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Exam Scores
"Will Brookhaven Destroy the World? Probably Not."

Catalog Description

Prerequisite: None • Skills Advisory: Eligibility for English 1. This course surveys major analytical approaches to the study of international relations and analyzes contemporary issues in world politics. The class gives special emphasis to war and the emergence of new global problems (e.g., the world environment) and how these problems might transform world politics in the 21st century. Classes will be geared toward lecture and discussion.

This course satisfies IGETC Area 4 (Social & Behavioral Sciences) requirements.

Textbooks

Stevel L. Spiegel, et. al. 2004. World Politics in a New Era, 3rd. ed. Belmont, CA.: Wadsworth.--REQUIRED

Hermann Kinder and Werner Hilgemann. 2003. The Penguin Atlas of World History Volume 2: From the French Revolution to the Present, updated edition. London: Penguin.--RECOMMENDED

Foreign affairs links.

Grading

Student success in this class will require an ability to: (1) master important facts about the history and politics of the modern states system; (2) apply analytical and critical thinking to historical and contemporary world political issues; (3) read and write English prose at the college level.

Please be aware that there may be mistakes in the answer keys in the textbook companion site on the Internet. Please use these materials carefully. You are responsible for information in the textbook, not the companion website.

Grades will be based on three exams and a final. The exams will comprise multiple choice questions and essays. Students should bring a Scantron Mini Essay Book, form no. 886-E, and a No. 2 pencil to class for the exams unless instructed otherwise. In addition, students must bring a Santa Monica College photo identification card for each exam; no student will be allowed to take an exam without an I.D.

Your exam essays will be graded on their substance and your ability to express yourself in clear, concise, grammatically correct, college level English prose. Students may use dictionaries with the permission of Dr. Buckley; electronic dictionaries are not permitted during exams.

The Final Exam will be conducted at a time scheduled by the College (see the College Exam Schedule as published in The Schedule of Classes). The exam will be cumulative and comprise multiple choice questions only. Many Final Exam questions will come from the first three exams. The Final will last approximately one hour; students arriving 30 minutes or more late for the Final Exam may not be allowed to take it. Bring a Scantron form 882 and a No. 2 pencil with you for the Final Exam.

Dr. Buckley will return graded exams as quickly as possible. Unclaimed exams will be retained for only two weeks, after which they will be discarded.

Each of the exams is worth 25 percent of your course grade. The exam schedule and reading assignments are listed below. Dates of the exams are tentative. A standard grade scale will be used. Make-up exams will not be offered without a written request and documented evidence of an unavoidable emergency. The deadline for submitting a make-up request is 3 p.m., Wednesday, November 30. All make-ups without exception will be given on Friday, December 9, from 9:00-10:30am. Please note that make-up exams will be in a different form than the regular exams; make-ups comprise objective short-answer questions, which are generally much more difficult than multiple-choice and essay questions. In addition, extra credit assignments will not be offered and course grades of "I" (incomplete) will be given only in accordance with college policies.

Withdrawals from this class are the sole responsibility of the student. Students withdrawing after Sunday, October 23, will receive an "F" if they are not earning at least a "C" grade and no student may withdraw after Friday, November 18.

Participation in class discussions is encouraged but not graded as such. Students whose participation exceeds the expectations of the instructor may receive special consideration in "borderline" grade situations at the end of the semester. Tape recordings of the Lecture are not permitted without the prior permission of Dr. Buckley. Finally, students are bound by the College's Code of Academic Conduct and Reporting Policy (AR 5312.1-121791), a copy of which is available from the College Disciplinarian, Ms. Judith Penchansky, (310) 434-4655.

Dr. Buckley will be available in his office on Monday and Wednesday, 2 to 3 p.m., and on Tuesday from 7 to 11 a.m., or by appointment. Dr. Buckley is not available to meet with students in-between classes.

Class Assignments Fall 2005

August 29, Introduction to World Politics, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 1.
August 31, Introduction, continued.
September 5, Labor Day--No Class
September 7, Theory and the Levels of Analysis, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 2.
September 12, Realism
September 14, Liberalism;The Bush Doctrine.
September 19, International Class Conflict

FIRST EXAM--Wednesday, September 21

September 26, Origins of the Modern State System, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 4; Penguin Atlas, pp. 11-98.
September 28, Origins of the Modern State System, continued.
October 3, World War I and World War II, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 5; Penguin Atlas, pp. 122-217.
October 5, World War I and World War II, continued.
October 10, World War I and World War II, continued.
October 12, World War I and World War II, continued. Nickolay Palchikoff, "The Nuclear August of 1945," The New York Times.
October 17, The Cold War, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 6; Penguin Atlas, pp. 218-329.
October 19, The Cold War, continued.

Sunday, October 23--Last day to drop without a grade check.

SECOND EXAM--Monday, October 24

October 26, International Security, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 9; Zalmay M. Khalilzad, "From Containment to Global Leadership?" RAND; Thom Shanker and Eric Schmitt, "Pentagon Weighs Strategy Change to Deter Terror;" Francis Fukuyama, "Invasion of the Isolationists."
October 31, International Security, continued.
November 2, International Law and International Organizations, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 11.
November 7, International Law and International Organizations, continued.
November 9, International Law and International Organizations, continued.
November 14, International Law and International Organizations, continued.

THIRD EXAM--Wednesday, November 16

Friday, November 18--Last day to drop.

November 21, Introduction to International Economics, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 3.
November 23, The World Economy, continued, Spiegel, et. al.
November 28, The World Economy, Spiegel, et. al, Chap. 7.
November 30, The World Economy, continued.

Deadline for Submitting Makeup Request Wednesday, November 30, 3:00 p.m.
December 5, The World Economy, Spiegel, at. al., Chap. 8.
December 7, The World Economy, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 10.

Makeup Exams
Friday, December 9, 9:00-10:30 a.m.
Location: to be announced

December 12, Globalization and The Future World Order, Spiegel, et. al., Chap. 12 and Chap. 13