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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY
COURSE CODE: "PL 212-1"
COURSE NAME: "International Organizations"
SEMESTER & YEAR:
Spring 2020
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SYLLABUS
INSTRUCTOR:
Eszter Salgo
EMAIL: [email protected]
HOURS:
MW 10:00 AM 11:15 AM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS:
45
CREDITS:
3
PREREQUISITES:
Prerequisite: PL 209
OFFICE HOURS:
By appointment
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COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course examines attempts at international cooperation in various institutional forms. The course analyzes efforts of twentieth-century internationalism, from the League of Nations up to the United Nations (UN). Main regional organizations are also examined, such as NATO, the African Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, World Trade Organization and Organization of American States.
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SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
The first session of the course will focus on global governance. International organizations, which constitute only a part of a complex and interdependent world of global politics, will be defined broadly to encompass both intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations. The dilemma concerning global governance’s effectiveness will also be addressed by focusing on power dynamics, legitimacy and accountability. Inspired by the thesis according to which regions have emerged as “a driving force in world politics”, the second part of the course will provide an in-depth look at the regional and sub-regional organizations active in Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Middle East. The third part of the course will be dedicated to the analysis of the United Nations. It will investigate in detail its main function, promoting collective security, and its most visible symbol, the peace operations. Topics to be covered will include the changing nature, the successes and the failures of past and present peace-keeping and peace-enforcement operations. Mindful of the expansion of human rights norms and of the consequent shift of the global community’s attention from state and government security to human security, the impact of the emerging norm of responsibility to protect will be investigated as well. The fourth part of the course will be devoted to the role played by IOs in addressing cross-cutting issues and challenges whose resolution requires a global approach (human development and economic well-being, human rights, environmental problems, international peace and security). Inspired by the interpretative and reflexive traditions and methodologies of the social sciences, throughout the course students will attribute attention to popular culture (in particular to its visual and emotional dimensions).
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LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the end of the course, students will have a comprehensive overview of the actors, processes and challenges involved in global governance. They will be able to: 1. assess critically the role and the impact of international organizations; 2. employ analytical skills in order to evaluate the role of global governance; 3. describe in detail the various regional organizations present in Europe, the America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East; 4. evaluate critically the successes and the failures of the United Nations; 5. demonstrate analytical skills in using case studies to better understand the need for global governance; 6. employ critical thinking and analytical skills; 7. improve research skills; 8. view images (and the absence of images) critically (defend themselves against manipulation and deception) and 9. demonstrate effective written and oral communication skills within the context of international politics.
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TEXTBOOK:
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REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
| Book Title | Author | Publisher | ISBN number | Library Call Number | Comments |
| Would the World Be Better Without the UN? | Weiss | Polity | 978-1-509-51725-1 | | |
| The globalization of world politics : an introduction to international relations | Baylis | Oxford University Press | 978-0198739852 | | |
| International Organizations | Karns | Lynne Rienner | 9781626371514 | | |
| Visual Global Politics | Bleiker | Routledge | 0415726077 | | |
| The European Union: How Does It Work? | Kenealy | Oxford University Press | 9780198807490 | | |
RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
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GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
| Assignment | Guidelines | Weight |
| Class attendance and participation in debates | Class attendance will be considered in combination with assessment of students’ active participation in general and specifically during the class debates. Students will not be penalized for two absences. If further absences are recorded, grade penalties will be applied. From one to four more absences will reduce the participation score by 5% for each absence. More than six total absences will result in the overall F. | 10% |
| Oral presentation | Each student will present his/her reserach project (relating to the goals, the achievements and the challenges of an IGO) in a 10 minute long oral presentation on March 30 or on April 1. | 15% |
| Term paper | Each student will provide an in-depth analysis (2000-word paper) of the goals, the achievements and the challenges of an international organization that we haven’t discussed in class. Two possible topics should be proposed by February 12; the deadline for submitting the paper on Moodle is April 15. | 25% |
| Midterm exam | The midterm exam consists of short questions and essay questions. Students are graded on accuracy, depth of analysis, logical content, creative thinking, on their ability to formulate a sophisticated argument, provide evidence for their statements, discuss and show understanding of alternative explanations. | 15% |
| Final exam | In terms of structure, the final exam is similar to the midterm exam. It is cumulative. | 35% |
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-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the cou
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Class attendance is mandatory. Students will not be penalized for two absences. If further absences are recorded, grade penalties will be applied. From one to four more absences will reduce the participation score by 5% for each absence. More than six total absences will result in the overall F.
ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS AND EXAMINATION POLICY
You cannot make-up a major exam (midterm or final) without the permission of the Dean’s Office. The Dean’s Office will grant such permission only when the absence was caused by a serious impediment, such as a documented illness, hospitalization or death in the immediate family (in which you must attend the funeral) or other situations of similar gravity. Absences due to other meaningful conflicts, such as job interviews, family celebrations, travel difficulties, student misunderstandings or personal convenience, will not be excused. Students who will be absent from a major exam must notify the Dean’s Office prior to that exam. Absences from class due to the observance of a religious holiday will normally be excused. Individual students who will have to miss class to observe a religious holiday should notify the instructor by the end of the Add/Drop period to make prior arrangements for making up any work that will be missed. The final exam period runs until ____________
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ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic
dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred.
In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment,
may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of
academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student
who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from
the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation
to the President, who will make the final decision.
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STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap.
Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning
of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
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SCHEDULE
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COURSE SCHEDULE
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Week
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Topic
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Reading
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Week 1
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- Introduction
- Anniversaries in 2019: Reflecting on the Past, the Present and the Future
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-Individual research
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Week 2
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- 2019 in Images
- The Challenges of Global Governance
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- New York Times (2019), The year in pictures
- M. P. Karns, K. A. Mingst (2015), Chapter 1
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Week 3
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- The Theoretical Foundations of Global Governance
- International Organizations and Visual Politics
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- M. P. Karns, K. A. Mingst (2015), Chapters 2
- Bleiker (2018), Introduction (Mapping Visual Global Politics) and F. Caso and C. Hamilton (eds) (2014) Popular Culture and World Politics: Theories, Methods, Pedagogies, Introduction and So How Does Popular Culture Relate to World Politics
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Week 4
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- The United Nations: Centerpiece of Global Governance
- The Reform of the UN Security Council
- Make up class for April 13: Regional Organizations in Europe
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- M. P. Karns, K. A. Mingst (2015), Chapter 4
- Ville Lättilä & Aleksi Ylönen (2019) United Nations Security Council Reform Revisited: A Proposal, Diplomacy & Statecraft, 30:1, 164-186
- M. P. Karns, K. A. Mingst (2015), pp 161-95
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Week 5
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-EU: institutions and decision-making
- EU: challenges and new leadership
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- Kenealy (2018) Chapter 1, 2
- Kenealy (2018) Chapter 3, 5; U. von der Leyen (2019) My agenda for Europe;
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Week 6
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- North Atlantic Treaty Organization from 1949 to 2019
- Regional Initiatives in Asia
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- Douglas Lute, Nicholas Burns (2019) NATO at Seventy: An Alliance in Crisis Harvard Kennedy School, Belfar Center
Karns, Mingst 2015, pp 205-220, - Crisis Group (2017) Central Asia's Silk Road Rivalries, The German Marshall Fund (2019) The Eurasian Economic Union: Expectations, challenges and achievements
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Week 7
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- Review
- Midterm exam
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Week 9 (week after the break)
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- Regional Organizations in the Americas
- Regionalism in Africa
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- M. P. Karns, K. A. Mingst (2015), pp. 195-205 and Ben Raderstorf and Michael Shifter (2018) Rebuilding Hemispheric Consensus: A Reform Agenda for the Organization of American States
- M. P. Karns, K. A. Mingst (2015),pp. 220-229, A. Jones (2019) Continental drifts in a multipolar world, ECDPM paper
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Week 10
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- Human rights governance
- Poverty, hunger, development
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- Baylis (2017), Chapter 31, Bleiker (2018) Chapters 24, 37
- Baylis (2017) Chapters 29; Bleiker (2018) Chapter 11 and 17
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Week 11
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- Oral presentations
- Oral presentations
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Week 12
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- Human security, human development humanitarian interventions
- International Non-Governmental Organizations
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- Baylis (2017) Chapter 30 and 32, Bleiker (2018) Chapter 23, 41, 50
- Karns (2015) Chapter 6
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Week 13
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- Holiday
- IGOs’ visual communication
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-Group exercise
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Week 14
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- A world without the United Nations?
- The future of intergovernmental organizations
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- T.G. Weiss (2018) Introduction and Chapter 9
- Glenda Sluga (2019) Remembering 1919: international organizations and the future of international order,International Affairs, Volume 95, Issue 1, January 2019, Pages 25–43
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Week 15
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- What future for global governance?
- Review
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Jean Pisani-Ferry (2018) Should we give up on global governance?
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