POL 295 - Special Topics in American Politics

FDR: SS2
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: First-year or sophomore standing or permission of the instructor. A seminar in political science for students at the introductory or intermediate level. Topic, hour, and instructor are announced prior to registration. May be repeated for degree credit with permission and if the topics are different.

Topics for Winter, 2010:

POL 295A:Special Topics in American Politics: The Politics of Public Opinion (3). Counts toward the politics major’s American politics field requirement. The importance and influence of public opinion in politics has never been greater. This course provides students with an introduction to both theories of attitudes and public and the practical implications of public opinion in the political process. The course addresses the relationship between public opinion and democratic theory, the history of public opinion, models of political attitudes and beliefs, the relevance of public opinion for policymaking, elite influence over public opinion, and public opinion in campaigns. It also covers public opinion trends and their implications on current relevant topics in American and world politics such as immigration, health care, the economy, presidential approval, the 2008 presidential campaign, attitudes towards the United States, the EU, Iraq, and Iran. Students write weekly reaction papers which analyze and criticize class material as well as gather and analyze polling data on these current topics. Students also write a term paper on one of the topics related to the politics of public opinion on their way to achieving an increased level of knowledge in the dynamics of public opinion in politics and an appreciation for the important role of public opinion in the political process. (SS2) Holyk.

POL 295B: Special Topics in American Politics: Courts, Judicial Review and Democracy (3). Counts toward the politics major’s American politics field requirement. The tension between judicial review and majority rule is an enduring aspect of constitutional democracy around the world. In this course, we examine classic and contemporary writing on legal philosophy, the nature of judicial review, the role of the legislature, the nature of representative democracy, and the dialogues about rights and constitutional development that occur between courts and other political actors in both domestic and international law. (SS2) Rush.

 Staff.