Then ………………………………………………………and Now?

PSCI 3163/American Foreign Policy

Fall 2012

Instructor: Dr. Gregory D. Young

Office: Ketchum Hall, Room 4A

Office Phone: (303) 492-4265

E-mail: gyoung@colorado.edu

Lecture Times: Tuesdays and Thursdays 2:00-3:15pm in Clare Small 207

Syllabus: http://socsci.colorado.edu/~gyoung/home/3163/3163_syl.htm

Office Hours: Tuesdays & Thursdays 11:00-12:30 or by appointment

Teaching Assistant: Zac Rasmussen/Email - zachary.rasmussen@colorado.edu

 

COURSE LINKS

·       Weekly Thought Paper Questions

·       Schedule for Current Event Presentations

·       Schedule and Links to Course Reading Summaries

·       Link to Potential Midterm Questions

·       Midterm Grading Statistical Summary

·       Link to Take-Home Final Exam Question

·       Link to Lecture PowerPoint Slides

 

 

Course Objectives and Description

 

Why does the United States do what it does on the international stage? What are the reasons why America may act in its interests as opposed to its ideals on some issues and the other way around on others? This course is in the American core for political science majors but it is really a discipline which rests at the nexus of the study of American government and the study of international relations. The first portion of the semester we will cover theoretical IR origins of foreign policy, conduct a brief survey of the history of American foreign policy and look at the domestic underpinnings of U.S. international behavior.  An examination of U.S. security and economic policy will follow. To complete the semester, the students will match the theory they have learned throughout the semester to the current American foreign policy under the Obama administration.

 

Course Requirements

 

Required Reading

There are no textbooks to purchase for this class. All course readings (and a World Atlas) delineated in the course schedule are available at the following online site to which all students will subscribe: http://www.americaandtheworld.com. This site (AATW) provides both distribution and reference for this course, but also copyright payment for the articles you will read. Access to this website will be purchased for $45.00. Access will be explained in detail in class. The readings for this course are interdisciplinary, including works from political science, history, economics and geography. All of the readings are required. Other readings will be linked to this syllabus.

 

 

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READINGS AND CLASS PARTICIPATION

It is essential that students attend every class and be on time. Regular attendance and active participation in any class discussion will enhance your understanding of the course material and almost certainly improve your performance on the midterm exam, weekly papers and on your final paper, which are together worth 80% of the course grade. Attendance is also a large portion of your 10% participation grade. More than five unexcused absences will result in a failing grade in the course. Notifying your instructor by email prior to class will constitute an excused absence. Send email absence notifications to gyoung@colorado.edu. In this semester, the required readings range from 100 to 150 pages per week, as set out in the course schedule. Students should come to class having already completed (and thought carefully about) the assigned reading for each class period.

 

MIDTERM EXAM AND TAKE-HOME FINAL EXAM

The midterm exam will be held during normal class time on Tuesday, October 30th. The exam will consist of several terms and two essay questions. Students will write the exam in a BlueBook provided to the instructor at least one day in advance of the exam. The final exam will be a take-home essay due in the professor’s box by 4:30pm on Wednesday the 19th of December. The question(s) for the final will be posted on the last class day. The final exam will also be graded on appropriated grammar, punctuation and spelling. The final exam grade will be reduced by 10% for every day that it is turned in late. The two exams are worth 50% of your final course grade.

 

WEEKLY THOUGHT PAPERS

At the end of lecture each Thursday, a thought question will be posed to the class and posted on the course web site. The question will relate to either the topic in that week’s lectures. Students will write a two-page, single-spaced (Approximately 900-1000 words) response to the question to turn in the following Thursday in class. Please include a word count on the first page. These papers should be properly documented and footnoted using the course readings. Papers will be graded 50% on content and 50% on grammar, punctuation and spelling. Late Papers will not be accepted unless prior arrangements have been made. On a random basis, electronic copies of these papers will be checked for plagiarism. There will be thirteen questions posted. Each student must answer at least six of them. Students completing fewer than six will have zeros averaged in with their grades on the completed papers. Those students completing more than six will only have six best grades included. These thought papers account for 30% of your final course grade.

 

READING SUMMARY

For each section of the reading, an assigned student(s) will summarize the readings due in class that day. In a 3-4 page synopsis of each assigned set of articles or chapters, the designated student will give an overview of the key points of the reading. The summary can either be in outline form or complete paragraphs. The summary should include an answer to the “so what?” question, in other words, why should one read it when studying about war and peace. On the day before the due date, before midnight, the students will submit both a paper copy and an electronic copy to their instructor. The instructor will post the summary on the web for the review of your classmates. These summaries will be 10% of your final grade and graded pass/fail. Late Reading Summaries will be docked 10% per class day up to 50%.

 

CURRENT EVENTS

Students should also follow contemporary world events by reading a reputable international news source, such as the New York Times on a regular basis. One to two students will present a current event orally in class each day. The presentation should be no more than five minutes in length. The source should be from a respected news source, be less than one week old and pertain in some way to global issue being discussed that week in the seminar. Each student should try to relate the article to some element of what we will be discussing in class. News reports on the Internet are acceptable sources. The current event presentation will be part of your 10% participation grade. Submit a copy of the article to your instructor via email or a paper copy on the day you present.

 

grading Criteria

 

Weekly Thought Papers (Best 6)                   30%

Midterm Exam                                               25%

Take-Home Final Exam/Paper                       25%

Reading Summaries                                       10%

Attendance, Current Event & participation   10%

Total                                                               100%

 

Final Course Grades will be curved unless a straight 90/80/70/60 etc… proves more beneficial to the students (higher overall grade average). If curved, the mean overall average will become the highest C+ grade, and two standard deviations below the mean will be necessary to fail the course. One standard deviation about the mean becomes the criteria for an A grade. The grading policy will be explained in detail on the first day of class.

 

Fall 2012 Course Schedule

 

Day/Date

Topic/Event

Assigned Reading Due

Tues Aug 28

Course Intro & Administration

None

Thur Aug 30

Explaining Foreign Policy Theory

J Chapter 1

Tues Sep 4

Explaining Foreign Policy Theory

J Chapter 2

Thur Sep 6

Explaining Foreign Policy Theory

J Chapter 3

Tues Sep 11

Explaining Foreign Policy Theory

J Chapter 4

Thur Sep 13

History of U.S. Foreign Policy

Thought Paper 1 Due

S&B Chapter 1

Tues Sep 18

History of U.S. Foreign Policy

S&B Chapter 2

Thur Sep 20

History of U.S. Foreign Policy

Thought Paper 2 Due

S&B Chapter 3

Tues Sep 25

Institutional context and domestic determinants of U.S. Foreign Policy

H Chapter 4

Thur Sep 27

Institutional context and domestic determinants of U.S. Foreign Policy

Thought Paper 3 Due

H Chapter 5

Tues Oct 2

Institutional context and domestic determinants of U.S. Foreign Policy

H Chapter 6

Thur Oct 4

Institutional context and domestic determinants of U.S. Foreign Policy

Thought Paper 4 Due

H Chapter 7

Tues Oct 9

Institutional context and domestic determinants of U.S. Foreign Policy

H Chapter 8

Thur Oct 11

Institutional context and domestic determinants of U.S. Foreign Policy

Thought Paper 5 Due

H Chapter 9

Tues Oct 16

U.S. Security Policy

H Chapter 10

Thur Oct 18

U.S. Security Policy

Thought Paper 6 Due

H Chapter 10

Tues Oct 23

U.S. Security Policy

GH Unit 7

Thur Oct 25

U.S. Security Policy – Case Study Syria

Thought Paper 7 Due

Articles to be emailed to Students One week prior

Tues Oct 30

Midterm Examination

Study Study Study

Thur Nov 1

The War in Iraq

Thought Paper 8 Due

GH Unit 8

Tues Nov 6

No Class

None

Thur Nov 8

The War in Afghanistan

GH Unit 6

Tues Nov 13

Go Over Midterm Exam

Thur Nov 15

U.S. Economic Policy

Thought Paper 9 Due

J Chapter 6

Tues Nov 20

Fall Break

None

Thur Nov 22

Fall Break

None

Tues Nov 27

U.S. Economic Policy

H Chapter 11

Thur Nov 29

U.S. Economic Policy

Thought Paper 10 Due

GH Unit 6

Tues Dec 4

Obama’s Foreign Policy

M Intro and Prologue

GH Unit 1

Thur Dec 6

Obama’s Foreign Policy

Thought Paper 11 Due

M Chapter 1

Tues Dec 11

Obama’s Foreign Policy

M Epilogue and Conclusions

Review Syria Articles

Thur 13 Dec

Catch up and review for Final Exam

Thought Paper 12 Due

Come prepared with questions

Wed 19 Dec

Take Home Final Exam Due

Study, Study, Study

 

Key:

(S&B) Donald Snow & Eugene Brown (2000), United States’ Foreign Policy: Politics Beyond the Water’s Edge, 2nd Ed. Boston: Bedford St. Martin’s Press.

(M) James Mann (2012), The Obamians: The Struggle inside the White House to Redefine American Power. New York: Viking.

(J) Lloyd Jensen (1982), Explaining Foreign Policy. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice Hall Pub.

(H) Steven W. Hook (2011), U.S. Foreign Policy: The Paradox of World Power, 3rd Ed. Washington DC: CQ Press.

(GH) Glenn P. Hastedt (2011), American Foreign Policy Annual Editions 11/12. New York: McGraw Hill Pub.

 

 

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION:

 

CELLULAR TELEPHONE/LAPTOP COMPUTER POLICY

Needless to say, all cellular phones must be turned off and put away at the beginning of each class meeting. Classes failing to comply will be issued a stern warning on the first occasion. The entire class will have a pop quiz over the previous reading assignments/lectures on the second and subsequent occurrences. Phones, PDAs, MP3 players and Blackberrys will not be out on desks or used during any quiz or examination. Laptop computers will be allowed in class, I still believe that they can assist learning in the classroom. However, if abuse of the privilege appears to be a distraction in class, then they will be banned.

 

Students With Disabilities

If you qualify for accommodations because of a disability, please submit to me a letter from Disability Services in a timely manner so that your needs be addressed. Disability Services determines accommodations based on documented disabilities. Contact: 303-492-8671, Willard 322, and www.Colorado.EDU/disabilityservices 
Disability Services' letters for students with disabilities indicate legally mandated reasonable accommodations. The syllabus statements and answers to Frequently Asked Questions can be found at www.colorado.edu/disabilityservices

 

Cheating and Plagiarism

Cheating (using unauthorized materials or giving unauthorized assistance during an examination or other academic exercise) and plagiarism (using another's ideas or words without acknowledgment) are serious offenses in a university, and may result in a failing grade for a particular assignment, a failing grade for the course, and/or suspension for various lengths of time or permanent expulsion from the university. All students of the University of Colorado at Boulder are responsible for knowing and adhering to the academic integrity policy of this institution. Violations of this policy may include: cheating, plagiarism, aid of academic dishonesty, fabrication, lying, bribery, and threatening behavior. All incidents of academic misconduct shall be reported to the Honor Code Council (honor@colorado.edu; 303-725-2273). Students who are found to be in violation of the academic integrity policy will be subject to both academic sanctions from the faculty member and non-academic sanctions (including but not limited to university probation, suspension, or expulsion). Other information on the Honor Code can be found at http://www.colorado.edu/policies/honor.html and at http://www.colorado.edu/academics/honorcode/

 

The development of the Internet has provided students with historically unparalleled opportunities for conducting research swiftly and comprehensively. The availability of these materials does not, however, release the student from appropriately citing sources where appropriate; or applying standard rules associated with avoiding plagiarism. Specifically, the instructor will be expecting to review papers written by students drawing ideas and information from various sources (cited appropriately), presented generally in the student’s words after careful analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. An assembly of huge blocks of other individuals' existing material, even when cited, does not constitute an appropriate representation of this expectation. Uncited, plagiarized material shall be treated as academically dishonest, and the paper will be assigned an ‘F’ as a result.  Papers submitted by any student, written in part or in whole by someone other than that student, shall be considered to constitute fraud under the University Honor Code, and result in the assignment of an 'F' for the entire course. If the student is confused as to what constitutes plagiarism, he/she should review the CU Honor Code on this topic. If you have any questions regarding proper documentation in your writing, please discuss it with your instructor.

 

RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCES

The university has received valid complaints from students regarding the lack of adequate faculty accommodation for some students who have serious religious obligations, which may conflict with academic requirements such as scheduled exams. Campus policy regarding religious observances requires that faculty make every effort to deal reasonably and fairly with all students who, because of religious obligations, have conflicts with scheduled exams, assignments or required attendance. In this class, any notification of absence by email constitutes and excused absence. See full details at: http://www.colorado.edu/policies/fac_relig.html 
A comprehensive calendar of the religious holidays most commonly observed by CU-Boulder students is at http://www.interfaithcalendar.org/

 

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

The University of Colorado Policy on Sexual Harassment applies to all students, staff and faculty. Sexual harassment is unwelcome sexual attention. It can involve intimidation, threats, coercion, or promises or create an environment that is hostile or offensive. Harassment may occur between members of the same or opposite gender and between any combination of members in the campus community: students, faculty, staff, and administrators. Harassment can occur anywhere on campus, including the classroom, the workplace, or a residence hall. Any student, staff or faculty member who believes s/he has been sexually harassed should contact the Office of Sexual Harassment (OSH) at 303-492-2127 or the Office of Judicial Affairs at 303-492-5550. Information about the OSH and the campus resources available to assist individuals who believe they have been sexually harassed can be obtained at http://www.colorado.edu/odh/

 

 

BASIC COURTESY TO YOUR CLASSMATE AND YOUR INSTRUCTORS

Please arrive on time and do not leave early.  If you absolutely must leave early, please let me know at the beginning of class and sit near a door so you do not cause too much disruption. Similarly, if arriving late, please take a seat as quickly and quietly as possible. Take care of all your business before class begins; do not leave and return during class as this creates a disturbance to others.

 

Taking this course signifies acceptance of the terms and conditions stated in this syllabus.