 Course Introduction

Time: 111 hours

College Credit Recommended

Free Certificate

 This is a survey course, and it can be used if you are looking to take just one general
overview course of political science or if you want to go on to more advanced study
in any of the subfields of the discipline, such as American politics, comparative
politics, international politics, or political theory. This course will survey the different
ways in which political scientists study the phenomena of politics and will deepen
your understanding of political life as both a thinker and a citizen. The goal of this
course is to introduce you to the discipline's concepts, terminology, and methods
and to explore instances of applied political science through real-world examples.
 As an introductory course, POLSC101 will focus on the basic principles of political
science by combining a historical study of the discipline's greatest thinkers with an
analysis of contemporary issues. We will also identify and discuss the questions that
drive the field of political science, including: How do we define the changing nature
of power? How do we differentiate between legitimate and illegitimate governance?
What are the differences between political institutions and political behavior? How
do leaders define who gets to be heard and counted in a political community? By the
end of this course, you will be familiar with these issues and capable of discussing
them in the context of contemporary politics.
 First, read the course syllabus. Then, enroll in the course by clicking "Enroll me
in this course". Click Unit 1 to read its introduction and learning outcomes. You
will then see the learning materials and instructions on how to use them.

o Course SyllabusPage
 Unit 1: Foundational Concepts of Politics

Our study of politics will begin with a review of the basic principles of politics and
various perspectives on how we define politics and its domain. We will discuss the
changing notion of politics over time and across cultures as we work towards a
definition.
 This unit will lay the framework for the remaining five units in this course. A confident
and solid grasp of the principles presented in this unit is therefore crucial to your
progression through the remainder of the course. You will find, for example, that
each of the five subsequent units will conclude with a discussion of how the
principles you have learned and the issues you have identified apply to a
contemporary, real-life situation. You will need to draw from the foundational
material you have learned in this unit in order to respond to these applied situations.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 11 hours.

 Unit 2: Participation and Public Opinion

In this unit, we will look at the participation of citizens in their governments. We are
all born into political culture, and our political socialization begins as young as age 3,
when we first learn our attitudes toward police officers. Think back on your
childhood. Did you hear your mom or dad say, "If you ever get lost, find a police
officer, and they will bring you home", or did you hear "Oh no! Slow down! It's the
cops!"? One gives you a good feeling toward police, and authority in general, while
the other instills fear.

Our environment continues to shape our political opinions as we grow, and when we
become eligible to vote, we also decide whether to join parties or interest groups or
even whether or not to participate in political marches or other forms of protest.
Some of us may grow up in a political void and feel alienated, while others try to use
the government to promote racist and hate-filled agendas; when their voices are
rejected, or even "silenced", they feel disenfranchised and resort to violence. In a
democracy, hearing everyone's voice is the goal, even if we do not like what our
fellow citizens are saying.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 25 hours.

 Unit 3: Ideologies

In this unit, we will be looking at the ideologies of the state and its citizens. Some of
these ideologies reflect more on the state, others on the people and their political
parties, and others overlap the two. Some of these ideologies have only come into
existence in the twentieth century, while others go back hundreds of years. Some
ideologies mean one thing in the United States and something different from the
rest of the world, such as for liberalism. The following subunit covers many of the
traditional and best-known ideologies, however, the list is not all-inclusive.
 Historically, the political spectrum was seen as one-dimensional, left and right,
representing the government's position on the economic and defense issues of the
day. But in the twentieth century, the New Deal and other social issues led to the
creation of another dimension, confusing many who were trying to understand
where they stood on both the economic/defense issues and social issues. At the end
of this unit, you will be able to take a test and see where your political views fall on
the multidimensional political spectrum.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 30 hours.

 Unit 4: The State

In this unit, we will look at the state, a relatively new creation. What is a state? What
is the difference between a nation and a state? Are states sovereign? Who controls
the state? What is the role of the state? Do states have a future? These are the types
of questions that will be explored in this unit.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 5 hours.

 Unit 5: Political Institutions

This unit looks at the various forms of government a country can adopt and how
government forms the foundations of the institutions that countries build. Although
this course tries to give a global perspective on government, a lot of the specifics we
will look at will be from the perspective of the United States.

The Max Planck Manual has a global perspective and was written for the people of
the Sudan as they contemplate and hope for a future of democracy and stability. If
you were from the Sudan, which would you chose: federal or unitary relationships
between the central government and the local governments; a president or a prime
minister to lead; legislature or a parliament to make laws? And what difference does
it make, anyway? This unit will explore these types of questions.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 20 hours.

 Unit 6: International Politics

This unit traces the emergence of a world system of states from the Treaty of
Westphalia (1648), which first standardized the conditions for peace among states,
through the colonial period and into contemporary globalization. We will see that
global governance has its roots both in the economic interests of states and a
general aversion to war. For instance, you will learn how economic interests led
 European powers to expand their political control over – and ultimately establish
formal colonies in – Africa, the Americas, and Asia. European powers used their
colonies both to extract raw materials for the industrial revolution in Europe and the
United States and to export excess segments of their own populations. From an
economic perspective, European colonization was exchanging excess Europeans for
raw materials like lumber, steel, tea, and crops. This pattern of exchange has led to
complex political dynamics across state borders, the implications of which continue
to be felt today.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 20 hours.

 Study Guide

This study guide will help you get ready for the final exam. It discusses the key topics
in each unit, walks through the learning outcomes, and lists important vocabulary. It
is not meant to replace the course materials!

This introductory course will offer a broad survey of the discipline of Political Science. It will enable students to
claim that political science may be considered a science. The course aims to help students explain institutionaliz
separate role of the legislative, executive and judiciary branches of the government, the functions of political pa
relations. By the end of the course, students should have a basic understanding of political institutions and proce

Textbook

Additional Literature

Learning Outcomes