CZS52 Democratization and Democracy in the East-Central Europe

Pan-university studies
Autumn 2017
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 6 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
doc. Mgr. Vladimir Dordevic, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Eva Taterová, M.A., Ph.D. (lecturer)
Ing. Mgr. Richard Turcsányi, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Šárka Hakalisto, M.A.
Pan-university studies
Supplier department: Pan-university studies
Timetable
Mon 25. 9. to Mon 27. 11. Mon 14:00–15:30 206; and Mon 4. 12. 14:00–15:30 501, Mon 11. 12. 14:00–15:30 501
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 20 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/20, only registered: 0/20, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/20
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 11 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
The course aims at introducing the dynamic of transformation processes in different parts of the East-Central Europe in the last two decades. At the end of the course students will be able to understand and explain the issues related to democratic transformation, its opportunities, challenges, obstacles and setbacks – all that on the basis of historical experience of respective countries. Moreover, students will be able to identify positive as well as negative aspects of modern democracies in the region and analyze the challenges that they face nowadays.
Syllabus
  • September 25: Introductory lecture: scope of the course, organization of the course, requirements (Turcsanyi)
  • October 9 International organizations and their role in democratization (Taterova)
  • October 2 Theories of democratization (Turcsanyi)
  • October 16 History of Central Europe (Turcsanyi)
  • October 23 Revolutions of 1989 in Central Europe (Taterova)
  • October 30 Mid term exam. Case study: Slovakia (Turcsanyi) – includes position paper
  • November 6 Case study: Czech Republic (Taterova) – includes position paper
  • November 13 Case study: Poland (Turcsanyi) – includes position paper
  • November 20 Case study: Is Hungarian Democracy Going Backwards? (Dordevic) – includes position paper
  • November 27 Case study: Ukraine between the East and the West (Dordevic) – includes position paper
  • December 4 Pitfalls of Democratization: Post-Yugoslav Space as “Antipode’ of (East-Central) Europe (Dordevic) – includes position paper
  • December 11 Challenges to Democracy in East Central Europe and Beyond/*Course wrap-up (Dordevic)
Assessment methods
Assessment method:
Mid-term exam: 25 %
· Consists of 5 open questions requiring short answer. Goal is to check whether students acquired basic factual knowledge in the first part of the course. Literature and lecture content will be both included.
Final exam: 40 % · Final exam will consist of four open questions which will require longer answers. Students will be asked to prove that they acquired knowledge about the topics covered throughout the course and can critically discuss the dynamics in the region.
Five position papers 25 % (each position paper is for maximum of five points for the paper and for the active presence in the class). · Students will choose five topics according to their interest from the second part of the course (after the mid-term exam) and write a position paper. If a student submits more than five position papers, only five with the best scores will be counted to the final assessment. Each position paper is about two standard pages long and consists of a short summary of the assigned literature, its critical analyses and subsequent discussion of the topic in the Central European context.
Participation and activity in the class: 10 % Students are expected to participate in classes. In case of missing a class due to reasonable reasons, points will not be deducted. Furthermore, active participation is expected. Students are strongly recommended to go through the assigned reading before the lecture and join discussion during the classes.
Final assessment:
A: 100 – 90 % B: 89 – 80 % C: 79 – 70 % D: 69 – 65 % E: 64 – 60 % F: 59 – 0 %
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught only once.
Teacher's information
http://cic.muni.cz/cs/left-incoming-mobility/incoming-student/incoming-student-exchange/incoming-student-exchange-cesp
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2014, Autumn 2015, Autumn 2016, Autumn 2018, Autumn 2019.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2017, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/cus/autumn2017/CZS52