MVZ237 American Political System

Fakulta sociálních studií
podzim 2014
Rozsah
1/1. 5 kr. Ukončení: zk.
Vyučující
Zuzana Ringlerová, Ph.D. (přednášející), prof. PhDr. Petr Kaniok, Ph.D. (zástupce)
Mgr. et Mgr. Veronika Velička Zapletalová, Ph.D. (pomocník)
Garance
PhDr. Petr Suchý, Ph.D.
Katedra mezinárodních vztahů a evropských studií – Fakulta sociálních studií
Kontaktní osoba: Olga Cídlová, DiS.
Dodavatelské pracoviště: Katedra mezinárodních vztahů a evropských studií – Fakulta sociálních studií
Rozvrh
Po 11:30–13:00 U33
Omezení zápisu do předmětu
Předmět je určen pouze studentům mateřských oborů.

Předmět si smí zapsat nejvýše 30 stud.
Momentální stav registrace a zápisu: zapsáno: 0/30, pouze zareg.: 0/30
Mateřské obory/plány
předmět má 17 mateřských oborů, zobrazit
Cíle předmětu
By the end of this course, you should be able to do the following: • Understand what politics is. • Distinguish the way political scientists approach politics from the way used by journalists and other disciplines. This includes understanding the distinction between empirical and normative claims. • Critically analyze what you hear or read about politics. • Understand some important concepts commonly used in political science (such as separation of powers, interest groups etc.) • Identify major actors in U.S. political system, describe their important characteristics, and understand how they interact. • Describe how the aspects of U.S. political system relate to the United States' role in world politics.
Osnova
  • WEEK1 Introduction WEEK 2 The basic outlines of the political system: The Constitution and federalism WEEK 3 Civil liberties and civil rights. WEEK 4 Congress WEEK 5 Congress continued WEEK 6 The President and the bureaucracy WEEK 7 The Courts WEEK 8 MIDTERM EXAM WEEK 9 Public opinion WEEK 10 Political Parties WEEK 11 Interest groups WEEK 12 Political participation WEEK 13 Foreign policy EXAMINTATION PERIOD: FINAL EXAM
Literatura
  • • Barbour Christine and Gerald C. Wright: Keeping the Republic – Essentials: Power and Citizenship in American Politics, 6th edition, CQ Press, 2014. (Hereafter referred to as textbook) • Online readings and reference material
Výukové metody
In this course, you will be acquiring knowledge in two main ways: in the lectures and by home study (which means by reading the assigned materials and working on Mini-research assignments and homework assignments). Reading the material will give you a base of factual knowledge. It will also introduce you to the main theoretical points. The lectures then will reinforce your understanding of the material. The lectures will also introduce you to concepts and theories that are not covered by the readings. Class sessions will also be a space for discussions.
Metody hodnocení
Course requirements and grading • Class participation (10% of your grade in the course). You will learn so much if you attend class every day, and I expect you to do so. Students are allowed a maximum of 1 unexcused absence. Absences can be excused only in extenuating circumstances (such as medical emergency). In most cases, you will be required to provide documentation of an emergency. • Homework assignments (5% of your grade in the course). In order to help you develop critical reading skills as well as in order to help you prepare for class meetings, there will be approximately 5 homework assignments. The homework assignments will consist of reading a short text and answering few questions about the text. You will upload your answers to the course website. • 5 reading quizzes (each of them is worth 2% of your grade in the course). I expect to give about 7 quizzes during the semester. Some will be pop up quizzes in class and others will be take home. I will keep your top 5 grades and discard the rest in figuring out your quiz average. • Four Mini-Research Assignments, each of them is worth 5% of your final grade. The assignments will take a form of short papers (2 double spaced pages). • Exams (Midterm exam: 20% of the grade. Final exam: 35% of the grade). Both exams will be a mixture of multiple choice and essay questions. The final exam will be cumulative.
Vyučovací jazyk
Angličtina
Informace učitele

If you have any questions about this course, you are very welcome to contact Zuzana Ringlerova at zringler@purdue.edu
Další komentáře
Předmět je dovoleno ukončit i mimo zkouškové období.
Předmět je vyučován jednorázově.
Předmět je zařazen také v obdobích podzim 2015, podzim 2017.