Academics Navigation
Academics
You are here
Courses
Campus | Bryn Mawr |
Semester | Fall 2020 |
Registration ID | SOCLB317001 |
Course Title | Comparative Social Policy |
Credit | 1.00 |
Department | Education |
Instructor | Karen,David |
Times and Days | Th 01:10pm-04:00pm
|
Room Location | |
Additional Course Info | Class Number: 2279 This course will examine different countries' policy choices to address different societal challenges. Four societal types - socialist (Cuba), post-socialist (China), capitalist (US), and social-democratic (Scandinavia) - will be studies to help us understand how these different kinds of societies conceive of social problems and propose and implement attempted solutions. We will examine particular problems/solutions in four domains: health/sports; education; environment; technological development. As we explore these domains, we will attend to methodological issues involved in making historical and institutional comparisons; In addition to the current Bionic course description, I would add that we'll definitely examine how the countries that we're focusing on have handled the pandemic. In fact, unfortunately, we'll have an ongoing "case" to examine how the various countries manage the current crisis. We may forgo one of our other foci in order to accommodate an expanded focus on public health. As a final project each student will write a research paper that compares at least two countries on a given topic. One book that will definitely be assigned at the beginning of the course is David Garland's The Welfare State: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford Univ Press). It packs an enormous amount of information into a short book. Haverford: B: Analysis of the Social World (B), Social Science (SO) Enrollment Cap: 15; If the course exceeds the enrollment cap the following criteria will be used for the lottery: Major/Minor/Concentration; Senior; Junior; At least one previous social science course; I am planning on teaching this course via Zoom at its "regularly" scheduled time (Th 1:10-4). All classes will be recorded and the recordings will be made available. I want to make sure, though, to connect with each of you in person at the beginning of the semester (we'll meet outdoors in a socially-distanced way). Please plan on meeting me for in-person individual ten-minute meetings during the first or second week of classes. For those who are not on campus, we will zoom our one-on-one meeting. Since this is a seminar, I expect that a majority of our time together will be in conversation about the readings. I will provide information to set the context for our discussions (providing theoretical background and frameworks) but I want you to contribute and learn from one another. I will make extensive use of Zoom breakout rooms. During the second half of the semester, students (in pairs or 3's) will lead discussion. Not open to Freshmen. |
Miscellaneous Links |