Interactive Syllabus

Introduction to International Relations and European Studies (IRE 101/IREb1001/IREn5501)

Lecturers:

Petr Kaniok, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Department of International Relations and European Studies

Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University, Brno

Phone: 549 493 571

Email: kaniok@fss.muni.cz

Kateřina Fridrichová, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Department of International Relations and European Studies

Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University, Brno

Phone: 549 496 761

Email: fridrichova@fss.muni.cz

Essay evaluation

Lenka Martinkova

Assistant

Department of International Relations and European Studies

Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University, Brno

Email: 397457@muni.cz

Course Objectives and Description

This course aims at providing students with a historical and conceptual background in the disciplines of International Relations and European Studies, thus making it possible to gain an appropriate understanding of major events, processes, and actors in international and European politics. In the first part of the course, the students are introduced to the most important concepts and issues in International Relations that constitute the underlying structure of the modern international system, and substantially shape the behavior of its actors. In the second part, the focus of this course moves toward the process of European Integration as embodied in the European Union. Students are introduced to key milestones of the integration process, a basic overview of the EU decision-making system, and the content of the most important policies. The course also summarizes the most important events and trends shaping recent development in the EU.

Assignments and Grading

The grading is based on the following assignments. As there are three different courses at the moment, some assignments may vary:

Class essays:

For IRE101 enrolled students: Each student is required to submit 4 short essays referring to sessions 2-7 and 8-12 respectively and dealing with the essay topics/questions assigned to each session. Please note there are eleven sessions available, so out of these, you can choose four to which you wish to submit your essay. Each essay must conform to formal requirements (font size 12, one-and-half spacing, appropriate referencing, and at least one additional resource beyond the assigned reading) and consist of two parts: a summary of the readings (half a page), and your own views/criticism (up to 1 page). Essays must be uploaded into IS two days before the respective session is held. For each essay you can get up to 2 points; therefore, the overall value is up to 8 points. Students repeating the course do not have to resubmit papers evaluated for 2 points last year.

For IREb1001 enrolled students: Each student is required to submit 8 short essays referring to sessions 2-7 and 8-12 respectively and dealing with the essay topics/questions assigned to each session. Please note there are eleven sessions available, so out of these, you can choose eight to which you wish to submit your essay. Each essay must conform to formal requirements (font size 12, one-and-half spacing, appropriate referencing, and at least one additional resource beyond the assigned reading) and consist of two parts: a summary of the readings (half a page), and your own views/criticism (up to 1 page). Essays must be uploaded into IS two days before the respective session is held. For each essay you can get up to 2 points; therefore, the overall value is up to 16 points. Students repeating the course do not have to resubmit papers evaluated for 2 points last year. Please see the guide on "How to write a position paper" below. This guide can help you to get the overall knowledge and guidance on how to write an academic paper in general.

For IREn5501 enrolled students, this assignment does not apply. 

Mid-term exams: There will be two mid-term exams – the first one focusing on the IR part, the second one aiming at the EP part. In both cases, students will receive two questions out of which you can respond to the one you prefer. The questions will be focused on topics included in the assigned readings/class sessions. Overall value up to 10 points for each test, 20 points in total. The test will take place online.

 Final exam: The exam will consist of six questions (two at 6 points each, four at 4 points each). The questions will be focused on topics included in the assigned readings/class sessions. Overall value up to 28 points. To pass the course, students must achieve at least 15 points (50%) for the exam.

The grading scale is as follows:

IRE101: F 0-30, E 31-35, D 36-40, C 41-45, B 46-51, A 52-56.

IREb1001: F 0-34, E 35-40, D 41-46, C 47-52, B 53-58, A 59-64.

IREn5501: F 0-26, E 27-31, D 32-35, C 36-39, B 40-43, A 44-48.

Workload

369 pages of assigned readings (29 pages per week, based on a semester of 13 weeks)

Petr Kaniok can be reached either face to face (Monday 12.00 - 13.00) or via Teams (Thursday 10.00 - 11.00). 

Kateřina Fridrichová can be reached either face to face in Office 4.27  (Thursday 10.00 - 11.00  am) or via Teams, preferably during the online office hours  Mondays 13:00 - 14:00. Contact me via MS Teams chat beforehand.

Lenka Martinkova can be reached either face to face in Office 4.55b ( Wednesday 10.00 - 11.00 am) or via Teams preferably during office hours or after the previous appointment via mail.