Current Issues in Public Policy - JSM703

• Title: Current Issues in Public Policy
• Guaranteed by: Department of Public and Social Policy (23-KVSP)
• Faculty: Faculty of Social Sciences
• Actual: from 2024
• Semester: winter
• E-Credits: 4
• Examination process: winter s.:
• Hours per week, examination: winter s.:1/0, Ex [HT]
• Capacity: 15 / unknown (20)
• Min. number of students: 8
• 4EU+: no
• Virtual mobility / capacity: no
• State of the course: taught
• Language: English
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Additional information: https://dl1.cuni.cz/course/view.php?id=5152
• Note: course can be enrolled in outside the study plan; enabled for web enrollment; priority enrollment if the course is part of the study plan
• Guarantor: prof. PhDr. Arnošt Veselý, Ph.D.
• Teacher(s): prof. PhDr. Arnošt Veselý, Ph.D.
• Class: Courses for incoming students

Annotation

This year, the course will address some of the current issues of public policy raised by the continuing war in Ukraine and political developments in the United States. The course will also consider the importance of truth, freedom of speech, and regulation of the internet. The focus will be on exploring public policy issues in a broader political context.
Moodle:
https://dl1.cuni.cz/enrol/instances.php?id=5152
Password: 2024

Last update: Veselý Arnošt, prof. PhDr., Ph.D. (19.09.2024)

Literature

Required:
Snyder, Timothy. 2017. On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century.New York: Tim Duggan Books. (2017), published in both English and Czech

Other suggested readings will be available in moodle

 

Last update: Jusić Mirna, M.A., Ph.D. (26.02.2024)

Requirements to the exam

For passing the course it is necessary to fulfill all requirements formulated below, i.e., class participation and final paper.

 

Class participation

- Students are required to attend in person all 3 classes and be prepared to participate in class discussions and exercises.

 

 

Final essay

-       At the end of the course, a student is required to write a short paper in which he/she will choose an issue of public policy (from several to be provided), argue both sides and make a conclusion.

-       The approximate length of the paper is 5 double spaced pages, in English.

-       Deadline for the paper is January 13, 2025, 16.00

-       The final paper must be uploaded via Moodle.

 

Grading 

The final essays will be graded A-F according to the following criteria:

-       Structure, organization and internal coherence of the essay

-       Insight into the topic, originality and use of evidence

-       Clarity of arguments 

-       Formal aspects (references with page citations)

Citations should reference the page and chapter of the cited text. Yes, I know that is more work!  

 

Schedule: Week of 14-18 October 2024, Jinonice

 

Day	Time	Room
Tuesday 15/10	17.00-19.50	B103B
Wednesday 16/10	15.30-18.20	B103B
Friday 18/10	12.30-15.20	B103B

 

Deadline for submitting the final essay: January 13, 2025

Last update: Veselý Arnošt, prof. PhDr., Ph.D. (19.09.2024)

Syllabus

Course Outline

1. The War in Ukraine

○      Background

○      20th Century History

○      State of the War

○      Global Effects

○      Ukraine’s Allies

○      Q&A: Questions and Answers

1. America, Democracy, and Trump

○      Cases against Trump

○      2024 Presidential Elections

○      Q&A

1. Partisan Divide and the Culture War

○      Partisanship in the US

○      The Supreme Court

○      Guns: Justin Jones, Joan Baez, and Václav Havel

○      Q&A

1. Truth and Free Speech

○      What is Truth?

○      Free Speech

○      A.I. and Regulation of the Internet

○      Free Speech on Campus

○      Israel-Palestine Conflict

○      Q&A

1. Climate Change

○      Global Developments

○      Various Perspectives

○      Bruno Latour and the Imperatives to Find Ecological Solutions

○      Q&A

1. Threats of Autocracy and Tyranny

○      Class Discussion

1. Pro Bono Work (Bratislava)

○      Personal Experience

○      Q&A

Last update: Veselý Arnošt, prof. PhDr., Ph.D. (19.09.2024)