Introduction to
International Relations
Political Science 205,
Summer 2008
Office Hours: Monday 1-4pm
Office: 830 PLC
Phone: 346-4128
E-mail: csmith5@uoregon.edu
SSIL -- Social Sciences Instructional Lab -- Contact Information:
(These are the folks who will administer the midterm and final exam to you.)
e-mail: de@ssil.uoregon.edu
Phone: 346-4642.
This course will expose you to a broad range of information and theories about international relations – the varying ways in which countries interact with each other over a wide variety of issues. You will learn both theory and facts, both history and recent events. The course structure follows that of our textbook, International Relations (8th Edition), by Joshua Goldstein and Jon Pevehouse.
Both the text and
the course are divided into two main sections. The text begins with an
introductory chapter called “The Globalization of International Relations.”
Then, Part I, which focuses on International Security offers
chapters on power politics; alternatives to power politics; foreign policy;
international conflict; military force and terrorism; and international
organization, law and human rights. Part 2, which focuses on International
Political Economy, offers chapters on international trade; money and
business; international integration; environment and population; the
north-south gap; and international development.
There is a postscript to the textbook but you are not required to read
this and will not be tested on the content in this chapter.
*Important note: Our department offers both a lecture based and a web based American Government course. Please double check to make certain that you have purchased the correct book.
Your grade for the class will be based on the following (more details on each below).
In order to use the online textbook, access course materials, do the interactive simulations, and complete the class assignments you will need regular access to a competent computer with web access. You should have at least 56K dial-up Internet connection, although faster connections will obviously be better. Lack of such access is not an excuse to request alternative assignments or extensions on deadlines – it is a reason not to take this class. It is absolutely crucial that you have access to a reliable computer and Internet access for this class. Be especially careful of using wireless connections, as they can be unstable and disconnect easily.
This is an online course. It has no face-to-face meetings, unless you choose to come to my office hours. Contrary to what many anticipate, this makes the class harder, not easier. This independent study version of PS 205 is designed for self-motivated students who wish to proceed through the subject material at their own pace. Keep in mind that independent study is not the best option for every student. The lack of lectures or discussion sections means you have fewer opportunities to learn challenging material. Much of the material is challenging to understand well and there is a lot of information to absorb over the ten week quarter. I am here to help you in office hours or by email, but for the most part learning and comprehending the material is done independently. To succeed in this course, you must be motivated and well organized. Due dates are firm and frequent. They creep up fast and extensions are only given under exceptional circumstances. Your reading, studying, and analytical skills should be strong. The lack of face-to-face interactions and the fact that you are essentially learning from a textbook means you should have strong reading comprehension skills. Because so much of the course grade is based on the multiple choice quizzes and examinations, please give careful consideration to whether that is a format that will work for you. To do well in this class you should be comfortable with this method of testing. There are no alternative assignments or extra credit opportunities. Historically, the range of grades in this class has been very large – there have been large numbers of both As and Fs. The quizzes and exams are not easy. Marginal students just taking this class to avoid attending lectures and section meetings, or because they think it will be easy, are strongly encouraged to drop the class now and enroll in the traditional lecture-based version of this class – you will learn more and your grade will be higher. Be warned, I cannot emphasize enough that this course requires organization, self-motivation, strong reading comprehension and an ability to perform well in multiple choice exams. Note that PS 205 cannot be repeated for credit – the traditional lecture course PS 205 and the independent study/distance education course PS 205 are treated as the same course by the Registrar’s office.
Important Notes
Web Sites
Various elements of this class are accessible through several web sites:
Important
class announcements will periodically be sent out via email to your UO account. It is therefore imperative that all
students either use their UO email account, and check it several times a week,
or set it to forward to the account you really use. Please take steps
immediately to make sure that this is taken care of, and also make sure that
e-mails I send out to the class via Blackboard will make it past your spam
filter. All UO students are now automatically assigned UO e-mail accounts,
which are automatically used as your e-mail address in all UO directories. If
you do not know how to access your UO email account, contact the
Required Texts and Assigned
International
Relations (8th Edition), by Joshua Goldstein
and Jon Pevehouse.
Do not purchase an older version of the
textbook or a used copy. Older versions and used copies do not contain
an access code to the class web site and are hence useless for taking the
required chapters quizzes, simulations and post-simulation quizzes. The textbook and Course Compass access code
are only available for purchase at the UO Bookstore in one packet. Basically,
you must purchase a hardcopy of the textbook through the UO bookstore. This is
because this class has been specifically designed for the Political Science
Department at the UO. If you are not in
Tests and Assignments
Chapter Quizzes (26% total; 2 points for each
chapter quiz)
You
will take the quizzes through the Course Compass web site. The quiz for each chapter is located under
the “Chapter Quizzes” folder of the Course Compass web site. When first exploring the Course Compass
web site be careful not to accidentally take a chapter quiz because you only get
one chance to do so and should be prepared.
The
quizzes are not proctored, but they are closed book. In order to take them you
will need to promise that you are not looking things up in the book, sharing
questions or answers with classmates, printing out the quiz, or using a quiz or
quiz answers provided by a classmate. If you engage in any of these
activities even once, your grade for all the quizzes will be a zero, which
will make it essentially impossible to pass the class.
You will be given 20 minutes
to take each chapter quiz. After
completing the quiz, please make sure you press the submit button about 30
seconds before the 20 minute time limit because it takes the system about that
long to process your quiz. You can take
each quiz only once. Each quiz will
consist of 11 multiple choice questions, worth 10% each. This means that you can potentially score up
to 110% for each quiz (a form of extra credit).
Quiz
Deadlines: You must
complete the quizzes for chapters 1-4 by the Friday of Week 3, January 25 at
5:00 PM. Quizzes for chapters 5-7 are due the Friday of Week 5, February 8 at
5:00 PM. Chapter quizzes 8-10 are due Friday of Week 8, February 29 at 5:00
PM. And, finally, quizzes 11-13 are due Friday of Week 10, March 14 also
at 5:00 PM. All quizzes are due by 5:00 PM on their due dates. The quizzes are automatically removed from
the Course Compass web site after the deadline.
Access to the quizzes will be password-protected after those
dates/times, and will only be available to students with approved extensions.
Interactive Simulations (13% total for completion of
13 topical simulations & quizzes, credit/no credit).
As part of the Course Compass package that comes with the textbook, each substantive chapter (1-13) has an interactive simulation that is required. The simulations can be found in the “Course Documents” section of the Course Compass web site under the heading “Interactive Activities” for each chapter heading. There are a number of interactive activities for each chapter, but you are only required to do one of them. Of course, you are free to do as many of the activities as you want, but will only be tested on the required simulation. A list of the required simulations can be found in the table below. It is your responsibility to do the right simulation. In terms of time expenditures, they range from fairly quick (probably 5-10) minutes to very involved (an hour or more to really do them right).
To get credit for a simulation you will
need to complete the simulation, then take a simulation quiz associated with
it. The post-simulation quiz can be
found in the “Simulation Quizzes” section of the Course Compass web site. They will be clearly marked as “Simulation
Quiz X”, followed by the name of the simulation. Please note that the simulations and
simulation quizzes are located in different sections of the Course Compass web
site.
Grading on the simulation quizzes is credit/no credit (you just need to pass the quiz to get full credit). To pass a simulation quiz you need to score at least 3/5 (15/25). The questions should be easy if you pay careful attention during the simulation. If you do a simulation but still get fewer than 3 of 5 right on the quiz you can still get credit for it. I will give you credit for it if you send me an e-mail with a paragraph or two (6-10 sentences) describing the simulation, what you did and why, and a few sentences linking it to concepts covered in the class. You need to do this before the deadline for that particular set of quizzes.
It is recommended
that you do the simulations and take the quiz for them prior to taking the
chapter quiz. I also recommend that you
do not put them off until right before the deadline and then try to race
through them. From my experience, many
students do this and find that they have neither the time to do them adequately
and hence perform poorly, or they miss the deadline and automatically fail the
quizzes they were unable to complete.
Interactive
Simulation Deadlines:
The due dates are the same as for the chapter quizzes and are shown in the
table below.
Course Compass Discussion Board Postings (5% total for postings on five discussion boards, credit/no credit)
You
will be responsible for posting to five Discussion Boards during the course of
the term. The discussion forums can be
found under the “Discussion Board” tab in the Course Compass web site. One discussion thread will just involve
introducing yourself and the other four discussion forums correspond to each of
the four segments of the class. You
must post at least once to each, all five, of the required discussion
forums. Each of the discussion forums
has a deadline, which corresponds to the deadlines listed above for each
section of the class. The deadlines
are stated in the discussion forum title on the Course Compass web site. Please make a note of them. After the deadline you can no longer post to
the discussion forum and will receive 0 for that discussion forum.
Your
required posts must be at least one paragraph long (5-10 sentences), you
must have something substantive to say, and you must somehow incorporate or
refer to ideas from the readings.
Do not just write a two sentence posting, simply restate what other
students say, or post on an unrelated topic. You will not receive the one
percentage point for a discussion forum if your posting is inadequate. You may of course respond on more than one
topic or respond more than once on each discussion board if you like. However, you can only receive 1 point of each
discussion forum no matter how many times you post to it. However, if your final score is between two
grades I will use your level of involvement in the discussion forums as a gauge
of involvement in the class to move your final grade up or down. I encourage interaction and debate, so
please feel free to engage each other through the discussion forums. You
don’t have to start your own discussion thread. Making substantive
responses to one another is, arguably, even better (Hence the term discussion
board!). Remember to use proper netiquette – Internet courtesy.
Challenging a person’s ideas is acceptable; but insulting the person (flaming)
who voiced the ideas discourages the cooperative learning process. Postings that flame another user will be
removed and will not count toward the five-post minimum.
Discussion Board Due Dates: The four topical posts are due the same dates as the chapter quizzes. The self-introduction post will be due at the same time as the first topical post -- by the end of week 3, Friday, April 18. All postings are due by 5:00 PM of their due date.
Exams (56% divided into a midterm (26%) and final
(30%) examination)
You will take two proctored examinations based on the assigned readings in the Text – a midterm exam worth 26% of the course grade and a final exam worth 30%. See below for detailed instructions for taking these exams. Exams are made up of multiple choice questions. The midterm will cover Part 1 of the Text (chapters 1-7) and the final will cover Part 2 (chapters 8-14). The final examination is not cumulative. Tests are closed-book and cannot be taken more than once. Both exams will be in the system at all times, so take extra care when logging in that you are logging in for the correct test! If you take the wrong test there is literally nothing anyone can do to “fix” it.
The exams cover a wide range of material and require knowledge of broad concepts and specific factual details.
IMPORTANT: You must schedule your exam taking time in advance. Please see “Testing Center Policies,” below.
Special Note: The deadline for the midterm exam is the Thursday, of Finals Week, not Friday.
Quiz, simulation, and exam deadlines
|
Text Section |
Text Chapter |
Simulation |
Quiz/Sim. Deadline |
Exam Deadline |
|
|
1:
Understanding International Relations. |
Simulation:
Why Study International Relations? |
April 18 |
Midterm May 10 |
|
1:
International Security |
2: Power Politics |
Simulation:
The Prisoner’s Dilemma: You Are a President Advisor |
April 18 |
|
|
|
3: Alternatives to Power Politics |
Simulation:
Using Theory: You Are the New Prime Minister |
April 18 |
|
|
|
4: Foreign Policy |
Simulation:
Foreign Policy: You Are the President |
April 18 |
|
|
|
5: International Conflict |
Simulation:
Conflict: You are a Strategic Analyst |
May 2 |
|
|
|
6: Military Force |
Simulation:
Military Force: You are a Military Commander |
May 2 |
|
|
|
7: International Organization and Law |
Simulation:
Human Rights: You are a Refugee |
May 2 |
|
|
2:
International Political Economy |
8: Trade |
Video Case Study:
International Trade in |
May 23 |
Final June 12 |
|
|
9: Money and Business |
Simulation:
Business: You are a Foreign Market Analyst |
May 23 |
|
|
|
10: Integration |
Video
Case Study: Towards European Integration |
May 23 |
|
|
|
11:
Environment and Population |
Simulation:
Transnational Issues: You are an Environmental Consultant |
June 6 |
|
|
|
12: The North-South Gap |
Simulation:
The North-South Gap: You are a Coffee Farmer |
June 6 |
|
|
|
13: International Development |
Video
Case Study: |
June 6 |
|
|
|
14: Postscript |
-- |
-- |
Testing Center Policies and Procedures
Testing policies can be viewed on-line at http://distanceeducation.uoregon.edu/information/on_campus and http://distanceeducation.uoregon.edu/information/off_campus. It is each student’s responsibility to understand and follow the policies outlined in the documents posted there. If you have any further questions, please contact me.
Exam Scheduling and Deadlines: You may schedule an exam at any available time (available test times will be determined by SSIL or your approved remote proctor), up to the deadlines – Saturday, February 16 (week 6) for the midterm and Thursday, March 20 (finals week) for the final (evening time slots are OK, if they are offered by SSIL). It is your responsibility to make sure that you take the exam before the deadline. I strongly recommend making an appointment as early as you can, and taking the exams at least a day or two before the deadlines in case something comes up at the last minute. You will take the chapter quizzes on your own through Course Compass – you do not need to make appointments for those.
On-Campus Students: If you are taking this course on campus, you will take your exams at the Social Science Instructional Lab (SSIL) located in McKenzie Hall 445. All on-campus exams are given and scheduled by appointment only. Before you can schedule an exam, you must complete the On-Line Introduction to Test taking by going to: http://distanceeducation.uoregon.edu/ and clicking anywhere on the paragraph that begins “Be sure to get your test taker I.D. . . .” After you complete the introduction, you will be given a Test Taker ID Number and Password. With these, you can log into your Test Taker Home Page from the above distance education web page. From your Test Taker Home Page you can make appointments to take tests, cancel appointments, see your test scores, e-mail your professor, change your test taker password, and more. You should go through the On-Line introduction the first week of class. Take the time to read the information under the link, “On Campus Students.” If you have additional questions about testing, contact de@ssil.uoregon.edu.
It is strongly recommended that students make appointments in SSIL for taking tests early. You cannot, however, make appointments more than two weeks in advance of your intended test date (not the test deadline). If you want to take tests early you may do so. Additionally, each day has limited time slots, so make sure that you check the available times through SSIL.
Be sure to schedule yourself enough time to finish a test. Budget extra time for possible software complications: Thirty minutes is the average time needed to complete the exams, and appointments are for one hour. The lab fee for this class also entitles you to use the computers in SSIL for word processing, web browsing, etc. Absolutely no food or drink is allowed in the lab. For more information, check the SSIL Web page at: http://ssil.uoregon.edu/.
To ensure that SSIL test times are available for all student schedules, a wide variety of test-taking times are available, which will be posted at http://distanceeducation.uoregon.edu/. If your schedule is inflexible it is your responsibility to sign up far enough in advance to get a space in a time slot that fits your schedule. It is not SSIL’s or the instructor’s responsibility to make an additional exam time for you. More slots are likely to be added during the term as the level of demand becomes clear.
Remote Site Testing (other than
All
visits to the proctored test sites must be scheduled in advance. You can get
all necessary information about your testing site by contacting the testing
site proctor or the
Testing Center Security
For security reasons, the following class policies will be strictly enforced at both the Eugene Campus SSIL testing center and remote site testing centers. Students at the remote sites should be aware that each site might have additional policies.
Do not hesitate to ask the person administering the test for help with the testing software. If you experience any problems with the software, notify the person administering the test immediately. The person administering the test will help you restart the software and contact the professor about the problem.
Whom Should You Contact?
For
questions concerning administration and scheduling of exams, contact the
SSIL lab first; for questions regarding exam content, simulations,
quizzes, CourseCompass postings, web sites or grading, contact Professor
Smith. You may email me directly, or you can post your question in
the discussion board forum.
Online Gradebook Information
The Course Compass
online gradebook will house all your earned grades for the quarter. Do not
check the
Final Grade Calculation
Final grades are calculated based on your percentages on the 13 chapter quizzes at 2% each, completion of the 13 simulations at 1% each (credit/no credit), the midterm exam at 26%, the final exam at 30% and the five Course Compass discussion board postings (credit/no credit) at 1% each. The grade book in the class Course Compass page will be updated only twice – after the midterm and then again after the final. After the midterm, I will post an item on the grade sheet showing your average so far.
If necessary, I reserve the right to apply a curve at a level, which I deem appropriate. While a curve is a possibility, you should not count on it; rather, you should assume your grade will be based on your raw scores and the cutoffs below. If I do apply a curve, no one will receive a grade below where the raw scores would have placed you; but depending where you are in relation to the cutoffs, it is possible that some students’ letter grades would increase while others would not. Cutoffs for letter grades are as follows:
|
|
Minus |
Plain |
Plus |
|
A |
90-93.33 |
93.34-96.66 |
96.67
+ |
|
B |
80-83.33 |
83.34-86.66 |
86.67-89.99 |
|
C |
70-73.33 |
73.34-76.66 |
76.67-79.99 |
|
D |
60-63.33 |
63.34-66.66 |
66.67-69.99 |
|
F |
|
0-59.99 |
|