Instructor Insights

Instructor Insights pages are part of the OCW Educator initiative, which seeks to enhance the value of OCW for educators.

Course Overview

This page focuses on the course 17.588 Field Seminar in Comparative Politics as it was taught by Professor Chappell Lawson in Fall 2013.

This course provided an introduction to the field of comparative politics. Readings included both classic and recent materials. Discussions included research design and research methods, in addition to topics such as political culture, social cleavages, the state, and democratic institutions. The emphasis on each issue depended in part on the interests of the students.

Course Outcomes

Course Goals for Students

This course was a graduate-level seminar in comparative politics. It aimed to provide students with the conceptual and analytical tools necessary to conduct research in that subfield and to acquaint students with key works in the field.

Curriculum Information

Prerequisites

  • Permission of the instructor

Requirements Satisfied

Offered

  • Every fall semester

Student Information

Enrollment

The course typically has 4 to 12 students per semester.

Breakdown by Major

Most of the students in the course are doctoral students in political science, especially students focused on comparative politics.

How Student Time Was Spent

During an average week in the spring semester, students were expected to spend 12 hours on the course, roughly divided as follows:

Seminar

2 hours per week
  • Met once a week for 2 hours per session; 13 sessions total; mandatory attendance.
  • Some classes began with a brief lecture designed to summarize works not covered in the syllabus.
  • Most of each class session was devoted to discussion questions. All students were expected to actively participate in these discussions; each student took a role in leading the discussion for one session.
 

Out of Class

10 hours per week
 

Semester Breakdown

WEEK M T W Th F
1 No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
2 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
3 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No classes throughout MIT.
4 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
5 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
6 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
7 No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
8 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
9 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
10 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
11 No classes throughout MIT. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
12 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
13 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT.
14 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No session scheduled. No session scheduled.
15 No session scheduled. Seminar session. No session scheduled. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT.
16 No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT. No classes throughout MIT.
Displays the color and pattern used on the preceding table to indicate dates when classes are not held at MIT. No classes throughout MIT
Displays the color used on the preceding table to indicate dates when seminar sessions are held. Seminar session
Displays the color used on the preceding table to indicate dates when no class session is scheduled. No class session scheduled