Stanton POLS 301 Fall 10
POLS 301: Issues in Global Politics
HUMAN RIGHTS
Fall 2010 TTh 10:05-11:20 am HAL 103
Dr. Samuel S. Stanton, Jr.
Office Hours: MWF 9:00-11:30, T 8:30-10:00, Th 11:30-12:30
Office: HAL 303E
Phone: 724.458.3854
Email:
Web Page: http://www2.gcc.edu/dept/pols/faculty/stanton/
The fundamental rights of [humanity] are, first: the right of habitation; second, the right to move freely; third, the right to the soil and subsoil, and to the use of it; fourth, the right of freedom of labor and of exchange; fifth, the right to justice; sixth, the right to live within a natural national organization; and seventh, the right to education.
--Albert Schweitzer
Fear is not the natural state of civilized people.
--Aung San Suu Kyi
The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only object of good government.
--Thomas Jefferson
We the Peoples of the United Nations, determined to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small …
--UN Charter
Overview:
This course is an introduction to the issue of human rights in international relations. The purpose of this course is to expose students to an area of international relations study that is often overlooked in general international relations courses, but is of great importance in understanding the relations among states and among the population groups of our world. This course is about liberal values being expressed and exercised in a realist world. Governments make decisions about economic and social policy regularly based in part on the status of human rights and human security in other countries while also stating that how people are treated and the quality of life within the borders of their country is not the business of any other government because of sovereignty. This issue is important; it is relevant to our lives as we move forward in a globalizing world. To study this issue in depth the course is dived into 7 sections.
The first section is an introduction to human rights. We will examine what is meant by “human rights”. Are there universal standards? How do we define human rights? What is the classical background for understanding this issue?
The second section focuses on social and economic justice. We will look at how this is addressed in the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights. We will look at how social and economic justice is defined and understood from multiple viewpoints, including Confucianism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Section three focuses on the issue of justice and is divided into two parts. Part one is justice in war. This part focuses on different perspectives on the justness of warfare and the proper treatment of enemies. Part two asks the question of for who is there justice and looks particularly at justice for people of differing genders and sexual orientations. In this section we will look at competing views from ancient manuscripts and from the viewpoint of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Section four takes us on a tour of the offerings of Socialism/Communism in regards to human rights. Here we will look at what Engels, Marx, Kautsky, and Lenin have offered in regards to rights of workers, peasants, labor, women, and other social groups.
The fifth section concerns the issues of nationalism and self-determination. In the context of human rights we will examine how nationalist movements and how efforts at self-determination are often focal points for the study of human rights. Do national borders affect human rights? If democracy is the best means of protecting human rights, how do we achieve this in transitionary states and how do we protect against authoritarianism? Does sovereignty mean today what it meant in 1648? 1950?
The sixth section focuses on one of the major issues of human rights—poverty. Is poverty about systemic inequality? Is there a moral basis for requiring or even desiring reform of systemic poverty? How might we reform the systemic inequality we call poverty?
The final section of the course focuses on human rights in the context of globalization. First we will consider whether human rights are redefined by the onslaught of globalization. What issues of human rights are emerging as more important in the modern era? Then we will consider how to implement global human rights standards and consider whether this is a worthwhile effort. Is this implementation best done through criminal courts? Should regional organizations lead the way? What must change in foreign policy to make human rights universally applied? What is the role of non-governmental organizations and transnational corporations?
Goals:
· To glorify the Almighty through the advancement of knowledge.
· To further students understanding of human rights, without compromising Christian values.
· To recognize the different views of human rights offered by divergent religious and theoretical schools of thought.
· To develop and understanding of social and economic justice and proper treatment of humans from divergent viewpoints.
· To recognize the changing nature of foreign policy and international relations brought about by growing consideration of human rights.
Outcomes:
· Students will demonstrate the ability to explain the historical and social contexts of human rights as an international issue. (Dept. Obj. 1,2, 5, 8)
· Students will demonstrate the ability to analyze and critically critique required readings. (Dept. Obj. 2, 4, 6, 7)
· Students will demonstrate the ability to conduct research to support critical critique of readings. (Dept. Obj. 2, 4, 6, 7)
· Students will demonstrate the ability to engage in discussion of topics in the classroom setting. (Dept. Obj. 2, 4, 6, 7, 8)
General Objectives for Students Majoring in Political Science
1. Have acquired knowledge of the four major subject areas (American Politics, Political Theory, International Relations, and Comparative Politics) of political science
2. Be Competitive for graduate and professional school opportunities. Political science majors with strong academic records will be competitive for both master’s and Ph.D. programs in political science and other professional programs and will be competitive for financial stipends.
3. Be familiar with entry level jobs suitable for political science majors.
4. Be competitive for entry level jobs suitable for political science majors.
5. Have the ability to read, comprehend, and evaluate content in professional political science journals, scholarly books, and websites.
6. Show familiarity with, and the ability to critically evaluate, information sources in the Social Sciences.
7. Demonstrate a mastery of research and writing skills in the field of political science.
8. Develop and capacity to apply a Christian moral principles to issues and topics within political science, including using a Christian perspective to evaluate critically political ideas, public policies, and political figures. Simply stated, our aim is that students will seek to understand the field of politics as individuals who are committed to historic Christian thought.
Measurement of Outcomes:
Measurement of goals and outcomes will be made by two take home essay examinations and an in-class essay final examination which will allow students to demonstrate the ability to explain the historical and social contexts of human rights as an international issue and the ability to analyze and critically critique required readings. Additionally students will conduct a research project that demonstrates the ability to conduct research to support critical critique of readings. Finally students’ engagement in class discussions and participation in these discussions will be evaluated to show demonstrated ability to engage in discussion of topics in the classroom setting.
Course Requirement: This course requires participation, 2 take home essay exams, a final exam, and a course paper.
Participation: I do not expect that every student will be present for every class period. However, I do expect you to be present unless there are mitigating circumstances such as illness and university sanctioned event participation. Participation is more than simply being in the room, participation is discussion, questioning, and answering. Participation is crucial to learning and thus to your grade in this course. This represents 20% of your grade.
Essay Exams: You will have two (2) essay format exams. These exams will be take-home and require a few typed pages for each answer required. Each of these three exams will count 20% of your grade. The final exam will be done in-class (per GCC requirements), and will consist of one question from each of the two (2) take-home exams. The final exam is 15% of your final grade. Exams in total are 55% of your course grade.
Course Paper: A course paper is required in this class. The required length is 15-20 pages. The paper should follow APSA format (a variant of APA), see the attached material regarding the paper at the end of the syllabus. The paper is 25% of your course grade. A one Paragraph synopsis of your project is due in Dr. Stanton’s office no later than 4 pm on Oct 19th. Papers are due in Dr. Stanton’s office no later than 4 pm on December 10th.
Paper Topic: A student may chose to write a research paper over a research question of his or her own interest. The topic must be relevant to the course and defensible as covering an issue of human rights concern.
Paper Option 1: Empirical Research Paper
Students choosing this option may receive a grade of upto 100% for the assignment.
Paper Option 2: Non-Empirical Paper
Students choosing this option may receive a grade of upto 90% for the assignment.
To Be or Not To Be Empirical
To be empirical the paper must address a question and engage in research to answer this question in a manner consistent with the methodology taught in a social science research methods course (POLS 277, SOCI 277 or PSYC 204 are examples of such courses taught at GCC). An outline of how to engage in an empirical research project can be found in the course folder for POLS 302 on the campus network. A lengthier discussion of the process is included later in this syllabus. There are seven basic points to doing empirical research:
- Determine what you want to study. What is your research Question?
- How can this question be answered? Theoretical framework
- Tell us your proposed answer. Hypothesis
- Decide how to study the problem (qualitative/quantitative/both).
- Do the study (investigate and test hypotheses).
- Tell us what you found (support/non-support for hypotheses).
- Tell us what the findings say about your question and theory.
A non-empirical research paper does not require the offering or testing of a hypothesis. It also does not require the development of a theoretical framework. It does require that you ask a question and investigate how this question can be answered by engaging in research of pertinent scholarly literature. I highly recommend to students who have not taken POLS 277, SOCI 277, or PSYC 204 that they do not attempt an empirical research project.
Paper Grading:
30% Style and Composition (grammar anyone?)
70% Content (are your statements logical, do you discuss the major points, did you do an
analysis or a report?)
TWO IMPORTANT POINTS:
POINT 1:
When I grade a paper, I will make numerical marks that correspond to the “Rules for Writing” that follow. If on any page I am forced to make more than 5 numerical notations, I will quit reading the paper. This is not a grammar and composition course, if you have problems writing, get help. I do not have the time when grading papers to spend 2 to 3 hours on an individual paper because of poor writing quality. Poor writing quality makes it impossible to understand the content, which means you not only lose the style and composition points, but the content as well. If you follow the “Rules” and use the appropriate style, 30% of your grade is, to be cliché, “in the bag”.
POINT 2:
Even if a paper is stylistically and grammatically correct, and even if you make logical arguments, discuss major points, and actually do an analytical critique rather than a report, you may still only earn a C or B on the assignment. Some arguments are simply better than others. Well written papers make readers think and possibly raise arguments that a reader might not have thought about before reading this paper. Do not confuse making the reader baffled with making the reader think. At the end of the day, a paper meriting an A has met all of the technical challenges of the assignment and has shown a high degree of intellectual aptitude. A high degree of intellectual aptitude is displayed by clarity, sharpness of wit and critique, and by how much it makes the reader think. In short, A papers are special and rare.
Grades:
Participation 20%
Exams 55% (2 @ 20% each, 1 @15%)
Course Paper 25%
Grading Scale:
90-100 A
80-89 B
70-79 C
60-69 D
Below 60 F
I rarely give +/- grades. A +/- grade is give at the discretion of the instructor based on student performance. For instance, a student with an 89.5 grade with poor attendance and without much quality participation will receive a B, same grade would merit a B+ or A- if based on the quality and quantity of quality participation shown throughout the semester. The key to getting bumped up is quality of participation. On the other end of the spectrum, a student with an 80 who had poor participation will earn a B-.