Robinson
SIS 319.06
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
The Politics of Population
American University • School of International Service
SIS 319.06 • Spring 2012
Instructor
Email
Phone
Office
Office Hours
Course Meeting Time
Meeting Location
Prof. Rachel Sullivan Robinson
robinson@american.edu
202-885-1636
SIS 341
Tuesdays 3-5
Wednesdays 4:30-6:30
Tuesdays & Fridays, 10:20-11:35
Ward 204
Course Description and Objectives
This course will introduce you to population studies, which includes the analysis of population
structures and dynamics overall, as well as the specific study of fertility, mortality, and
migration. In particular, we will reflect on how these areas have been politicized by various
actors at different points in time around the world. We will explore research on the
relationship between population growth and the environment, the impact of age structure on
security and conflict, the influence of family planning programs on fertility, the effect of aging
on the economy, and a variety of issues related to international migration.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course you will be able to:
♦ Calculate and recognize basic demographic measures related to population structure
and dynamics, fertility, mortality, and migration
♦ Describe and apply major demographic theories related to population structure and
dynamics, fertility, mortality, and migration
♦ Locate and analyze demographic data using Excel
♦ Evaluate claims made about demographic topics in the media and political arena
Required Readings
There is nothing to be purchased at the bookstore for this class. Rather, all readings will be
accessible through Blackboard.
Caveat
When approaching very controversial topics – such as population limitation, equity between
generations, or laws governing the movement of persons across international borders – our
purpose is not to arrive at a final conclusion (either individually or collectively). Instead, we will
analyze these issues as social problems constructed by actors at a given time, in a given context,
and with particular perspectives and interests. The goal is thus to understand the variety of
opinions that exist, to examine those opinions in light of relevant facts about the world around
us, and to take advantage of opportunities for reexamination of our own perspectives on these
topics in a rigorous and well-informed fashion.
Please note – syllabus is always open to revision. Blackboard will have most up-to-date version.
Robinson
SIS 319.06
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
Course Activities
♦ Pragmatics The course meets twice a week for 14 weeks (excluding spring break). Each
class lasts 75 minutes.
♦ Class Time Class time will be divided between discussion of readings, brief lectures, and
activities related to class topics, including visits to the computer lab.
♦ Homework Homework will be a combination of reading, assignments related to class
topics, and the country memos.
♦ Country Memos 1 The country memos will provide you with an opportunity to practice
finding and analyzing demographic data for a country of your choosing, as well as
discussing demographic issues that have been politicized in that country. You will
present the results in both written (four, short memos) and visual (one poster) form.
Evaluation
Your final grade is out of 1000 points and has five components:
Component
Details
Three short assignments, each worth 50 points
♦ Homework – 15%
An analysis of the demographic situation, including its
♦ Country Memos – 40%
politics, of a country of your choosing. Evaluation is broken
down as follows:
− Overall population situation in country 75 points
− Fertility situation in country
75 points
− Mortality situation in country
75 points
− Migration situation in country
75 points
− Visual presentation of findings
100 points
Covering the first half of the material in the course, to be
♦ Midterm Exam – 15%
taken during class on Tuesday, March 6
Covering all material in the course, to be taken during the
♦ Final Exam – 20%
final exam period Friday, May 4, 8:55-11:25 am
Participation means sharing your voice. You can do this with
♦ Participation – 10%
the class via comments and questions, and also with me via
emails and office hours visits. Participation includes coming
to class!
Each component will be graded in terms of points, which will be converted to a letter grade at
the end of the semester based on the following schema:
A 95% and higher
B+
87-89.9%
C+
77-79.9%
A- 90-94.9%
B
83.5-86.9% C
73.5-76.9%
B80-83.4%
C70-73.4%
An “A” means superior work, a “B” excellent work, a “C” satisfactory work, a “D”
unsatisfactory/incomplete work, and an “F” below minimum-standard work.
1
We will discuss the country memos in class during the first two weeks of the semester.
2
Robinson
SIS 319.06
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
Policies
♦ As members of the same intellectual community, we benefit from one another’s insights
and presence, so your attendance at all class sessions is expected and is considered part
of participation. If you miss class, be sure to contact your peers for notes and
information on assignments (email addresses are available through Blackboard).
♦ The best way to contact me is via email or by coming to my office hours. I will try to
answer all emails received Sunday-Thursday within 24 hours of their receipt. Emails
received over the weekend will usually have to wait until Monday. If you cannot come
to my office hours, I am willing to try to schedule appointments for other times.
♦ All homework assignments must be turned in at the beginning of class in hard copy
unless otherwise specified on the assignment. Homework assignments will not be
accepted late, as we will always discuss them immediately following their completion.
♦ All country memo assignments must be turned in electronically to Blackboard by the
beginning of class the day they are due. I will automatically grant you a 24-hour
extension if and only if it is requested at least 24 hours before the due date. The grades
of late papers (those turned in any time after class the day the paper was due, or any
time after the 24-hour extension) will be reduced by one letter grade and will be
accepted no later than a week after the original due date.
♦ All requests for grade changes must be made in writing, and submitted to me in person
within one week of the return of the test/assignment. I reserve the right to increase or
decrease a disputed grade.
Additional Support
If you experience difficulty in this course for any reason, or if you anticipate experiencing
difficulties of any sort, please don’t hesitate to consult with me. In addition to what I can offer,
a wide range of services is available to support you in your efforts to meet the course
requirements:
♦ The Academic Support Center (x3360, MGC 243) offers study skills workshops,
individual instruction, tutor referrals, and services for students with learning disabilities.
Writing support is available from both the Academic Support Center Writing Lab
(https://www.american.edu/ocl/asc/Writing-Lab-About-Us.cfm) and the College of Arts
and Sciences Writing Center (Battelle 228, http://www.american.edu/cas/writing/).
♦ Library Research Help (http://www.library.american.edu/how_to/research_help.html)
provides links to lots of helpful library research tools, including site from where you can
IM a reference librarian.
♦ The Counseling Center (x3500, MGC 214) offers counseling and consultations regarding
personal concerns, self-help information, and connections to off-campus mental health
resources.
♦ Disability Support Services (x3315, MGC 206) offers technical and practical support and
assistance with accommodations for students with physical, medical, or psychological
disabilities. If you qualify for disability-related accommodations, please make sure that
you have registered with Disability Support Services such that they will send me an
3
Robinson
SIS 319.06
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
accommodation letter. More information is available on their web site
(http://www.american.edu/ocl/dss/).
Green Teaching
This is a Certified Green Course. This means, for example, that I will try to limit the number of
printed materials I hand out, and that I will use Blackboard extensively to post handouts, collect
assignments, and provide you with feedback on assignments. To help make our class as green
as possible, I encourage you to buy used books, minimize paper use by submitting assignments
electronically as instructed, and read course readings online rather than printing copies. If you
choose to print, please print double-sided, and recycle the paper after the end of the semester.
Academic Integrity
University policies on academic integrity (this includes plagiarism!) will be strictly enforced. By
registering, you have acknowledged your awareness of the Academic Integrity Code
(http://www.american.edu/academics/integrity/code.htm), and you are obliged to become
familiar with your rights and responsibilities as defined by the Code.
Early Warning Notices
You may receive an Early Warning Notice within the first month of classes. These notices are
designed for you to contact your faculty, receive assistance, and develop strategies to improve
your performance in the class. Please note that you should seek help throughout the semester
when you have questions, fail to submit an assignment, fail to attend class, or receive an
unsatisfactory grade.
Emergency Preparedness
In the event of an emergency, American University will implement a plan for meeting the needs
of all members of the university community. Should the university be required to close for a
period of time, we are committed to ensuring that all aspects of our educational programs will
be delivered to our students. These may include altering and extending the duration of the
traditional term schedule to complete essential instruction in the traditional format and/or use
of distance instructional methods. Specific strategies will vary from class to class, depending on
the format of the course and the timing of the emergency. Faculty will communicate classspecific information to students via AU e-mail and Blackboard, while students must inform their
faculty immediately of any absence. Students are responsible for checking their AU e-mail
regularly and keeping themselves informed of emergencies. In the event of an emergency,
students should refer to the AU Student Portal, the AU Web site (www. prepared.
american.edu) and the AU information line at (202) 885-1100 for general university-wide
information, as well as contact their faculty and/or respective dean’s office for course and
school/college-specific information.
My Teaching Philosophy
Successful learning means both mastering the relevant subject matter as well as acquiring and
practicing associated skills. As a teacher, it is my responsibility to 1) create an environment
4
Robinson
SIS 319.06
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
where all students can learn, 2) equip students with the tools necessary for that learning to
occur, and 3) provide necessary support along the way. Consider me your guide to this course
as well as to the subject of population studies. It is my responsibility to try to anticipate your
needs, but it your responsibility to let me know if your needs are not being met. To that end, I
will ask you to complete a mid-term evaluation of my teaching and the course overall.
Detailed Schedule
You are expected to have completed homework and reading by class time the day that they are
listed. Readings are all electronic and will be available through Blackboard. Please note – you
must bring the readings to class (either electronically or in paper format) and be ready to
discuss them. Being ready to discuss them means being able to summarize them, and having
questions. Homework assignments are described only generally below – more detailed
assignments will be posted on Blackboard closer to the time the assignments are due. If there
is nothing listed in the Readings or Assignment columns, then nothing is due that day.
Date
Jan. 17
(Tues)
Jan. 20
(Fri.)
Topic
Intro. to class
Readings
NO CLASS!
•
Jan. 24
(Tues)
Theories of
population
change
•
•
Jan. 27
(Fri.)
Age structure
•
•
McFalls, Joseph A., Jr. 2007. "Population:
A Lively Introduction." Population
Bulletin 62:1-31.
Lee, Ronald. 2003. "The Demographic
Transition: Three Centuries of
Fundamental Change." The Journal of
Economic Perspectives 17:167-190.
Malthus, Thomas. 1985 [1798]. An Essay
on the Principle of Population. London:
Penguin Classics. Chapters I-II (p. 67-80)
and IV-V (p. 86-103).
Leahy, Elizabeth. 2007. The Shape of
Things to Come. Washington, DC:
Population Action International. Chapter
2 (Very Young Age Structures).
Cincotta, Richard P. 2008-2009. "Half a
Chance: Youth Bulges and Transitions to
Liberal Democracy." Pp. 10-18 in
Environmental Change and Security
Program Report, Issue 13. Washington,
DC: Woodrow Wilson Center.
5
Assignment
Robinson
Date
Jan. 31
(Tues)
SIS 319.06
Topic
Computer Lab
•
•
Feb. 3
(Fri.)
Politics of
Censuses
•
•
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
Readings
Valenta, Paolo. 2010. "Census Taking in
Europe: How are Populations Counted in
2010?" Population & Societies 467:1-4.
Pison, Gilles. 2011. "World population:
seven billion today, how many
tomorrow?" Population and societies
482.
Snipp, C. Matthew. 2003. "Racial
Measurement in the American Census:
Past Practices and Implications for the
Future." Annual Review of Sociology
29:563-588.
The Economist. “Census Sensitivity.”
12/19/07.
Assignment
HW #1 –
Demographic
measures
http://www.economist.com/node/10311346
Feb. 7
(Tues)
Population
and
environment
•
•
Feb. 10
(Fri.)
Population
debates
•
•
Feb. 14
(Tues)
Intro. to
fertility
Feb. 17
(Fri.)
Fertility cont’d
•
Harte, John. 2009. "Numbers Matter:
Human Population as a Dynamic Factor
in Environmental Degradation." Pp. 13644 in A Pivotal Moment: Population,
Justice, and the Environmental
Challenge, edited by Laurie Mazur.
Washington, DC and Covelo, CA: Island
Press.
Murtaugh, Paul A., and Michael G.
Schlax. 2009. "Reproduction and the
carbon legacies of individuals." Global
Environmental Change 19(1):14-20.
Sinding, Steven W. 2008. "Overview and HW #2 – Data
exercise
Perspective." Pp. 1-12 in The Global
Family Planning Revolution, edited by W.
C. Robinson and J. A. Ross. Washington,
DC: The World Bank.
Kaiser, Jocelyn. 2011. "Does Family
Planning Bring Down Fertility?" Science
333(6042):548-49.
Mason, Karen Oppenheim. 1997.
"Explaining Fertility Transitions."
Demography 34:443-454.
Memo 1 due –
population situation
6
Robinson
Date
Feb. 21
(Tues)
SIS 319.06
Topic
Contraception •
•
Feb. 24
(Fri.)
Famous
population
policies
•
•
Feb. 28
(Tues)
Fertility
controversies
•
•
Mar. 2
(Fri.)
Mar. 6
(Tues)
Mar. 9
(Fri.)
Mar. 13
Mar. 16
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
Readings
Singh, Susheela, Gilda Sedgh, and Rubina
Hussain. 2010. "Unintended Pregnancy:
Worldwide Levels, Trends, and
Outcomes." Studies in Family Planning
41:241-250.
Cleland, John, Stan Bernstein, Alex Ezeh,
Anibal Faundes, Anna Glasier, and Jolene
Innis. 2006. "Family planning: the
unfinished agenda." The Lancet
368:1810-1827.
Connelly, Matthew. 2006. "Population
Control in India: Prologue to the
Emergency Period." Population and
Development Review 32:629-667.
Greenhalgh, Susan. 2003. "Science,
Modernity, and the Making of China's
One-Child Policy." Population and
Development Review 29:163-196.
Bendavid, Eran, Patrick Avilab, and Grant
Miller. 2011. "United States aid policy
and induced abortion in sub-Saharan
Africa." Bulletin of the World Health
Organization 89:873–80C.
Goldin, Claudia and Lawrence F. Katz.
2001. "On the Pill: Changing the Course
of Women's Education." Milken Institute
Review 3:12-21
Fertility wrapup
Midterm exam
Intro to
mortality
Assignment
You will choose one
of these two articles,
and then report back
during class
Memo II due –
fertility
•
Wilmoth, John R. 2007. "Human
Longevity in Historical Perspective." Pp.
11-22 in Physiological Basis of Aging and
Geriatrics (4th ed.), edited by P. S.
Timiras. New York: Informa Healthcare.
• Vallin, Jacques, and France Meslé. 2010.
"Will life expectancy increase indefinitely
by three months every year?" Population
& Societies 473:1-4.
No class – spring break!
7
Robinson
Date
Mar. 20
(Tues)
SIS 319.06
Topic
Drivers of
variation in
mortality
•
•
Mar. 23
(Fri.)
Aging
•
•
Mar. 27
(Tues)
HIV
Mar. 30
(Fri.)
Apr. 3
(Tues)
Mortality
wrap-up
Intro to
migration
Apr. 6
(Fri.)
Apr. 10
(Tues)
Computer Lab
International
migration
•
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
Readings
Granados, José A. Tapia. 2010. "Politics
and health in eight European countries:
A comparative study of mortality decline
under social democracies and right-wing
governments." Social Science & Medicine
71(5):841-50.
Hogan, Margaret C., Kyle J. Foreman,
Mohsen Naghavi, Stephanie Y. Ahn,
Mengru Wang, Susanna M. Makela, Alan
D. Lopez, Rafael Lozano, and Christopher
J. L. Murray. 2010. "Maternal mortality
for 181 countries, 1980-2008: a
systematic analysis of progress towards
Millennium Development Goal 5." The
Lancet 375:1609-1623.
Macarthur Foundation Research
Network on an Aging Society. 2009.
"Facts and Fictions about an Aging
America by the Macarthur Foundation
Research Network on an Aging Society."
Contexts 8:16-21.
Lee, Ronald D. and John Haaga. 2002.
"Government Spending in an Older
America." Reports on America 3:1-16.
Shiffman, Jeremy. 2008. "Has donor
prioritization of HIV/AIDS displaced aid
for other health issues?" Health Policy
and Planning 23:95-100.
Assignment
Memo III due mortality
•
Hirschman, Charles. 2005. "Immigration
and the American Century." Demography
42:595-620.
HW #3 – Excel
exercise
•
•
Saenz, Rogelio. 2010. Latinos in the
United States 2010. Washington, DC:
Population Reference Bureau.
Benach, Joan, Carles Muntaner, Carlos
Delclos, María Menéndez, and Charlene
Ronquillo. 2011. "Migration and "LowSkilled" Workers in Destination
8
Robinson
Date
SIS 319.06
Topic
Apr. 13
(Fri.)
Remittances
•
Apr. 17
(Tues)
Migration in
other settings
•
•
Apr. 20
(Fri.)
Apr. 24
(Tues)
Apr. 27
(Fri.)
May 4
(Fri.)
Syllabus – 01/17/12 version
Readings
Countries." PLoS Med 8(6):e1001043.
De Haas, Hein. 2005. "International
Migration, Remittances and
Development: Myths and Facts." Third
World Quarterly 26:1269-1284.
Liang, Zai, and Zhongdong Ma. 2004.
"China's Floating Population: New
Evidence from the 2000 Census."
Population and Development Review
30(3):467-88.
Dovlo, Delanyo. 2007. "Migration of
Nurses from Sub-Saharan Africa: A
Review of Issues and Challenges." Health
Services Research 42(3p2):1373-88.
Migration TBD
Contentious
migration
issues
Assignment
You will choose one
of these two articles,
and then report back
during class
Memo IV due –
migration
•
Brennan, Denise. 2002. "Selling Sex for
Visas: Sex Tourism as a Stepping-Stone to
International Migration." Pp. 154-168 in
Global Woman, edited by B. Ehrenreich
and A. R. Hochschild. New York: Henry
Holt.
• Hopkins, Laura, Ronald Labonté, Vivien
Runnels, and Corinne Packer. 2010.
"Medical tourism today: What is the
state of existing knowledge?" Journal of
Public Health Policy 31(2):185-98.
Presentation of country reports
Final exam – 8:55-11:25 am
9
Visual presentation
of country report