I have taught a broad spectrum of substantive classes on international relations, as well as courses in political science research methods, at both introductory and advanced levels. My teaching portfolio spans a diverse range of topics, from Introduction to International Relations to Terrorism and the Politics of Nuclear Weapons, and from Social Science Research Methods to courses on Game Theory and Survey Research Methods. Here, I provided course descriptions along with teaching materials I designed for four different types of courses I have taught: 1. a substantive course on Terrorism, 2. a formal model course (Game Theory in IR), 3. a social science research design course, and 4. a more technical course focusing on R programming (Survey Research and Analysis).
PS 140 – Introduction to International Relations
The course Covers the major issues in international relations since the end of World War II including: the causes of war; civil wars and ethnic conflict; economic development; international trade; exchange rates and international monetary relations; international capital flows and financial crises; foreign direct investment; globalization and the environment; the UN, the IMF, World Bank, WTO, and other international organizations; and international law and human rights. The focus is on states’ relations with each other and the factors determining the nature and outcomes of these international interactions.
- Instructor: Mark Copelovitch
- Fall 2019, Spring 2020
PS 347- Terrorism
The course covers the history of terrorism, the causes of terrorism, the goals and strategies pursued by terrorist groups, the extent to which terrorism succeeds in achieving its goals, the potential for terrorism with weapons of mass destruction, counterterrorism and counterinsurgency, and the normative debates about torture and civil liberties in the context of terrorism.
- Instructor: Andrew Kydd
- Fall 2020
PS 377 – Nuclear Weapons and World Politics
This course will introduce the student to the politics of nuclear weapons. The course will cover the origins of nuclear weapons, the reasons states seek them, the strategies developed for their use, the consequences of their development, and efforts to control and reverse their spread. In addressing these issues, we will study a variety of countries, including North Korea, India and Pakistan, Israel, Iraq and Iran.
- Instructor: Andrew Kydd
- Spring 2020
PS 348 – Analysis of International Relations (Game Theory in IR)
Focuses on how to analyze problems in international politics by the use of game theory. Examples include governments making choices about the size of their military forces, barriers to trade, or international agreements on environmental issues. Analysts study strategic interaction using both informal and mathematical methods. Provides a good introduction to the basics of game theory — a tool useful in many different settings — as well as an introduction to the study of world politics. From the perspective of quantitative reasoning, one of the most important set of lessons center on the logic of strategic interaction and the notion of equilibrium. Along with basic game theory students will also be introduced to the pragmatic use of mathematical tools including algebra, set theory, functions, and probability theory.
- Instructor: Lisa Martin
- Fall 2022
PS 274 Political Choice and Strategy (Game Theory Introduction)
An introduction to decision analysis, strategic interaction, and voting systems and their manipulation. Examines a wide range of institutions for making social choices and the opportunities for the exercise of political strategy.
- Instructor: Jean Vilbert
- Spring 2022
PS 170 Research Methods in Political Science
Introduces students to political science as a discipline by focusing on the development of research questions, research designs, and the quantitative and qualitative tools commonly used to implement research designs.
- Instructor: Jessica Weeks
- Fall 2023
PS 373 Introduction to Survey Research
Theory and practice of survey research; planning, sampling, questionnaire construction in Qualtrics, interviewing, content analysis, machine tabulation, cleaning and analysis of data in R.
- Instructor: Eleanor Powell
- Spring 2024
X. (Xunchao) Zhang 