Information Package / Course Catalogue
| Political Science and International Relations | |||||
| Bachelor | Length of the Programme: 4 | Number of Credits: 240 | TR-NQF-HE: Level 6 | QF-EHEA: First Cycle | EQF: Level 6 |
Ders Genel Tanıtım Bilgileri
| School/Faculty/Institute | Faculty of Econ., Admin. and Social Sciences | ||||
| Course Code | POLS 444 | ||||
| Course Title in English | Philosophy of Social Sciences | ||||
| Course Title in Turkish | Philosophy of Social Sciences | ||||
| Language of Instruction | EN | ||||
| Type of Course | Flipped Classroom | ||||
| Level of Course | Select | ||||
| Semester | Spring | ||||
| Contact Hours per Week |
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| Estimated Student Workload | 120 hours per semester | ||||
| Number of Credits | 5 ECTS | ||||
| Grading Mode | Standard Letter Grade | ||||
| Pre-requisites | None | ||||
| Expected Prior Knowledge | None | ||||
| Co-requisites | None | ||||
| Registration Restrictions | Only Undergraduate Students | ||||
| Overall Educational Objective | To familiarize students with the basic philosophical problems and themes pertinent to social sciences | ||||
| Course Description | This course aims at questioning the nature of scientific reasoning; exploring the differences between natural and social science and looking into the specific problems of the social sciences. For the first couple of weeks, we will have a general introduction to the philosophy of science and scientific reasoning. After that, we will briefly look into the ideas of some of the most prominent theorists of science such as Karl Popper, Thomas Kuhn, Imre Lakatos and Paul Feyerabend. For the rest of the term, we will probe into the philosophy of social science via reading texts from eminent figures such as Max Weber, Emile Durkheim, Carl Hempel, Charles Taylor, Donald Davidson, William Dray, Harold Kincaid, Alan Nelson and others. | ||||
| Course Description in Turkish | Bu ders bilimsel akıl yürütmenin doğasını, doğa bilimleri ile sosyal bilimler arasındaki farkları ve sosyal bilimlerin Batı’da ortaya çıkışını inceler. İlk haftalarda bilimsel düşünce ve bilim felsefesine genel bir giriş yapılacaktır. Ardından Karl Popper, Thomas Kuhn, Imre Lakatos ve Paul Feyerabend gibi önde gelen bilim felsefecileri tanıtılacaktır. Dönemin geri kalanı boyunca Max Weber, Emile Durkheim, Carl Hempel, Charles Taylor, Donald Davidson, William Dray, Harold Kincaid ve Alan Nelson gibi önde gelen teorisyenlerin metinleri eşliğinde sosyal bilim felsefesi ve sosyal bilimlerin kendine has sorunları irdelenecektir. |
Course Learning Outcomes and CompetencesUpon successful completion of the course, the learner is expected to be able to:1) Identify basic criteria of scientific reasoning 2) Distinguish between natural science and social science in terms of methods, approaches and values 3) Outline distinct positions of leading philosophers of science 4) Analyze basic philosophical problems and themes of social science |
| Program Learning Outcomes/Course Learning Outcomes | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1) Adequate knowledge of political history necessary to comprehend and effectively evaluate contemporary Political Science and International Relations issues. | ||||
| 2) Understanding of the fundamental concepts that exist in the fields of social and behavioral sciences as well as the correlation between these concepts | ||||
| 3) Ability to analyze the fundamental theories in the field Political Science and International Relations and to assess their reflections into practice | ||||
| 4) Ability to critically discuss different aspects of theories and developments in Political Science and International Relations both individually and in the course of group work during classroom discussions. | ||||
| 5) Ability to conduct research independently, or with a team, about the developments taking place in the international arena, make foreign policy analyses, develop research-based conflict resolution models, and prepare comprehensive reports using computers and relevant software | ||||
| 6) Ability to take decisions as well as to implement these decisions by using the knowledge about the field and the skills that have been acquired during the undergraduate studies | ||||
| 7) Ability to recognize the relations between scientific thought and ethical behavior; pay attention to being tolerant and properly defend different ideas, ideologies and belief systems | ||||
| 8) Ability to work in international institutions and multicultural environments, with the help of the knowledge on different cultures, societies, political systems as well as linguistic skills acquired during the undergraduate studies | ||||
| 9) Ability to display language skills in English at minimum B2 level enough for debating with colleagues on issues of Political Science and International Relations, and also display language skills in a second foreign language at minimum A2 level enough for communicating in daily life | ||||
| 10) Ability to pursue lifelong learning as well as perform advanced/graduate studies in the field Political Science and International Relations and other social sciences disciplines in academic institutions at home and abroad |
Relation to Program Outcomes and Competences
| N None | S Supportive | H Highly Related |
| Program Outcomes and Competences | Level | Assessed by | |
| 1) | Adequate knowledge of political history necessary to comprehend and effectively evaluate contemporary Political Science and International Relations issues. | S | Exam |
| 2) | Understanding of the fundamental concepts that exist in the fields of social and behavioral sciences as well as the correlation between these concepts | H | Exam |
| 3) | Ability to analyze the fundamental theories in the field Political Science and International Relations and to assess their reflections into practice | S | Exam |
| 4) | Ability to critically discuss different aspects of theories and developments in Political Science and International Relations both individually and in the course of group work during classroom discussions. | S | HW |
| 5) | Ability to conduct research independently, or with a team, about the developments taking place in the international arena, make foreign policy analyses, develop research-based conflict resolution models, and prepare comprehensive reports using computers and relevant software | S | Exam |
| 6) | Ability to take decisions as well as to implement these decisions by using the knowledge about the field and the skills that have been acquired during the undergraduate studies | S | Exam |
| 7) | Ability to recognize the relations between scientific thought and ethical behavior; pay attention to being tolerant and properly defend different ideas, ideologies and belief systems | H | Participation |
| 8) | Ability to work in international institutions and multicultural environments, with the help of the knowledge on different cultures, societies, political systems as well as linguistic skills acquired during the undergraduate studies | S | Participation |
| 9) | Ability to display language skills in English at minimum B2 level enough for debating with colleagues on issues of Political Science and International Relations, and also display language skills in a second foreign language at minimum A2 level enough for communicating in daily life | H | Participation |
| 10) | Ability to pursue lifelong learning as well as perform advanced/graduate studies in the field Political Science and International Relations and other social sciences disciplines in academic institutions at home and abroad | H | Participation |
| Prepared by and Date | BAŞAK KEKİ , January 2024 |
| Course Coordinator | CANSU GÜLEÇ |
| Semester | Spring |
| Name of Instructor | Öğr. Gör. BAŞAK KEKİ |
Course Contents
| Week | Subject |
| 1) | Introduction to the course |
| 2) | Science and scientific reasoning |
| 3) | Popper’s theory of science |
| 4) | Scientific revolutions: Kuhn and scientific paradigms |
| 5) | Science and its critics: Lakatos, Lauden and Feyerabend |
| 6) | Introduction to social science |
| 7) | Are there laws governing human action? |
| 8) | Social science and rationality |
| 9) | The methodology of social science: naturalism versus interpretation |
| 10) | The individual versus the collective |
| 11) | Facts and values in the human sciences |
| 12) | Objectivity and bias in social science |
| 13) | Critical Social Science |
| 14) | Debate: Moral Obligations of High Income Nations towards Low Income Nations |
| 15) | Examination Period |
| 16) | Examination Period |
| Required/Recommended Readings | The coursepack will include excerpts from the following: Delanty, Gerard & Piet Styrdom. Philosophies of Social Science: The Classic and Contemporary Readings, (Philadelphia: Open University Press, 2003). Feyerabend, Paul. Against Method: Outline of an Anarchistic Theory of Knowledge, (New York: Verso, 2010). Godfrey-Smith, Peter. Theory and Reality: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Science, (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003). Kuhn, Thomas S. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2012). Lakatos, Imre. “Science and Pseudoscience”, http://www.inf.fu-berlin.de/lehre/pmo/eng/Lakatos-Science.pdf Martin, Michael & Lee C. McIntyre. Readings in the Philosophy of Social Science, (Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1996). Okasha, Samir. Philosophy of Science: A Very Short Introduction, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002). Popper, Karl R. Conjectures and Refutations: The Growth of Scientific Knowledge, (New York: Routledge, 2002). Rosenberg, Alexander. Philosophy of Social Science, (Colorado: Westview Press, 2016). | ||||||||||||||||||
| Teaching Methods | Flipped Learning technology – Perusall (texts will be uploaded pre-class with questions) -, in-class discussions, presentations, response papers | ||||||||||||||||||
| Homework and Projects | Perusall questions, three response papers, presentations | ||||||||||||||||||
| Laboratory Work | None | ||||||||||||||||||
| Computer Use | None | ||||||||||||||||||
| Other Activities | None | ||||||||||||||||||
| Assessment Methods |
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| Course Administration |
Email: kekib@mef.edu.tr Attendance and active participation are required. There would be no late presentations and papers unless medical report provided. MEF university values academic integrity. Therefore all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offences under the code of student conduct and disciplinary procedures. Any improper behavior, academic dishonesty or plagiarism is subject to the YÖK Disciplinary Regulation. |
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ECTS Student Workload Estimation
| Activity | No/Weeks | Hours | Calculation | ||||
| No/Weeks per Semester | Preparing for the Activity | Spent in the Activity Itself | Completing the Activity Requirements | ||||
| Course Hours | 14 | 3 | 3 | 84 | |||
| Presentations / Seminar | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | |||
| Homework Assignments | 14 | 1 | 1 | 28 | |||
| Paper Submission | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |||
| Total Workload | 120 | ||||||
| Total Workload/25 | 4.8 | ||||||
| ECTS | 5 | ||||||