Case Studies in East Asian Politics and International Relations
Code: 101530 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year | Semester |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2500244 East Asian Studies | OT | 4 | 0 |
Contact
- Name:
- Just Castillo Iglesias
- Email:
- Just.Castillo@uab.cat
Use of Languages
- Principal working language:
- spanish (spa)
- Some groups entirely in English:
- No
- Some groups entirely in Catalan:
- No
- Some groups entirely in Spanish:
- No
Other comments on languages
Some of this course’s seminars will be taught in Spanish (Gustavo Pita Céspedes), and some in Catalan (Just Castillo Iglesias)Teachers
- Gustavo Pita Céspedes
Prerequisites
To take this subject, students must have passed the following subjects: "Introduction to Political Science and International Relations"; "East Asian Politics", and "International Relations of East Asia". Specifically, this subject requires prior knowledge of the conceptual and methodological tools of the disciplines of Political Science and International Relations.
Likewise, students must be able to read and understand academic texts in English, since some of the compulsory set reading material will be in this language.
Objectives and Contextualisation
The aim of this subject is to interpret and understand the main debates that shape East Asia’s domestic and international political realities.
Making use of the conceptual and methodological tools of the Political Science and International Relations disciplines, students will learn to think critically about the region’s political reality.
To this end, we will consider various case studies that will allow students to deepen their knowledge and understanding of the different political systems of the region and their international dimension. The cases will cover China, Japan, the two states in the Korean Peninsula and Taiwan. Particular attention will be given to the key aspects that have configured the post-Cold War East Asian regional order and the challenges it currently faces.
Competences
- Comparing and critically assessing the different social environments in the field of East Asia.
- Designing and managing projects.
- Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
- Developing self-learning strategies.
- Ensuring the quality of one's own work.
- Following the characteristic code of ethics of the professional practice.
- Know and understand politics and international relations in East Asia.
- Knowing and using the information and communication technology resources (ICT) in order to collect, produce, analyse and present information related to the East Asian Studies.
- Knowing the history, values, beliefs and ideologies of East Asia in order to understand and critically assess social issues, phenomena, and processes related with that region.
- Producing innovative and competitive proposals in research and professional activity.
- Respecting the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
- Solving problems of intercultural communication.
- Students must be flexible and capable of adapting to new circumstances.
- Working in interdisciplinary and intercultural groups.
- Working in teams in an international, multilingual and multicultural context.
Learning Outcomes
- Assessing the obtained results in the search information process in order to update the knowledge about political sciences, economy and sociology.
- Comparing and critically assessing the different social environments in the field of East Asia.
- Designing and managing projects.
- Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
- Developing self-learning strategies.
- Ensuring the quality of one's own work.
- Following the characteristic code of ethics of the professional practice.
- Know and understand politics and international relations in East Asia.
- Knowing the history, values, beliefs and ideologies of East Asia in order to understand and critically assess social issues, phenomena, and processes related with that region.
- Producing innovative and competitive proposals in research and professional activity.
- Respecting the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
- Solving problems of intercultural communication.
- Students must be flexible and capable of adapting to new circumstances.
- Using different tools for specific purposes in the fields of political sciences, economy and sociology.
- Using the specific terminology of political sciences, economy and sociology.
- Working in interdisciplinary and intercultural groups.
- Working in teams in an international, multilingual and multicultural context.
Content
This subject will cover several case studies about East Asian politics and international relations.
The cases will be related to the political systems of the region, the configuration of the regional order after the end of the Cold War, the rise of China and its relations with neighboring countries, the North Korean regime and Japanese foreign policy. Prior to the start of the course, we will duly inform about the specific cases to be addressed, which may be selected considering current developments in the region’s political affairs.
Methodology
The various case studies will be addressed through suggested readings and active discussions.
The teaching team will indicate the theoretical and methodological lines to be followed in each case study.
Students will be expected to participate actively.
Activities
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Participation in discussions about the suggested topics | 35 | 1.4 | 7, 1, 2, 8, 9, 5, 4, 13, 16, 14, 15, 6 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Presentations | 15 | 0.6 | 1, 2, 8, 9, 4, 11, 17, 16, 14, 15 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Critical comment on readings | 20 | 0.8 | 7, 1, 2, 8, 9, 5, 4, 12, 11, 16, 14, 15, 6 |
| Reading assignments | 30 | 1.2 | 1, 2, 8, 9, 5, 4, 14, 15, 6 |
Assessment
Assessment is continuous. Students must provide evidence of their progress by completing tasks and tests. Task deadlines will be indicated in the course schedule on the first day of class. All activity deadlines are indicated in the subject's schedule and must be strictly adhered to.
Assessment is based on three activities:
- During the course there will be a written exercise (short-answer test) consisting of several concrete questions about the discussed cases. This written exercise accounts for 30% the final grade of the subject.
- Students will have to complete a written assignment between 3000 and 3500 words. This assignment will serve to familiarize students with academic research and writing. The written assignment accounts for 40% of the final grade of the subject.
- Each student will take part in a group presentation. Each group will present an introduction about the most relevant aspects of the case being addressed in the seminars. The presentation will count 30% of the final mark of the subject.
The information on the evaluation, the type of evaluation activity and its weight on the subject is for information purposes. The professor responsible for the subject will complete it before beginning teaching.
Related matters
The above information on assessment, assessment activities and their weighting in the subject is merely for guidance. The subject's lecturer will provide full information when teaching begins.
Review
When publishing final marks prior to recording them on students' transcripts, the lecturer will provide written notification of a date and time for reviewing assessment activities. Students must arrange reviews in agreement with the lecturer.
Missed/failed assessment activities
Students may retake assessment activities they have failed or compensate for any they have missed, provided that those they have actually performed account for a minimum of 66.6% (two thirds) of the subject's final mark and that they have scored a weighted average mark of at least 3.5. Under no circumstances may an assessment activity worth 100% of the final mark be retaken or compensated for.
The lecturer will inform students of the procedure involved, in writing, when publishing final marks prior to recording them on transcripts. The lecturer may set one assignment per failed or missed assessment activity or a single assignment to cover a number of such activities.
Classification as "not assessable"
In the event of the assessment activities a student has performed accounting for just 25% or less of the subject's final mark, their work will be classified as "not assessable" on their transcript.
Misconduct in assessment activities
Students who engage in misconduct (plagiarism, copying, personation or identity theft, etc.) in an assessment activity will receive a mark of “0” for the activity in question. In the case of misconduct in more than one assessment activity, the students involved will be given a final mark of “0” for the subject.
Students may not retake assessment activities in which they are found to have engaged in misconduct. Plagiarism is considered to mean presenting all or part of an author's work, whether published in print or in digital format, as one's own, i.e. without citing it. Copying is considered to mean reproducing all or a substantial part of another student's work. In cases of copying in which it is impossible to determine which of two students has copied the work of the other, both will be penalised.
More information: http://www.uab.cat/web/study-abroad/undergraduate/academic-information/evaluation/what-is-it-about-1345670077352.html
Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group presentation | 30% | 15 | 0.6 | 1, 2, 8, 9, 5, 4, 3, 10, 11, 13, 17, 16, 14, 15, 6 |
| Written assignment | 40% | 25 | 1 | 1, 2, 8, 9, 5, 4, 3, 10, 12, 11, 13, 17, 16, 14, 15, 6 |
| Written exercise (short-answer test) | 30% | 10 | 0.4 | 7, 1, 2, 8, 9, 5, 4, 3, 10, 12, 11, 13, 17, 16, 14, 15, 6 |
Bibliography
Before beginning the semester, the teacher in charge of each module will indicate the readings that will be part of each case study.
Basic bibliography
Acharya, Amitav & Buzan, Barry (Eds.). Non-Western International Relations Theory. Perspectives on and Beyond Asia. New York, London: Routledge, 2010.
Breslin, S. (2010). Handbook of China's international relations. London: Routledge.
Connors, M. K., Davison, R., & Dosch, J. (2018). The New Global Politics of the Asia-Pacific. London: Routledge.
Friedberg, A. L. (2011). A Contest for Supremacy: China, America, and the Struggle for Mastery in Asia: W. W. Norton.
Hsiung, J. C. (2007). China and Japan at Odds : Deciphering the Perpetual Conflict. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Huang, Xiaoming. Politics in Paficic Asia: An Introduction. Palgrave MacMillan, 2009.
Lankov, A. (2013). The Real North Korea: Life and Politics in the Failed Stalinist Utopia: Oxford University Press.
Nye, J. S. (2012). The Future of Power. New York: PublicAffairs.
Welch, D. A., Soeya, Y., & Tadokoro, M. (2011). Japan as a "Normal Country"?: a Nation in Search of its Place in the World. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.