SGIA49030: The Politics of Global Europe

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• Provide advanced knowledge and understanding of debates relating to the nature, current state and future of European integration;
• Examine controversial issues that have divided public opinion in the EU, the fallout from the Eurozone, the migration/refugee and the Brexit crises, the Covid pandemic, but also controversies relating to the potential development of a European Army towards a more federal and a more democratic EU; EU enlargement and neighbourhood policy; the Russia-Ukraine crisis; relations with China; EU-trans-Atlantic relations; and EU-UK relations.
• Enable critical evaluation of opposing perspectives from leading scholarship and by employing empirical evidence on a wide range of disputes in the EU;
• Develop advanced knowledge and understanding of current issues and debates in EU.
• Examining the tensions between the EUs internal and external ambitions and the increasing diversity of national interests amongst the 27-member states;
• To provide an understanding of how the European Union reacts to domestic and international crises and its relation with non-member countries.

• Indicative module content may include:
• The changing nature of the integration and policy making process;
• The relationship between the EU and its member states;
• The efficiency and the democratic credentials of the EU governance system;
• Euroscepticism and political representation in the EU;
• Elections and referendums in the EU;
• The fallout from the Eurozone, refugee crises, Brexit and Covid crises;
• The implications of differentiated integration;
• The EU as a global actor and its normative power;
• The experience and implications of enlargement and neighbourhood policy;
• The relationship between EU trade policy and development;
• EU-trans-Atlantic relations, security and the relationship with NATO;
• The EU and globalisation;
• EUs response to international crises, the cases of Russia-Ukraine, Syria and Lybia.
• EU-UK relations
• EU-China relations

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• On completion of this module, students will acquire knowledge and understanding of:
• Debates relating to the nature, current state and future of European integration;
• The whole spectrum of thinking about the European Union, including pro-European and Eurosceptic perspectives;
• The EU governance system and the policy process and how they inter-relate with the member states and international actors;
• The major crises in the EU, their implications for European countries and for the EU's global role;
• The EU-27s variable geometry as a result of enlargement and neighbourhood policy;
• The role and influence of the EU in the world and its relations with non-member countries.

Subject-specific Skills:

• By the end of the module students should be able to demonstrate specific skills, such as:
• Apply relevant concepts and approaches to EU politics;
• Critically assess issues in EU governance system and its implications for the member states and for associated countries;
• Identify and evaluate the tension between national politics and the process of supranationalisation;
• Critically evaluate different interpretations of controversial political issues and major events in the EU.
• Critically evaluate the EUs global role and its response to recent crises Critically assess the EUs relations with non-member countries

Key Skills:

• Students will also develop some important key skills, suitable for underpinning study at this and subsequent levels, such as:
• Independent learning within a defined framework of study at an advanced level;
• Independent thought in analysing and critiquing existing scholarship on the subject area and in evaluating its contribution;
• Advanced ability to seek out and use relevant data sources, including electronic and bibliographic sources, as well as primary sources, and policy reports;
• Ability for independent thinking informed by the academic debate at an advanced level;
• Advanced essay-writing skills and the ability to work to a deadline;
• Effective written communication of research and policy applications;
• Ability to reflect critically on their own work and performance.

• The module is taught via lectures, seminars and a workshop.
• The module includes 12 lectures. These are designed to ensure that students with different backgrounds approach the subsequent seminars with an understanding of the practical and intellectual requirements of the module.
• The subsequent 11 seminars provide an opportunity to discuss the issues raised in the lectures. Some of the seminars will be based on individual student presentations formulated in the context of Oxford style debates, where two students identify, investigate, formulate and advocate reasoned arguments in support of each side of the debate based on conflicting beliefs. Other seminars will be based on activities relating for instance to analysis primary documents and case studies. There will also be an emphasis on simulation activities which emphasise active learning to aid student understanding of the key issues and the complexities of decision-making in the EU. The two-hour workshop will be focused on a simulation activity of decision-making in the European Council. The seminar activities and the workshop enable the students to acquire knowledge and understanding of the subject matter and develop their abilities to communicate and to develop their own skills in argumentation.
• The module has the following assessments:
• A summative essay of 3,500 words essay at the end of the module. A set of essay questions will be provided, and students will select one question. Students are required to use both primary and secondary sources to test arguments in the essay. This allows students to demonstrate acquisition of knowledge, analytical capacity and research skills on specific topics. This enables them to demonstrate that they have sufficient subject knowledge and understanding to meet the assessment criteria.
• A formative assessment is an essay of 1,500 words from a selected list of questions and a seminar presentation as part of the Oxford style debates. The essay and presentation will enhance students ability to research topics, gather and analyse empirical material and develop transferable skills such as teamwork, organisation and effective communication.

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