Students

POIR1080 – Introduction to Global Politics

2024 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Umut Ozguc
umut.ozguc@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

Globalisation has had dramatic implications for the structure and conduct of global politics, now defined by the multiplication of actors and networks. Contemporary crises can no longer be contained within state borders and global problems such as climate change, poverty, health insecurities, and violent conflicts call for global solutions. This unit equips students with the tools to understand the forces that shape the world we live in by introducing them to the key issues, institutions, ideas, and actors involved in global politics. It first outlines the historical context, key theories and concepts, and fundamental institutions of contemporary global politics. Students will then explore important global issues including the changing nature of war, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and autonomous weapons, climate change, poverty, and refugee ‘crises’. Overall, the unit provides students with foundational knowledge about the complexity of global politics, problems and solutions.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Understand and evaluate the role of historical events and the meanings that have been attributed to them in world politics.
  • ULO2: Apply and develop further independent research skills required to discover relevant evidence to support academic arguments.
  • ULO3: Understand and apply the academic skills required to write cogently and to structure arguments in a logical order.
  • ULO4: Critically engage with and analyse the key issues and challenges that are the current focus of world politics.
  • ULO5: Understand, explain and apply the key concepts, theories, methods, and issues relevant to the study of International Relations at an introductory level.
  • ULO6: Identify and understand the defining debates in the field of Global Politics.

General Assessment Information

Students should check Ilearn site for the details of the each assessment item. 

You will find pre-recorded assessment informatino videos on the unit site. 

Academic Integrity &Plagiarism

See the University's Academic Honesty Policy (link below) for an in-depth explanation of what constitutes plagiarism. Plagiarism is taken very seriously by the Convenor and the Department generally and will result in a range of penalties, including a zero grade for an assessment task. Serious instances of plagiarism will be reported to the Faculty Discipline Committee.

Late Assessment Policy and Special Consideration 

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue. This late penalty will apply to non-timed sensitive assessment (incl essays, reports, posters, portfolios, journals, recordings etc). Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs etc) will only be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application. Special Consideration outcome may result in a new question or topic. Special consideration requests are made through ask.mq.edu.au. 

Turnitin

Essays are required to be uploaded using the Turnitin link provided on the ilearn website for this unit. Turnitin is a type of anti-plagiarism software used by the university. Work that is not uploaded using the Turnitin link on ilearn will not be graded and will receive a mark of zero.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Class Participation 10% No Ongoing
Quiz 5% No 2024-08-09
Short Essay 35% No 2024-09-05
Research Essay 50% No 2024-11-01

Class Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 36 hours
Due: Ongoing
Weighting: 10%

 

In class tutorial participation will be assessed.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand and evaluate the role of historical events and the meanings that have been attributed to them in world politics.
  • Critically engage with and analyse the key issues and challenges that are the current focus of world politics.
  • Understand, explain and apply the key concepts, theories, methods, and issues relevant to the study of International Relations at an introductory level.
  • Identify and understand the defining debates in the field of Global Politics.

Quiz

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 6 hours
Due: 2024-08-09
Weighting: 5%

 

Quiz based on unit content

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand and evaluate the role of historical events and the meanings that have been attributed to them in world politics.
  • Critically engage with and analyse the key issues and challenges that are the current focus of world politics.
  • Understand, explain and apply the key concepts, theories, methods, and issues relevant to the study of International Relations at an introductory level.
  • Identify and understand the defining debates in the field of Global Politics.

Short Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 31 hours
Due: 2024-09-05
Weighting: 35%

 

Short essay. 1200 words.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand and evaluate the role of historical events and the meanings that have been attributed to them in world politics.
  • Apply and develop further independent research skills required to discover relevant evidence to support academic arguments.
  • Understand and apply the academic skills required to write cogently and to structure arguments in a logical order.
  • Critically engage with and analyse the key issues and challenges that are the current focus of world politics.
  • Understand, explain and apply the key concepts, theories, methods, and issues relevant to the study of International Relations at an introductory level.
  • Identify and understand the defining debates in the field of Global Politics.

Research Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 41 hours
Due: 2024-11-01
Weighting: 50%

 

Research Essay. 1800 words.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Understand and evaluate the role of historical events and the meanings that have been attributed to them in world politics.
  • Apply and develop further independent research skills required to discover relevant evidence to support academic arguments.
  • Understand and apply the academic skills required to write cogently and to structure arguments in a logical order.
  • Critically engage with and analyse the key issues and challenges that are the current focus of world politics.
  • Understand, explain and apply the key concepts, theories, methods, and issues relevant to the study of International Relations at an introductory level.
  • Identify and understand the defining debates in the field of Global Politics.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

This unit has an online presence in ilearn.

There is no text book to be purchased for this unit. All required and recommended readings are on Leganto.

Lectures and tutorials are on campus. Lectures will be recorded and can be found on ECHO. 

Unit Schedule

Week 1

Studying global politics: How do we think about the world?

 

PART 1: THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT 

Week 2

Globalisation and the Transformation of World Politics

Week 3

History of Modern International Order & The Birth of Nation State 

 

Assessment 2: Online Quiz (Starts on 8th August 10 am and ends 9th August 11:55 pm – 1 hours and 1 attempt only once logged in )

Week 4

International history of the 20th Century: A Century of Wars and Cooperation 

 

PART 2: THEORIES OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS (IR) 

Week 5

Traditional theories of global politics: Realism and Liberal IR Theory  

 

 

Zoom Online Essay Writing Workshop 1 (Short Essay) 22 August Thursday, 5-6 pm (for internal on-campus students), 6-7 pm (for external and OUA students). 

Week 6

Constructivist Theories of Global Politics: Conventional and Critical Constructivism

 

 

PART 3: CONTEMPORARY QUESTIONS AND CHALLENGES IN GLOBAL POLITICS 

 

Week 7

Changing nature of war and Humanitarian Interventions: Does the international community have responsibility to protect?

 

Assessment 3: Short Essay (5th September, Thursday  2024, 11:55 pm)

Week 8

Artificial Intelligence, Autonomous Weapons and the ‘Future’ of War: Should we ban ‘killer robots’?

 

 

Recess 16 September -29 September – Enjoy your break

Week 9

‘Broadening’ and ‘Deepening’ Security in the 21st Century: How should we define our security?

 

Week 10

There are no lectures and tutorials in Week 10 due to public holiday 7th October. However, there will be essay writing workshop on zoom. 

 

Zoom Online Essay Writing Workshop 2 (Long Essay) 10th October Thursday, 5-6 pm (for internal on-campus students), 6-7 pm (for external and OUA students). 

Week 11

International Political Economy and Its Crisis: Has the current system failed us? 

Week 12

The changing nature of borders and refugee ‘crisis’: Why do states close their borders?  ​​​​​​​

Week 13

More-than-human worlds and multi-species justice: Can we save the planet?

 

Assessment 4: Long Essay (1st November October, Friday 11:55 pm)

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Changes since First Published

Date Description
05/07/2024 Due to public holiday on the 7th, there are now changes in 1. Weekly schedule - everything moved to Week 13. 2. Deadline for the final assessment - moved to the 1st. Nov.
05/07/2024 Due dates and weekly content are changed due to public holiday on the 7th October.

Unit information based on version 2024.04 of the Handbook