POL 324: POLITICS OF CHINA

The University of Mississippi
Fall 2019, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 8:00-9:15, 111 Bryant Hall
Instructor: Dr. Gang Guo * Office: 128 Deupree Hall * Telephone: (662) 915-5419 * e-mail: gg at olemiss dot edu
Office hours: by appointment

[ Class Schedule ] | [ Student Presentations ] | [ On-line Resources ] | [ Map of China ]

Course Overview

This undergraduate lecture course is an introduction to the politics of China, with an emphasis on the mainland in the post-Mao reform era. It includes important topics in the Chinese political history, political ideology, political institutions, political processes, as well as some key issues in contemporary Chinese politics. After completing this course, a student should be able to gain a better understanding of the historical and current developments in Chinese politics and to appropriately apply the concepts and theories to the study of China.

The required readings for this course will be linked from this web page or through electronic journals at the University of Mississippi libraries.

It is essential for students to read (often critically) the required materials before class and attend all class sessions. Class participation accounts for 10% of the course grade.

Each student is also required to make a brief in-class presentation of about 5-10 minutes in length on a recent news on China. A sign-up sheet is distributed during the first class and each student will choose a date to present. In reporting the news, the presenter should synthesize news stories from at least two major mass media outlets. The PowerPoint file should include at least one page on the main news story, at least one page on some background information to help the audience understand the news story better, and at least one page of sources and/or references. The PowerPoint (or PDF) file for your presentation should be uploaded on Blackboard before the class in which you present. After each presentation there will be a short period of time in which the presenter responds to questions or comments from the audience.

The presentation accounts for 15% of the course grade and will be evaluated using the following rubric:

1. Content
   • The news story is timely, important, and interesting;
   • is coherent and well-focused;
   • is presented in a logical sequence that audience can follow;
   • provides some background information to help audience understand;
   • uses a variety of sources from different perspectives;
   • demonstrates good knowledge, research, and preparation;
2. Format
   • All fonts are large enough to be read at a distance;
   • Good contrast between fonts and background on all slides;
   • Images are relevant and help audience understand the content;
   • Slide layout is visually clear and balanced;
   • Slides contains no typographical or grammatical errors;
   • Information on the sources and/or references is accurate and complete;
   • The sources and/or references are properly formatted;
3. Delivery
   • All audience can hear the presentation clearly;
   • The presenter maintains eye contact with audience;
   • uses proper body language to help the presentation;
   • answers questions skillfully;

There will be one or more pop quizzes, two short papers, a midterm exam, and a final exam for the course. The pop quiz(zes) will be held on randomly chosen dates in class and account for 5% of the course grade. The two short papers shall be submitted on Blackboard on Tuesday, September 17th and on Thursday, October 31st, respectively. The papers account for 15% of the course grade. The mid-term exam in class on Tuesday, October 8th, will account for 25% of the course grade. The final exam starts at 8 A.M. on Tuesday, December 10th, according to the Registrar's Office. It accounts for 30% of the course grade.

Class Schedule

Student Presentations

On-line Resources

• South China Morning Post, a Hong Kong newspaper.
• People's Daily, the official newspaper of the CCP.
• China Internet Information Center
• The Economist
• Google News on China
• Asia Society
• Carter Center's China Program
• Embassy of the People's Republic of China, in Washington D.C.