Global Studies 101A
Introduction to Global Studies
Fall 2013
Instructor: Dr. Sara Matthews 
Office: DAWB 5-119

smatthews@wlu.ca

(519) 884-0710 x 4850
Office Hours: Tuesdays 11:30-1:00 pm or by appointment
Key Highlights
How to succeed: attend the lectures, take good notes, keep up with the readings, attend your
PASS sessions, and leave yourself enough time to study for exams.
Who to see: For questions related to your Peer Assisted Skills Sessions, please consult with your
Peer Assistant. For concerns related to academic performance, please see Dr. Matthews.
How to know what’s going on: Keep up to date with what is going on in the course by checking
on MyLearingSpace for news and content updates.
Course Description (from the calendar)
An interdisciplinary introduction to the contemporary world that focuses on the ideological, political,
economic and cultural dimensions of globalization. The class considers the principal actors, institutions,
processes, and power relations that have shaped the challenges and opportunities associated with
globalization, drawing on case studies to explore selected world issues in greater depth.
Required Class Materials
There are two required texts for the course, both available through the bookstore.
1. Steger, Manfred (2009) Globalization: A Very Short Introduction (3rd edition). New York: Oxford
University Press.
2. Orend, Brian (2013) Introduction to International Studies (1st edition). Don Mills: Oxford University
Press.
Steger and Orend will also be placed on reserve in the library, however, they are being purchased and may not
be immediately available. Please note that you will be tested on material from the 3 rd edition of Steger.
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Course Structure
LECTURE
Time: Tuesday & Thursday, 10:00-11:20 am
Location: BA 201
Lectures are one hour and twenty minutes in length. Lecture slides will normally be made
available prior to class, but students should be aware that these slides constitute only an outline of
the lectures and do not represent all material that may be tested. It is critical, therefore, to attend
lectures
PEER ASSISTED SKILLS SESSIONS (PASS)
Each student will participate in an 80-minute skill development session every week. These sessions are
mandatory and account for 20% of your course grade. They are led by senior undergraduate students
with successful records of academic performance.
Although these sessions are labeled as tutorials on LORIS (A01-A18), they are not tutorials in the
traditional sense. Part of their aim is to assist students with the academic components of the course, by
generating discussion around class materials and by reviewing strategies for note taking and exam
preparation. In the sessions, you will also be able to practice the critical skills development that you will
be learning in the lectures and for which you will be tested on in exams. These sessions are also devoted
to the student experience. Through this component, students will receive orientation to a series of
important campus services, while learning to think strategically about how their classroom learning and
path of study contributes to their broader career development. These are collaborative peer sessions that
focus on student engagement, not the re-lecturing of material. You will be required to complete activities
as part of these sessions.
To link the PASS sessions more closely with the lecture, your Peer Learning Assistants will be gathering
questions about course materials from you every Friday, which I will address in lecture each Tuesday.
See the PASS widget on MyLearningSpace for the attendance policy, as well as other details and updates.
MY LEARNING SPACE (MyLS)
I will communicate regularly with the class on MyLS. It is students’ responsibility to check MyLS
frequently in order to be aware of any announcements or content postings. Lecture slides will be posted on
MyLS in advance of most lectures, so that they are available as a template for taking notes in class.
Course Scope, Themes and Approach
GS101 is taught from a perspective that is critical of many of the dominant institutions and relationships
that have shaped contemporary processes of globalization, and will likely raise more questions than it
answers. The aim is to provoke students to think about the challenge of becoming active citizens of their
cities, their nations, and the world. The readings are sometimes challenging, so it is important to devote
time to reading them with care ahead of class so that you can get the most out of the lecture and pose
questions when you would like further explanation. In each class, I will provide concrete examples of the
concepts as well as in-class activities to keep the learning experience dynamic.
The calendar description for GS101 is ambitious. Such broad coverage means that we will focus on big,
thematic issues. By the time you complete GS101 you should be knowledgeable about the main forces and
actors reshaping our world in the 21st century. You should also be able to identify these forces and actors
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at work in the context of specific issues. Finally, it is my hope that the course inspires students to learn
more about their world and to begin posing their own questions about how humanity should respond to the
many challenges that face the planet.
Course Objectives
In this course, you will:
 Learn key concepts and scholarly ideas relevant to Global Studies
 Learn to approach problems from an interdisciplinary framework
 Learn about contemporary global issues and be able to analyze them using core concepts
 Generate questions about how humanity might respond to pressing global concerns
 Learn to write lecture notes and to develop critical reading skills
 Learn summarize, reflect on, and critically analyze academic arguments
 Engage in practices of peer-feedback and learning
 Listen to others and use the perspectives of others to reflect on one’s own point of view
 Learn to ask a good question
Grade Distribution
The following is a summary of the four components that comprise the grade students will be awarded for
their work in the course. See below for details about each component.
PASS Participation............................................................................... 20%
Exhibit Response ................................................................................. 15%
Mid-Term Exam................................................................................... 30%
Final Exam ........................................................................................... 35%
Grade Evaluation Details: Participation, Quizzes and Exams
PASS PARTICIPATION (20%)
Your participation in the Peer Assisted Skills Sessions is worth 20% of your grade. See the PASS widget
on MyLS for the attendance policy and for further information about how this grade will be calculated.
EXHIBIT RESPONSE (15%)
On Thursday October 17, Governor Award winning visual artist Jamelie Hassan will be giving a guest
lecture that takes up the themes of her exhibit “Could We Ever Know Each Other…?” The exhibit will be
showing at the Robert Langen Art Gallery at WLU in Oct/Nov. For this assignment, you will be required
to visit the exhibit and to choose one or more artworks for which you will write a response paper. There
will be no PASS sessions on Friday October 18 to give you time to visit the exhibit, though you may go
any day that the gallery is open (see here for hours and location
http://www.wlu.ca/homepage.php?grp_id=12554).
The response paper should be 500-550 words in length (include word count at bottom of the page). In
your response, you should describe the artwork, paying attention to the materials, how it was made, and to
how the artwork is presented in the gallery space. This description should be no longer than 100-150
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words. With the remainder of the response, your task is to reflect on the artwork(s) in relation to the
themes of the course. You should also choose one short quote (no longer than three sentences) from the
course readings that you feel relates to the exhibit and incorporate this quote into your discussion. Further
instructions will be provided in class and on MyLS. Note: if you do not attend the lecture on October 17
you will have a difficult time completing this response.
DUE DATE: Tuesday November 5, at the beginning of lecture. Papers should be double spaced,
stapled in the left hand corner and clearly marked with your name and student number. Please do
NOT provide a cover page or document folder. Word count should be clearly indicated in brackets
after your final sentence eg. (525). See below for Late Policy.
MID TERM EXAM (30%)
The midterm will take place on Tuesday, October 15th in class. It will be comprised of multiple-choice
questions, a passage summary and a passage reflection (more details will be provided in class). It will test
all lectures (including guest lectures), readings and films up to and including materials discussed on
October 10th. A make-up exam will be available only for documented illness or other personal
emergencies.
FINAL EXAM (35%)
The final exam will be written during the regular end-of-term exam period. It will be comprised of
multiple choice questions and a passage analysis. The final exam will test all lectures, readings and films
after the midterm. It may also revisit certain concepts from the first half of the course, but in that case
these concepts will be announced in advance of the exam. As we will not know the date of the exam until
the examinations office informs us later in the semester; please do not make plans to leave campus until
you know the dates of all your final exams. A make up exam will be available only for documented illness
or other personal emergencies and will be scheduled by the Department of Global Studies.
Lecture Topics and Reading Schedule
September Week 1: Globality, Globalization, Global Studies – what does it all mean?
10 & 12
Readings: Steger, “Preface to the Third Edition”, Chpts. 1 & 2
Film: Island of Flowers http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qspymI_v_Lg
Learning Skills: Taking lecture notes (Sept 12)
PASS Sessions: begin this week on Friday!
September Week 2: Core Concepts and Historical Concepts
17 & 19
Readings: Orend, Chpt. 1, Steger Chpt. 4
Resource: https://www.historica-dominion.ca/
Guest Speaker, Sept 19: Dr. Alex Latta
Learning Skills: Critical Reading (Sept 19)
September Week 3: The Economic Dimensions of Globalization
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24 & 26
Readings: Orend, Chpt. 6; Steger, Chpt. 3
Resource: http://www.fairtrade.net/
Film: The Dollar a Day Dress
Guest Speakers:
Sept 24: Dr. Tanya Richardson
Sept 26: TK Azaglo, Future of Africa http://www.futureofafrica.org/
October
Week 4: Population and Environment
1&3
Readings: Orend, Chpt. 2, Steger, Chpt. 6
Resource: http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/
Guest Speakers: GSE participants, tba
Learning Skills: Summary (Oct 1)
October
Week 5: Comparative Culture
8 & 10
Readings: Orend, Chpt. 3; Steger Chpt. 5
Guest Speaker, Oct 8: architect Marc Downing (title tba)
October
15 & 17
Mid-Term Exam October 15th in class
Week 6: Guest Lecture, Oct 17: Jamelie Hassan “Could we ever know each other…?”
No PASS Sessions Oct. 18 – visit exhibit
October
Week 7: Foreign Policy, International Politics and Law
22 & 24
Readings: Orend, Chpts. 4 & 5
Film: Hijacking Catastrophe: 9/11, Fear and the Selling of American Empire
Guest Speaker, Oct 24: Dr. Edmund Pries “Disarmament and International Humanitarian
Law”
Learning Skills: Reflection (Oct 22)
October
Week 8: Armed Conflict
29 & 31
Readings: Orend, Chpts. 7 & 8
Guest Speaker, Oct 31: Dr. Timothy Donais “Peacebuilding in the Shadow of War”
Learning Skills: Critical Analysis (Oct 29)
November Week 9: Human Rights
5&7
Nov 5: Exhibit Response DUE IN CLASS
Readings: Orend, Chpt. 9
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Resource: http://www.hrw.org/
Film: 1-800-India importing a white-collar economy
Guest Speaker: (tba)
November Week 10: International Aid and Development
12 & 14
Readings: Orend, Chpt. 11
Guest Speaker, Nov 14: Dr. Alicia Sliwinski “Disasters and Development”
November Week 11: Global Public Health
19 & 21
Readings: Orend, Chpt. 10
Film: excerpts from World War Z; the “Zombie Apocalypse” as pandemic
November Week 12: Final Thoughts and Review
26 & 28
Readings: Orend, Chpt. 12
FINAL EXAM – SCHEDULED VIA REGISTRAR’S OFFICE IN EXAM PERIOD
Late Policy: Late Papers will be accepted only in class. If you miss the first submission deadline for your
exhibit response (Tuesday November 5) the next submission time will be Thursday Nov 7. I WILL NOT
accept late papers outside of class, even with extenuating circumstances. If you have the proper
documentation (eg. death in the family or medical note), late penalties will be waived. Otherwise, the
following penalties apply:
1 class late – less 5%. In other words, if you scored 12/15 your grade will be reduced to 7/15.
2 classes late – less 10%. Your score of 12/15 will be reduced to 2.
3 classes late – zero.
Remember that late responses will not be accepted without penalty unless accompanied by a doctor’s note
or other form of official documentation of an emergency. If you are anticipating: computer glitches, being
the victim of a street crime, bad planning, grand jury duty, embarrassing messages from “Mom” on your
facebook wall, animal attacks, hurtful comments by close friends, good lovin’ gone bad, the zombie
apocalypse, DOG the bounty hunter on your trail, seeing your brother on Cops, being struck by space
junk, unforeseen cataclysmic acts of God, fear of intimacy, suburban malaise, urban ennui, funding cuts
for higher education, rude tweets, trouble with your Toyota accelerator pedal, loss of hope in your
audacity or vice versa, the debilitating shame of purchasing a Justin Bieber CD, your appearance on The
Bachelor/Bachelorette, losing your global studies mojo, or anything else that might interfere with your
writing, get your exhibit response started early.
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