This course is an introduction to the global international system—its nature, the issues, the actors, the challenges, and perhaps most important, various frameworks for understanding all of these things.  Thus, in this class you will gain an awareness and understanding of relevant trends and developments in international relations, and along the way, pick up some “tools” that will help you think and communicate intelligently about international politics and global issues.  In addition, in this course you will learn more about your own perspectives regarding the nature of man, groups, states, and the international system; that is, to which “worldview” you subscribe.     

There are two primary goals for this seminar.  First is the task of building some theoretical and substantive knowledge about international relations and world politics.   The second goal is to learn more about the current issues that affect all of us in today’s increasingly connected world.

Kegley, Charles W., World Politics: Trend and Transformation, 11^th Edition (Thomson/Wadsworth, 2007).

Other readings available on WEB page:
http://faculty.colostate-pueblo.edu/mark.gose/

• There are two examinations for this course including a midterm and a final.  The final examination is not cumulative and will include only aspects of the second half of the course, although many terms and concepts overlap both parts of the class.  The exams will reflect short answers, definitions, and essay questions.  Short answers will be either “fill-in-the-blanks,” defining terms/concepts, or short sentence responses to questions.  Essay answers will be longer—a goal of about one handwritten page for each.  Study guides for each exam are included in this booklet.

• You are allowed 90 minutes to complete each exam in the presence of a proctor, and without books or notes.  There is a form provided in the back of the syllabus that you must use to identify proctors for each exam before taking them. 

• In addition to the two exams as indicators of your grasp of the material in this course, you also are required to submit five typewritten, double-spaced (12-font or smaller) assignments.  The length should be a minimum of two pages and a maximum of four.  Each assignment will help you organize and understand each section, and should reflect both substantive knowledge and some analysis on your part.  Writing assignments are at the end of each section in the syllabus.