COURSE INFORMATION Course Title: INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL SCIENCES

Code	Course Type	Regular Semester	Theory	Practice	Lab	Credits	ECTS
PIR 111	B	1	2	2	0	3	5

Academic staff member responsible for the design of the course syllabus (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature)	Dr. Avdi Smajljaj asmajljaj@epoka.edu.al
Main Course Lecturer (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) and Office Hours:	Dr. Avdi Smajljaj asmajljaj@epoka.edu.al
Second Course Lecturer(s) (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) and Office Hours:	NA
Language:	English
Compulsory/Elective:	Compulsory
Study program: (the study for which this course is offered)	Bachelor in Political Science and International Relations (3 years)
Classroom and Meeting Time:
Teaching Assistant(s) and Office Hours:	NA
Code of Ethics:	Code of Ethics of EPOKA University Regulation of EPOKA University "On Student Discipline"
Attendance Requirement:
Course Description:	Introduction political science is a core entry level course. It introduces the study of politics, its methodology and boundaries. Topics include core concepts of political science and how to study politics scientifically using various methods and theories. Some of these main concepts are: democracy, political systems, political culture, political participation, parties, and pressure groups, voting behavior, executives, legislative, judiciary etc. Theoretical explanations are based on and documented in political practice. Completing of this course should give students the ability of orientation in the political reality.
Course Objectives:

BASIC CONCEPTS OF THE COURSE

1	Politics
2	Power
3	Institutions
4	State
5	Ideologies
6	Political behavior
7	Political attitudes

COURSE OUTLINE

Week	Topics
1	-Class introduction, syllabus and requirements (2 hrs); What is Politics? (2 hrs). The students are introduced to the syllabus of the course, brief content, reading materials, evaluation methods, learning outcomes of the course, and other course policies. In the second part of the class the students will be introduced to the defining features of politics as an activity, how has ‘politics’ been understood by various thinkers and traditions, what are the main approaches to the study of politics as an academic discipline, can the study of politics be scientific, what roles do concepts, models and theories play in political analysis, how have globalizing trends affected the relationship between politics and international relations. (Heywood 1-25).
2	-What is Politics? (1 hr); Political Ideas and Ideologies (3hrs). The students will be introduced to the defining features of politics as an activity, how has ‘politics’ been understood by various thinkers and traditions, what are the main approaches to the study of politics as an academic discipline, can the study of politics be scientific, what roles do concepts, models and theories play in political analysis, how have globalizing trends affected the relationship between politics and international relations (Heywood 1-25). In the second part of the class the students will be introduced to the issues of what is political ideology, is politics intrinsically linked to ideology, can ideology come to an end, what are the key ideas and theories of the major ideological traditions, what internal tensions do each of the major ideologies encompass, has ideological thought changed over time, how can the rise and fall of ideologies be explained, among others (Heywood 26-55).
3	-Political Ideas and Ideologies (1 hr); Politics and the State (3 hrs); The students will be introduced to the issues of what is political ideology, is politics intrinsically linked to ideology, can ideology come to an end, what are the key ideas and theories of the major ideological traditions, what internal tensions do each of the major ideologies encompass, has ideological thought changed over time, how can the rise and fall of ideologies be explained, among others (Heywood 26-55). In the second part the students will be introduced to the issues of what is the state, and why does it play such a crucial role in politics, how has state power been analysed and explained, is the state a force for good or a force for evil, what roles have been assigned to the state, how have responsibilities been apportioned between the state and civil society, to what extent does politics now operate outside or beyond the state (Heywood 57-78).
4	-Democracy and Legitimacy (3 hrs); Regimes of the Modern World (1 hr). The students will be introduced to the issues of how do states maintain legitimacy, are modern societies facing a crisis of legitimation, why is political legitimacy so often linked to the claim to be democratic, what are the core features of democratic rule, what models of democratic rule have been advanced, how do democratic systems operate in practice (Heywood 79-108).
5	-Regimes of the Modern World (2hrs); Nations and Nationalism (1hr); Debate on Democracy Chapter (1hr). The students will be introduced to the issues of what is the difference between governments, political systems and regimes, what is the purpose of classifying systems of government, on what basis have, and should, regimes be classified, what are the systems of rule in the modern world, does the future belong to democracy or authoritarianism (Heywood 110-129).
6	-Nations and Nationalism (2hrs); Politics, Society and Identity (2 hrs); First Quiz. The students will be introduced to the issues of what is a nation, how do cultural nationalism and political nationalism differ, how can the emergence and growth of nationalism be explained, what political forms has nationalism assumed, what causes has it articulated, what are the attractions or strengths of the nation-state, does the nation-state have a future? (Heywood 130-150).
7	-Politics, Society and Identity (1hr); Political Culture and the Media (3 hrs). The students will be introduced to the issues of what have been the political implications of the emergence of postindustrial societies, is the ‘information society’ a myth or a reality, how has the growth of individualism affected community and social cohesion, why has the politics of identity become so prominent in recent years, how have race and ethnicity, gender, religion and culture provided the basis for identity politics, is identity politics a liberating force or a political dead-end, how do individuals and groups acquire their political attitudes and values, do democratic regimes depend on the existence of a distinctive ‘civic culture’, are modern societies characterized by free competition between values and ideas, or by a ‘dominant’ culture, how has the relationship between politics and the media been understood, has the use of social media revolutionized the media’s political role, do we now live in a ‘post-truth’ world. (Heywood 174-217).
8	-Representation, Elections and Voting (3 hrs); Parties and Party Systems (1 hr). The students will be introduced to the issues of what is representation, how can one person ‘represent’ another, how can representation be achieved in practice, what do elections do, what are their functions, how do electoral systems differ, what are their strengths and weaknesses, what do election results mean, why do people vote as they do, how can voting behaviour be explained, what is a political party. how can parties be classified, what are the key functions of political parties, how are parties organized, and where is power located within them, what kinds of party system are there, how does the party system shape the broader political process, are parties in decline, and is this decline terminal. (Heywood 2018-268).
9	-Midterm Exam
10	-Groups, Interests and Movements (3 hrs); Constitutions, Law and Judges (1 hr). The students will be introduced to the issues of what are interest groups, and what different forms do they take, what have been the major theories of group politics, do groups help or hinder democracy and effective government, how do interest groups exert influence, what determines the success or failure of interest groups, why have new social movements emerged, and what is their broader significance. (Heywood 269-291).
11	-Constitutions, Law and Judges (2 hr); Political Executives and Leadership (2 hrs); Second Quiz. The students will be introduced to the issues of what is a constitution, and what forms can it take, what is the purpose of a constitution, to what extent do constitutions shape political practice, what is the relationship between law and politics, what is the political significance of the courts, can judges keep out of politics, should judges keep out of politics. (Heywood 295 - 315).
12	-Political Executives and Leadership (1hr); Assemblies (2hrs); Debate on Political Leadership (or another alternative can be decided during the class) (1 hr). The students will be introduced to the issues of What is the executive branch of government, what does it comprise, what are the principal functions of political executives, how do presidential executives differ from parliamentary executives, where does power lie in political executives, how should political leadership be understood and explained, is there a crisis of leadership in modern politics, what is an assembly, how do parliamentary and presidential ones affect the role of the assembly, what are the main functions of assemblies, how are assemblies organized, and how do their internal structures differ, what are the principal determinants of parliamentary power, why have assemblies declined, does this decline matter. (Heywood 315-364)
13	Multilevel Politics (4 hrs). The students will be introduced to the issues of why does politics always have a territorial dimension, what is multilevel governance, how successfully do federal and unitary systems of government reconcile territorial and other differences, why has transnational regionalism grown in prominence, how does regionalism in Europe differ from regionalism in other parts of the world, does regionalism offer an alternative to nationalism. (Heywood 295-315).
14	Course revision

Prerequisite(s):
Textbook(s):	1-Andrew Heywood, Politics, Fifth Edition, London: Red Globe Press, 2019. 2- R. Garner, P. Ferdinand & S. Lawson, Introduction to Politics, Second Ed. Oxford: OUP, 2012 3-Michael G. Roskin, Robert L. Cord, James A. Medeiros, Walter S. Jones. Political Science: An Introduction Fourteenth edition, New York and London: Pearson, 2017
Additional Literature:	1-Douglas A. Van Belle and Kenneth M. Mash, A Novel Approach to Politics, Washington DC: CQ Press,20102- B. Axford; G. Browing; R. Huggins, B. Rosamand; An introduction to Politics, 2nd Edition; London and New York: Routledge, 2002 3- R.E. Goodin; H.D. Klingemonn; A New Handbook of Political Sciences; Oxford: Oxford University Press;1998
Laboratory Work:
Computer Usage:
Others:	No

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES

1	To demonstrate understanding of key concepts and theories in political science
2	To explain the determinants of political attitudes
3	To follow national and international politics
4	To understand various governmental and non-governmental actors involved in political process
5	To gain knowledge of various research methods in political and social sciences
6	To identify and analyze political beliefs and behavior
7	To formulate his/her own ideas and possible solutions for individual life and for issues in the society

COURSE CONTRIBUTION TO... PROGRAM COMPETENCIES (Blank : no contribution, 1: least contribution ... 5: highest contribution)

No	Program Competencies	Cont.
Bachelor in Political Science and International Relations (3 years) Program
1	Having and using advanced knowledge and comprehension supported by textbooks including actual knowledge in political sciences and international relations literature, materials and the other scientific resources.	4
2	Analyzing data, ideas and concepts of current political issues and international relations, determining complex events and topics, making discussions and developing new suggestions in accordance with researches.	5
3	Having knowledge and thought about actual topics and problems together with their historical, social and cultural aspects.	4
4	Introducing those who are interested in politics and international events with the topics of Political Science and IR and teaching clearly the problems and the types of solutions.	5
5	Improving skills of working together with the main social science disciplines and other disciplines which are related to Political Science and International Relations.	5
6	Improving critical thinking and skills in making research independently.	5
7	Developing solutions about the problems and conflicts which are common in national and international arena.	4
8	Improving skills for leadership and research and analyze capacity of those who is responsible with national and international ones.	4
9	Knowing any foreign language enough to communicate with colleagues and understand actual researches and articles.	3
10	Gaining IT skills to use computer and technology) in order to reach actual knowledge.	3
11	Gaining skills to follow societal, scientific and ethic values during collecting, interpreting, conducting of data related to social and political developments.	4
12	Having consciousness about human rights and environment.	4
13	Gaining the skills to follow actual developments and pursue long-life learning.	5

COURSE EVALUATION METHOD

Method	Quantity	Percentage
Midterm Exam(s)	1	30
Quiz	2	5
Final Exam	1	40
Attendance		10
Other	2	5
	Total Percent:	100%

ECTS (ALLOCATED BASED ON STUDENT WORKLOAD)

Activities	Quantity	Duration(Hours)	Total Workload(Hours)
Course Duration (Including the exam week: 16x Total course hours)	16	4	64
Hours for off-the-classroom study (Pre-study, practice)	16	2	32
Mid-terms	1	10	10
Assignments	1	4	4
Final examination	1	15	15
Other			0
Total Work Load:			125
Total Work Load/25(h):			5
ECTS Credit of the Course:			5

CONCLUDING REMARKS BY THE COURSE LECTURER