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The Politics of the Middle East class hosted Dr. Turkar Gasimzada and Ali Morshedlou on October 1, 2014. Dr. Gasimzada, instructor of the Music of the Middle East course at the College of Conservatory Music, introduced us to the essence of the Middle Eastern music. Ali Morshedlou, a graduate student from Iran, performed Taar for us. Taar is a long-necked, waisted instrument common in many Middle Eastern and Caucasian countries. [read more about Taar]
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We will also apply and evaluate analytical tools and theories developed by social scientists. As part of our explanatory efforts, we will use the “continuity and breakdown” framework—a synthetic analytical tool formulated by Zagorski (2007)—to examine the emergence and the continuity of authoritarian regimes in the region. We will also rely upon various theories of social revolutions in analyzing the Arab Spring revolutions.
This course is designed as a flipped classroom and will make use of active learning techniques. Lectures will be largely replaced by other learning activities, but will not be abandoned completely. With the flipped classroom, you will be asked to learn the content at home; instead of listening to lectures, you will spend class practicing and reflecting upon what you've learned. Activities during class will include group projects, workshops, and simulations; your learning and that of your peers will suffer if you come to class unprepared. Thus, one of the core requirements of this course is keeping up with the assigned material by working at home. I will use pop quizzes and the online discussion boards both to encourage you to read the assigned material before classes and to enhance and extend our course discussions and activities. You will also write short self-evaluation reports reflecting on your learning experiences (what was learned, how it was learned, etc.).
This course is designed as a flipped classroom and will make use of active learning techniques. Lectures will be largely replaced by other learning activities, but will not be abandoned completely. With the flipped classroom, you will be asked to learn the content at home; instead of listening to lectures, you will spend class practicing and reflecting upon what you've learned. Activities during class will include group projects, workshops, and simulations; your learning and that of your peers will suffer if you come to class unprepared. Thus, one of the core requirements of this course is keeping up with the assigned material by working at home. I will use pop quizzes and the online discussion boards both to encourage you to read the assigned material before classes and to enhance and extend our course discussions and activities. You will also write short self-evaluation reports reflecting on your learning experiences (what was learned, how it was learned, etc.).
Learning Outcomes
In addition to learning course content— the Middle East's contemporary history, political regimes, and religion and social movements —students in this course will build their critical and analytical thinking skills. Students will:
· conduct independent research
· share their findings with other students
· communicate in collaborative settings
· analyze and evaluate new information.
Course resources, exams, assignments and learning activities are designed with these goals in mind.
· conduct independent research
· share their findings with other students
· communicate in collaborative settings
· analyze and evaluate new information.
Course resources, exams, assignments and learning activities are designed with these goals in mind.
Textbooks
Book description: "This new edition of Ellen Lust's The Middle East builds on its long-standing reputation as the most comprehensive, balanced, and nuanced introduction to the region. Lust and her outstanding contributors have fully revised the text to take into account the watershed events that have taken place in the Middle East since the 2011 uprisings. The book also adds important coverage with a new thematic chapter on religion, society, and politics in the region, which examines the role of both Islam and Judaism. Based on reviewer feedback, other improvements to the text include:
* A reorganization of the thematic chapters in the first part of the book to better reflect how the course is taught, with chapters on Institutions and Governance and the Political Economy of Development in the Middle East preceding the chapter on Social Change in the Middle East. * The chapter on Actors and Public Opinion now examines the role of social movements and activism in greater detail. * All country chapters now address religion in the context of society and politics more explicitly. * All tables, figures, boxes, and maps have been updated for the latest information. Both students and instructors will appreciate the wealth of online ancillaries that accompany this edition: * A downloadable, searchable chronology of major events, * Lists of resources for further study; * All of the maps, tables, and figures are available for download." Click for Online Sources |
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Book description: "Analysts and pundits from across the American political spectrum describe Islamic fundamentalism as one of the greatest threats to modern, Western-style democracy. Yet very few non-Muslims would be able to venture an accurate definition of political Islam. Mohammed Ayoob's The Many Faces of Political Islam thoroughly describes the myriad manifestations of this rising ideology and analyzes its impact on global relations.
"In this beautifully crafted and utterly compelling book, Mohammed Ayoob accomplishes admirably the difficult task of offering a readily accessible yet nuanced and comprehensive analysis of an issue of enormous political importance. Both students and specialists will learn a great deal from this absolutely first-rate book." ---Peter J. Katzenstein, Walter S. Carpenter, Jr. Professor of International Studies and Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Teaching Fellow, Cornell University "Dr. Ayoob addresses the nuances and complexities of political Islam---be it mainstream, radical, or militant---and offers a road map of the pivotal players and issues that define the movement. There is no one as qualified as Mohammed Ayoob to write a synthesis of various manifestations of political Islam. His complex narrative highlights the changes and shifts that have taken place within the Islamist universe and their implications for internal Muslim politics and relations between the world of Islam and the Christian world." ---Fawaz A. Gerges, Carnegie Scholar, and holds the Christian A. Johnson Chair in International Affairs and Middle Eastern Studies, Sarah Lawrence College "Let's hope that many readers---not only academics but policymakers as well---will use this invaluable book." ---François Burgat, Director, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) and the Institute for Research and Study on the Arab and Muslim World (IREMAM), Aix-en-Provence, France "This is a wonderful, concise book by an accomplished and sophisticated political scientist who nonetheless manages to convey his interpretation of complex issues and movements to even those who have little background on the subject. It is impressive in its clarity, providing a badly needed text on political Islam that's accessible to college students and the general public alike." ---Shibley Telhami, Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development, University of Maryland, and Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution Mohammed Ayoob is University Distinguished Professor of International Relations with a joint appointment in James Madison College and the Department of Political Science at Michigan State University. He is also Coordinator of the Muslim Studies Program at Michigan State University." |