Political Science 597 Contentious Politics1 Fall 2020
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Political Science 597 Contentious Politics1 Fall 2020 Tuesdays 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Zoom Prof. Lee Ann Banaszak Office Hours: W 2 p.m.- 4p.m. Remote only and by appointment E-Mail: [email protected] COURSE DESCRIPTION Social movements, protest, revolutions, contentious politics: despite the differing labels these phenomena are often explored by a cohesive group of scholars. This course explores the nature of these forms of political behavior. We will look at the major theories that sociologists and political scientists have created to explain the mobilization and outcomes of social movements. How do we explain why people participate in protest or other types of social movements? Why is it that some people never revolt although observers would say they are as bad off as others that do? What sorts of factors determine the tactics people will use once they decide something must be done? Can governments repress revolutions or social movements? What determines whether a social movement or revolution is successful? We will also critically assess theories and concepts. Are these theories and concepts well defined? What are the mechanisms by which they operate and the scope conditions where they are found? How can we best assess competing theories? In examining these questions, we will read theoretical works, quantitative studies comparing many different social movements and case studies of particular social movements and revolutions comparatively but also in the United States. By the end of this course, you should have a good grasp of the theoretical debates about social movements, the methods which have been used to study social movements, and you will have cursory knowledge of several different revolutions and social movements ranging from the East German 1989 revolution to the American women’s movement. You should also be able to employ this knowledge in developing your own research. REQUIRED READINGS. We will be reading selections from books and numerous articles. I have copies that I will make available via CANVAS. Students may also have to acquire supplementary readings on their own. COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADES. 1 This syllabus is a living document, and is subject to change. In particular, I reserve the right to change readings and topics to reflect the interests of our class. I will announce when a change in syllabus occurs. This particular draft has not been proofread and likely contains errors; I will let you know when the true draft is up. 1 Student Responsibilities: The class will meet Tuesday from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. This course will be in seminar format which means that each individual student is responsible for completing the readings prior to the class meetings, and for contributing to the discussion of the material. For this reason, participation in class discussion is a significant portion of your final grade. Grades: Grades will be determined using the following criteria: a) Class Participation and weekly discussion questions 20% b) Supplementary reading paper and presentation 15% c) Pre-proposal with annotated bibliography 10% d) Presentation of initial proposal draft 10% e) Final proposal draft 35% f) Review of other proposals 10% a) Class Participation: As a seminar class, participation is essential to the success of this class. For that reason, except in case of serious illness, you are expected to participate in each and every class. Remote Attendance is mandatory and after the first unexcused absence, students will have their grade reduced for every additional absence. If you are so ill that you cannot participate remotely please let me know prior to class. Those participating remotely must have their video feed on at all times. Participation is graded on a weekly basis based on the discussion questions submitted by the student (see b) and your contributions to the class discussion. Contributions to the class discussion are assessed by both the frequency to which you contribute to the discussion and the degree to which your comments contribute to the overall quality of the class discussion. Contributions to the class discussion require understanding the readings and being conversant in the theory and methods presented by each author. To allow opportunities for everyone to participate, I will sometimes (respectfully) call on people or cut people off to allow participation from a wider range of participants. b) Weekly Discussion Questions: Learning to develop good discussion questions is a great asset for teaching any subject. For that reason, each week you are required to submit to me 5 questions with which we should frame our discussion. These are due by 8:30 a.m. of the day of class. Only 1-2 of these should be focused on single readings and as the class advances you should aim to write questions that reach across the weeks, and major themes of the course. Questions will be graded on their centrality to the class material and their quality as a discussion questions. If you are unsure what constitutes a good discussion question see https://teachingcommons.stanford.edu/resources/teaching/student-teacher- communication/designing-effective-discussion-questions. c) Supplemental Reading Presentations and Critical Review Essays: You should sign up to present a supplementary work and write a critical review essay in one of the weeks of the semester. In this week you will write a written a six to eight page critical review of the work (due to the CANVAS drop box before class) and give a ten to fifteen minute presentation to the other students. Both the presentation and the critical review essay should outline the significant theoretical or empirical contributions, explains how it fits 2 into the larger debates in the literature, and discusses the theoretical, empirical, and policy/normative implications of the research. In any particular week, supplemental readings will either be already assigned or chosen in consultation with me. During these presentations, the professor will act as a “panel chair," indicating the time that has passed in the presentation, and because students in the audience will be expected to know enough about the reading to include it in the discussion that follows, your fellow students will also be asking questions if they need more information or require something to be clarified. Presenters will be graded on the accuracy, clarity, and completeness of their presentations, as well as their understanding of the major theoretical and empirical contributions of the work (see how to read an article below). Critical Review Essays: You are expected to write a six to eight page (double-spaced) critical review essay of the supplemental reading you present. These papers are due by 8:30 a.m. on the day the class meets. You must choose the days in advance by signing up on the google doc and you must choose the text in consultation with me. A critical review essay places examines a texts contribution to the larger field and uses the text to discuss where a field is going or should go. Such an essay provides the reader with an overview of the most significant points raised by the author but also devotes at least as much space to a critical discussion of the text. Critical review essays are often published in the form of book reviews or overview pieces of the discipline (see the Tarrow piece in week 1, and the Fearon and Laitin piece in Week 12. I’ll provide other published examples in the Resources Module). The best critical review essays provide critical examinations of readings with an understanding of how they contribute to the literature, focus on larger questions of concept definition, theoretical mechanisms, scope questions or major issues of research design rather than questions of statistical estimation, acknowledge theoretical or methodological achievements and weaknesses that might lead to future research, or consider the usefulness of the theoretical or methodological approach in understanding other political phenomena. A good rule of thumb is that only a half of your words should be devoted to summary while the other half should develop the critical discussion. I highly recommend that as you write you review some critical review essays for form and that you utilize Andrew Polsky’s (former editor of Polity) excellent description of a critical review essay (see Resources Module). d) Pre-proposal with Annotated Bibliography: a research description of your research proposal of 1000-1500 words and an additional annotated bibliography of at least 10 works relevant to the research project (not including readings assigned in class) is due Tuesday October 20th by midnight. Grades will be assessed based on the thoroughness of the research on related literature, the quality of the annotated bibliography (describing how the pieces fit into theory and substantive interests), and the overall contribution of the research to the fields of social movements, comparative politics, American politics, and/or International Relations. e) Research Proposal: You are required to write one research proposal paper and present this proposal to the class. These papers are due Tuesday, December 1st by noon in Canvas. Because papers will be distributed to fellow students for review, only titles 3 should appear on your submissions and late papers will be penalized a grade level (e.g. from B+ to a B)!! Students will receive initial paper grades on Wednesday December 9th. Those students wishing to increase their grade have the option of rewriting according to the comments they receive as long as the paper is returned by Wednesday December 16th by midnight. Resubmissions are uploaded to the same canvas assignment box as the originals. f) Proposal reviews: You will be required to provide written reviews on three other students’ research proposals. You will be expected to review the proposal like an evaluator using the criteria provided by NSF.