| Course Name | Middle Eastern Politics |
| Code | Semester | Theory (hour/week) | Application/Lab (hour/week) | Local Credits | ECTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSIR 320 | Fall/Spring | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Prerequisites | None | |||||
| Course Language | English | |||||
| Course Type | Elective | |||||
| Course Level | First Cycle | |||||
| Mode of Delivery | - | |||||
| Teaching Methods and Techniques of the Course | ||||||
| Course Coordinator | - | |||||
| Course Lecturer(s) | ||||||
| Assistant(s) | ||||||
| Course Objectives | The objective of this course is to understand and examine the making of the Modern Middle East. In this pursuit, a historical overview of the late 19th century and 20th century will be provided to unpack the dynamics behind state-formation, nation-building and regime types in the region. A secondary objective of this course is to understand the key political, economic and social challenges in the contemporary Middle East. |
| Learning Outcomes | The students who succeeded in this course;
|
| Course Description | The course will begin with a historical overview of the remapping of the Middle East. In addition, a comparative historical analysis will help to locate the Middle East within the larger world historical context. Later on, the course will cover state and regime types, Arab nationalism, politics of oil, Orientalism, Arab-Israeli conflict, regional geopolitics, political Islam, democratization and Arab Spring. |
| Related Sustainable Development Goals |  |
|
| Core Courses | |
| Major Area Courses | X | |
| Supportive Courses | ||
| Media and Managment Skills Courses | ||
| Transferable Skill Courses |
| Week | Subjects | Required Materials |
| 1 | Introduction | |
| 2 | 'What' is the Middle East? | Beverley Milton-Edwards, Contemporary Politics in the Middle East, Introduction. Roderic H. Davison. “Where Is the Middle East?” Foreign Affairs, vol. 38, no. 4, 1960, pp. 665–675. |
| 3 | Ottoman Empire and Towards a Modern Middle East | Beverley Milton-Edwards, Contemporary Politics in the Middle East, Chapter 1 |
| 4 | After Independence: State and Regime Types in the Middle East | Michele Pener Angrist, Politics and Society in the Contemporary Middle East (Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2013), Chapter 1 |
| 5 | Arab Nationalism | Beverley Milton-Edwards, Contemporary Politics in the Middle East, Chapter 2. Adeed Dawisha, Arab Nationalism in the Twenty First Century (Princeton University Press, 2003), Chapter 1 |
| 6 | Politics of Oil | Beverley Milton-Edwards, Contemporary Politics in the Middle East, Chapter 3. Michael Ross. (2001). Does Oil Hinder Democracy? World Politics, 53(3), 325-361 |
| 7 | Identity, Conflict and Peace (Arab-Israeli Conflict, Sectarianism, Minorities etc.) | Beverley Milton-Edwards, Contemporary Politics in the Middle East, Chapter 4 and Chapter 8. |
| 8 | Midterm Exam | |
| 9 | Political Islam | Beverley Milton-Edwards, Contemporary Politics in the Middle East, Chapter 5 Mohammed Ayoob. "Political Islam: Image and Reality." World Policy Journal 21, no. 3 (2004): 1-14. Aaron Y. Zelin. ‘The War between ISIS and al-Qaeda for Supremacy of the Global Jihadist Movement,’ The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 2014, 1-11. |
| 10 | Democratization in the Middle East | Beverley Milton-Edwards, Contemporary Politics in the Middle East, Chapter 6 & Chapter 10. Michael L. Ross, ‘Does Oil Hinder Democracy?’, World Politics 53:3 (2001), pp. 325-361. F. Gregory Gause, ‘Why Middle East Studies Missed the Arab Spring?’, Foreign Affairs 90:4 (2011), pp. 81-90. |
| 11 | Arab Spring and the New Era | Beverley Milton-Edwards, Contemporary Politics in the Middle East, Chapter 10 |
| 12 | The Future of the Middle East | Marc Lynch and Shibley Telhami. ‘Here’s how experts on the Middle East see the region’s key issues,’ The Washington Post, February 2021 |
| 13 | Student Presentations | |
| 14 | Student Presentations | |
| 15 | Student Presentations | |
| 16 | Review of the Course |
| Course Notes/Textbooks | Beverley Milton Edwards (2018). Contemporary Politics in the Middle East (4th Edition). Polity. *All course readings are available at the University Library and as open sources. |
| Suggested Readings/Materials |
|
| Semester Activities | Number | Weighting |
| Participation | 1 | 10 |
| Laboratory / Application | ||
| Field Work | ||
| Quizzes / Studio Critiques | ||
| Portfolio | ||
| Homework / Assignments | 1 | 15 |
| Presentation / Jury | 1 | 10 |
| Project | ||
| Seminar / Workshop | ||
| Oral Exam | ||
| Midterm | 1 | 30 |
| Final Exam | 1 | 35 |
| Total |
| Weighting of Semester Activities on the Final Grade | 4 | 65 |
| Weighting of End-of-Semester Activities on the Final Grade | 1 | 35 |
| Total |
| Semester Activities | Number | Duration (Hours) | Workload |
|---|---|---|---|
| Course Hours (Including exam week: 16 x total hours) | 16 | 3 | 48 |
| Laboratory / Application Hours (Including exam week: 16 x total hours) | 16 | ||
| Study Hours Out of Class | 12 | 3 | 36 |
| Field Work | |||
| Quizzes / Studio Critiques | |||
| Portfolio | |||
| Homework / Assignments | 1 | 25 | |
| Presentation / Jury | 1 | 10 | |
| Project | |||
| Seminar / Workshop | |||
| Oral Exam | |||
| Midterms | 1 | 20 | |
| Final Exams | 1 | 30 | |
| Total | 169 |
| # | Program Competencies/Outcomes | * Contribution Level | ||||
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 1 | To be able to use the theoretical and practical knowledge acquired in the areas of Political Science and International Relations. | X | ||||
| 2 | To be able to have the basic knowledge of, and make use of other disciplines which contribute to the areas of Political Science and International Relations. | X | ||||
| 3 | To be able to distinguish the differences between classical and contemporary theories and to assess their relationship. | |||||
| 4 | To be able to recognize regional and global issues, and develop solutions based on research. | X | ||||
| 5 | To be able to assess the acquired knowledge and skills in the areas of Political Science and International Relations critically. | |||||
| 6 | To be able to transfer ideas and proposals on issues in the areas of Political Science and International Relations to other people and institutions verbally and in writing. | |||||
| 7 | To be able to identify the historical continuity and changes observed in the relations between the actors and institutions of national and international politics. | X | ||||
| 8 | To be able to examine concepts, theories, and developments with scientific methods in the areas of Political Science and International Relations. | X | ||||
| 9 | To be able to take responsibility as an individual and as a team member. | X | ||||
| 10 | To be able to act in accordance with the scientific and ethical values in studies related to Political Science and International Relations. | |||||
| 11 | To be able to collect data in the areas of Political Science and International Relations and communicate with colleagues in a foreign language ("European Language Portfolio Global Scale", Level B1). | |||||
| 12 | To be able to speak a second foreign at a medium level of fluency efficiently. | |||||
| 13 | To be able to relate the knowledge accumulated throughout human history to their field of experience. | |||||
*1 Lowest, 2 Low, 3 Average, 4 High, 5 Highest
