American Political Ideas/Political Thought 4219-RS210
This course is a research seminar in American Political Thought. as well as the intellectual history of American political ideas. The course will vary on the various authors that are taken up for examination each time the course will be offered. The authors and the various texts chosen to be included for examination for this class were chosen for their key role in shaping American political thought and/or American political ideas. The course teaches students to tackle the key texts and address the scope of the secondary scholarship on those texts.
The week to week reading and expectations will follow the direction the course will take in examining the particular theme(s), author(s), and/or texts in American political thought/American political ideas chosen for the specific term.
Type of course
elective courses
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
On the completion of the course, the students will be able to:
1. Apply the various methods and interpretative approaches that are common in the study of American political thought, as well as for the history of political ideas.
2. Compare and contrast the various secondary scholarship addressing the selected authors and learn how to assess the relative value and usefulness of those scholar contributions to understanding the various text or issue under investigation
3. Design and execute a research project.
4. Come to realize the proper approaches to craft research and how to effectively present it to a variety of audiences.
Assessment criteria
1: Short Assignments and quizzes 20% of the overall grade for the course
2: Literature Review 30% of the overall grade for the course. 8-10 page review of the secondary literature on the topic, author, or work taken up for the main research paper for the course.
3: Semester Research paper 40% of the overall grade for the course. 20-25 pages.
4: Presentation of Research 10% of the overall grade for the course A 10-15 minute presentation of the student's research paper.
Bibliography
The exact reading list will change for each offering of the course, to ensure consistency with the exact focus and direction in American political thought or American political ideas chosen for that terms offering of this course.
Typically the course will choose 5-8 key primary texts. Also, students will be expected to scope out and discover and read the key secondary scholarship on the chosen texts.
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: