IRLS344 - European Politics

After successfully completing this course, you will be able to:

CO1: Assess Europe’s evolution towards regional political integration.

CO2: Examine the process and institutions of European integration, including public sentiment about the EU.

CO3: Evaluate the role of the European Monetary system in the EU debt crisis.

CO4: Compare and contrast the EU enlargement issues from the perspective of established and transitioning democracies.

CO5: Apply the results of the integration and expansion to current political issues of EU member states.

Forum discussions – 25 percent

Each week, a discussion question is provided and posts should reflect an assimilation of the readings. Students are required to provide a substantive initial post by Thursday at 11:55 pm ET and respond to 2 or more classmates by Sunday 11:55 pm ET. Forum posts are graded on timeliness, relevance, knowledge of the weekly readings, and the quality of original ideas.

Progress assignment - 25 percent

A preliminary research plan with sources is due Week Three. Its length is no more than two double-spaced pages in 12 pt. font. Specific instructions are located in the Assignments section of the classroom.

Midterm assignment - 25 percent

The compare and contrast essay assignment is an analytical essay due at the end of Week Five. The assignment will be no fewer than or no more than four pages, double-spaced, in 12 pt. font. The assignment assesses student learning for Weeks One - Four. Students are to rely on the course readings in composing the essay. Specific instructions are located in the “Assignments” section of the classroom.

Final assignment – 25 percent

The final assignment or research project is due at the end of Week Seven. It will consist of a political risk assessment of two states (one an established democracy and the other a transitioning democracy in Europe as defined in the first week of the course). The final assignment will be no fewer than and no more than six pages.

Required Readings:

Anglo, Gavin Rae. 2008. In Poland’s Return to Capitalism: From the Socialist Bloc to the European Union. London: I. B. Tauris.

Cato, Molly Scott. 2006. “How the Euro Threatens the Well-Being of the Planet and Its People.” In Baimbridge, Mark, Brian Burkitt, and Philip Whyman, Implications of the Euro : A Critical Perspective From the Left. London: Routledge. 157-211

Harmsen, Robert. 2005. “A Dual Exceptionalism? British and French Patterns of Euroscepticism in Wider Comparative Perspective.” In Centre for Study of Democratic Government, European Research Group Workshop: National Identity and Euroscepticism: A Comparison Between France and the United Kingdom. Oxford: University of Oxford, Department of Politics and International Relations

O’Dwyer, Conor. 2004. Runaway State Building: How Political Parties Shape States in Postcommunist Europe. World’s Politics 56: 520-53

Wai, Ting. 2011. EU-China Relations in the Age of Globalization and Regionalization. EurAmerica 41, No. 1 (March 2011): 181-220

• External websites and other assigned reading found in the Lessons area of the classroom.
• Weekly Lesson Notes and videos or audio files are found in the Lessons area of the classroom.