civilian casualty and displacement, proliferation of warring factions each carving a colony for itself and demanding a seat at the peace conference table, long periods of ‘no war, no peace’ situations, the use of Child Soldiers, etc. Upon completion of this course students should be able to: ·         Understand the tasks of post-conflict peacebuilding and the various approaches in dealing with them ·         Examine related basic concepts ·         Understand the nature of post-Cold War Conflicts and Peace Settlement as well as Post-Conflict Societies. ·         Critically discuss specific aspects of post-conflict peacebuilding with case studies - Elections, Reintegration (of the displaced, child soldiers, women, etc), Security and Transitional Justice. ·         To sensitize and enhance the ability of students to contribute to discussions on issues of Post-Conflict Peacebuilding and Transitional Justice On each of the various topics, worst case scenarios and/or best practices will be examined. Readings on some case studies are assigned to give student practical meaning to the theoretical issues discussed. CASE STUDIES: Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire and Sierra Leone
WEEK NO	Date	Lecture Course	Tutorials	Venue	Assessment
1-3		Understanding Post Conflict, Peacebuilding & Transitional Justice	What is Post-conflict, Peacebuilding &Transitional Justice	Lecture: NNB2 Tutorial: DLR
4-6		Nature of Post Cold War Conflicts and Overview of Post Conflict Societies	Features of Post-Cold War conflicts & Post Conflict societies	Lecture: NNB2 Tutorial: DLR
7		Peace Settlement	Discuss Peace Settlements Case Studies: Liberia & CIV	Lecture: NNB2 Tutorial: DLR
8		Post-Conflict Elections	Analyse Post Conflict Elections Case Studies: Liberia/ CIV	Lecture: NNB2 Tutorial: DLR
9-11		Reintegration of the War Affected: The Displaced, Women, Child Soldiers	Define Reintegration & discuss IDPs, Child Soldiers etc	Lecture: NNB2 Tutorial: DLR
12-13		Transitional Justice	Examine different modes of Transitional Justice Case Study: Sierra Leone	Lecture: NNB2 Tutorial: DLR

Reading List

Michael W. Doyle & Nicholalas Sambanis (1999) Peacebuilding : Challenges and Strategies After Civil War http://www.worldbank.org/research/conflict/papers/building.pdf

Eugenia Date-Baah (2007) Challenges of Post-Conflict Reconstruction: Some Reflections, Accra: Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences (GAAS) Inaugural Lecture.

Priscilla B. Hayner (2002) “Confronting Past Crimes”, in Unspeakable Truths, New York/London: Routledge, Chapter 2, pp. 10-23

Goliath Business News (2007) “Intra-State Conflicts in the Post-Cold War Era”, International Journal on World Peace Online, 1 December, http://goliath.ecnext,com/coms2/gi_0199-7634177/Intra-state-conflicts-in-the.html

E. H. Bombande and Z. S. Takwa (2007) Ouagadougou Peace Accord: A Break-Through At Last? WANEP Policy Brief.

M. Ndulo and S. Lulo (2010) “Free and Fair Elections, Violence and Conflict”, Harvard ILJ Online, Vol. 51, July.

S. Michailof, M. Kostner and X. Devictor (2002) Post-Conflict Recovery in Africa: An Agenda for the Africa Region, World Bank African Region Working Paper Series, No. 30.

C. A. Crocker, F. O. Hampson and P. Aall (2004) “Recipes for Securing Settlement” and “Making Settlement Stick”, Taming Intractable Conflicts: Mediation in the Hardest Cases, Washington D. C: USIP Press, Chps. 7 & 8, pp. 149-184.

W. Kune (2010)  The Role of Elections in Emerging Democracies and Post Conflict Countries: Key Issues, Lessons Learnt and Dilemmas, FES International Policy Analysis.

K. D. Loetzer and A. Casper (2011) After the Presidential Election in Cote d’ Ivoire, KAS International Report.

Priscilla B. Hayner (2002) “Why a Truth Commission?”, in Unspeakable Truths, New York/London: Routledge, Chapter 3, pp. 24-31.

Overview of the Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Report

NB: Students must as well do internet searches of their own.

Examination

The examination will be in two parts: Interim Assessment (30%) and End-of- Semester Examination 70%. The Interim Assessment will be a take-home assignment and the End of Semester Examination will consist of a two-and-half-hour paper with two sections: section A 50 short answer questions covering the entire course. Attention must therefore be paid to details on topics treated. Section B will have three essay questions from which students answer one.