2024 Fall - ECON 5,GLOBAL 5,POL SC 5

Prerequisite: None • Skills Advisory: Eligibility for English 1. This course surveys major analytical approaches to the study of International Political Economy and analyzes contemporary issues in world politics. The class objective is to gain a better understanding of the interaction between political and economic phenomena on an international and global scale. The role of states, international and domestic instituions, and other factors in creating and/or managing conflicts and facilitating cooperation in the international political economy.

This course satisfies IGETC Area 4 (Social & Behavioral Sciences) requirements.

This is an Online Education course. All assignments and exams will be conducted over the

Internet. Students are responsible for their own access to the Internet and computer resources.

World Politics: Intersts Interactions Institutions - Freiden, Lake, and Schultz. Norton Publishers, 4th edition

The text is also available as an ebook from Norton publishers

Upon completion of this course, students will:

1. Exhibit, through their behavior. and course work, strong academic behaviors, including regular attendance, timeliness, participation in class activities, and adherence to the College Honor Code, as well as a heightened sense of personal efficacy and civic responsibility, evidenced by their regular attendance, participation in class activities, and their awareness of their rights and duties as citizens of their community, their country, and the wider world.

2. Be able to explain, both orally and in writing, the structure and operation of the international system, the nature and sources of conflict and cooperation, and issues of war and peace among states in the international system.

3. Be proficient in the research, analytical, and communication skills necessary to present, orally and in writing, compelling and original arguments that advance

4. Demonstrate a level of engagement in the subject matter that enables and motivates the integration of acquired knowledge and skills beyond the classroom.

Upon successful completion of this class, students will:

Consider the effects of nationality, ethnicity, gender, and economic class diversity on contemporary and future world political relations.

List, discuss, and assess the political values and historical events that have shaped world politics and international relations.

Differentiate among and analyze competing political ideologies and scholarly approaches to the study of political Economy and international relations.

Understand and evaluate the interrelationship between economics and politics.

Explain and evaluate the institutions of world politics (nation-states, intergovernmental organizations, transnational enterprises, social movements).

Evaluate and write clearly and systematically about contemporary world political economic issues and policies.

Success in this class will depend upon your ability to: (1) think critically; (2) read and write college-level English prose; (3) master important facts about international relations and world politics; and, (4) work both independently and collaboratively in a group setting.

I expect students to:

read this syllabus carefully,

check your email each day,

log on to the class website a minimum of three times each week,

read all of the assigned materials,

submit all Threaded Discussion postings on or before deadline,

submit "Twenty-Minute Quizzes," and

complete a Midterm and Final Exam.

Please note that students are responsible for their own Internet access and computing resources. A loss of connectivity is not an excuse for late assignments. Some Internet service providers (ISPs), such as America Online, are notorious for inferior, unreliable service. In previous semesters, students have lost Internet connectivity in the middle of exams. Students who wait until the last possible moment to submit an assignment also run the risk of an unanticipated service disruption that prevents timely submission.

If you have any questions about the reliability of your ISP or if you encounter connectivity problems, please contact your ISP or Canvas Support Hotline 844 303-0352. Dr. Berman is not able to assist you with computing or connectivity problems.

In addition, please make sure that your email client accepts incoming messages with multiple addressees. Some email services (Hot-mail, AOL) allow users to block "spam," that is, advertising messages. Such features not only block unwanted messages but they may also block my messages for the class addressed to you. My email messages to you may also be blocked if you have exceeded the data storage limit of your client service. I am not always notified when my messages fail to reach you and cannot be responsible for the proper configuration and maintenance of your email service.

Grading Criteria

Your grades in this class will be based on: (1) your writing assignments ; (2) "Twenty-Minute Quizzes"; (3) Simulation Quizzes; (4) a Midterm; and (5) a Final.

This class uses a grading system that, unfortunately, is a bit complicated. The complications arise because: (1) there are several different types of assignments--quizzes, threads, exams; and (2) these assignments are weighted differently.

Your final class grade is based on 570 points. Your midterm and final are each worth 50 points, for a total of 100 points.

The Quizzes" are each worth twenty points. You may only take these quizzes once. Some of the questions on the Quizzes may appear on the Midterm and Final. The Quizzes together constitute 160 points out of the 600 total class points.

I will NOT accept any late assignments - each Module is open for 6 days weeks in which time I expect that students will complete the Module's listed assignments.

These assignments are discussed in greater detail, below.

80 Sim Quizzes

230 Threads

160 Twenty-Minute Quizzes

50 Midterm and Final

50 Controversy quizzes

Threaded Discussion

Because of the nature of this course, I have found that punctual postings are critical to both the success of the course and the success of individual students. It is impossible for me to read and respond to several hundred messages and assignments in the last week of class. Therefore I have created a grading policy that rewards both the quality and punctuality of your responses and assignments.

About half of your Threaded Discussion grade will be based on the punctual completion of assignments. Thus, you could minimally fulfill the Threaded Discussion requirement (60 points) simply by turning in all of the assignments on time, assuming that your contributions demonstrate that you tried your best. Grades for threads submitted late will be penalized.

Please note, that all your assignments are due according to Pacific Time Zone deadlines. Make sure that you adjust accordingly.

The rest of the Threaded Discussion grade will depend on the quality of your work. Your postings should be well written and clearly address the issues being discussed. I expect each writing assignment to have:

(1) An introductory paragraph that addresses directly the question posed by the instructor;

(2) A body of factual examples that support your answer; these examples may be drawn from either the assigned readings or footnoted sources researched independently by the student;

(3) Factual examples and the published work of others must be appropriately cited; plagiarized threads will be penalized. I strongly encourage you not to cite Wikipedia or Chat GBT, as a source for academic essays.

(4) A succinct concluding paragraph.

If I have some concerns or comments about your thread, I will post a response. My comments are intended to help you improve your threads.

Your main Newsgroup posting should be approximately 400-500 words in length. Long, rambling, unfocused messages discourage readership and suggest fuzzy thinking. It is more difficult to express ideas in short essays than in long ones.

It is not necessary to post a "perfect" essay (100 out of 100 points) to earn an "A" on the threads; neither is it necessary to earn 600 points for the semester to earn an "A" in the class. A score of 90 out of 100 points on your thread is an "A-" and the equivalent of an "A" in the class because Santa Monica College does not use a Plus/Minus grading system.

Controversy and disagreement cannot be avoided in a political science class but disrespectful, insulting language and intellectual intolerance (i.e., "flaming") will not be permitted. Writing about the factors necessary for a successful, online learning experience, Rupert Wegerif

(http://www.aln.org/alnweb/journal/vol2_issue1/wegerif.htm) writes:

"Forming a sense of community, where people feel they will be treated sympathetically by their fellows, seems to be a necessary first step for collaborative learning. Without a feeling of community people are on their own, likely to be anxious, defensive and unwilling to take the risks involved in learning. . . This style. is democratic, respectful, open to challenges, prepared to give grounds for statements and seeking critically grounded consensus."

It is possible to disagree without being disagreeable. I expect students to abide by the commonly accepted rules of academic discourse. Disagreements based on opposing interpretations of facts, including disagreements with the Instructor, are encouraged. Ad homonym attacks and name-calling, which are altogether too typical of much political discourse in America today, will be penalized.

Plagiarism will be penalized. It is easy to "copy and paste" materials from the Internet and it is equally easy for instructors to detect such behavior. Your threads must be original works, with proper citation for facts and ideas drawn from the works of others.

I read each posting and grade them all. I do not necessarily respond to each posting in the Threaded Discussion, however. If I do not respond to your posting, please take no offense. I respond only when I wish to advance the discussion. Also, if I respond to your post with an "Ok," it means that your thread satisfies the requirements of the assignment; an "Ok" does not mean that I personally agree with the content of your statement.

With my permission a student may submit a late thread assignment. Your request for a late submission must be made BEFORE the start of the nest week's module.

I do NOT accept any written assignment once the following week's Module has begun.

Any late thread submission will have 10 points deducted from the total.

"Twenty-Minute Quizzes"

Each Saturday you will take one or more "Fifteen-Minute Quizzes," so-called because you have fifteen minutes to answer ten multiple choice questions from a particular chapter. These are "open book" quizzes. You can only take each quiz one time. Quizzes are available from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Pacific Time Zone.

Multiple choice quizzes MUST be completed in the week that they are assigned. There are NO "make-up multiple choice quizzes.

Midterm Exam

The Midterm Exam will be conducted online by Saturday, November 16th.. The exam will comprise 50 multiple choice questions. Some of the multiple choice questions will come from the Online Quizzes. The Midterm will be cumulative.

The Midterm will be a timed exam, lasting 50 minutes. You may begin the exam at any time between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. (Pacific Time). If you begin the exam at 9:59 p.m., you'll only have one minute to complete it, so make sure that you give yourself at least on full hour to complete the exam. You may only take the exam one time. You may not logon to the exam, print it, logoff, work offline, and then re-logon to record your answers. Failure to follow these instruction can result in a failing grade. If you exceed the time limit for the midterm, your grade may be compromised.

In past semesters, some students have been inadvertently disconnected while taking their online exams. Service disconnections cannot be restored by Dr. Berman and do not constitute an excuse for missing the exam. If you have any questions about the reliability of your Internet service, please contact your service provider or the Canvas Support Hotline - 844 303-0352 before you begin the exam. If you're concerned about Internet connectivity, you may make arrangements with the College to take the exam at one of the on-campus computer labs.

Final Exam

The Final Exam will be conducted online by Saturday, December 14th. The Final will be a timed exam, lasting 50 minutes. The exam will comprise 50 multiple choice questions. Some of the multiple choice questions will come from the Online Quizzes. The Final will be cumulative. You may begin the exam anytime from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Pacific Time. If you exceed the time limits for the final, your grade may be penalized.

When emailing your instructor, always include your full name and the class in which you are enrolled.

I can only contact you by using your SMC Corsair account. Please check that email every day or configure your Corsair account to forward emails automatically to your personal email account.