FACULTY OF BUSINESS

Department of Political Science and International Relations

PSIR 325 | Course Introduction and Application Information

Course Name
Constitutionalism and Democracy
Code
Semester
Theory
(hour/week)
Application/Lab
(hour/week)
Local Credits
ECTS
PSIR 325
Fall/Spring
3
0
3
6

Prerequisites
None
Course Language
English
Course Type
Elective
Course Level
First Cycle
Mode of Delivery -
Teaching Methods and Techniques of the Course -
Course Coordinator
Course Lecturer(s)
Assistant(s)
Course Objectives This course aims to analyze the relationship between law and politics by focusing on the topic of constitutionalism. The course aims to employ a conceptual discussion on the subject of constitutionalism and shed light on the complex relationship between constitutionalism and democracy.
Learning Outcomes The students who succeeded in this course;
  • Define the concept of constitutionalism,
  • Evaluate the relationship between constitutionalism, rights and democracy,
  • Explain the reasons behind the worldwide trend of ‘judicialization of politics’ ,
  • Discuss the origins of constitutionalism Turkey,
  • Analyze the abstract questions through concrete cases ,
  • Outline the relationship between different academic disciplines like the law and political science .
Course Description The course is composed of three parts. The first part focuses on theoretical questions, the second part aims to explain the reasons behind the growing influence of constitutionalization in contemporary politics and the third part discusses all these issues through a case study of Turkey.

 



Course Category

Core Courses
Major Area Courses
X
Supportive Courses
Media and Management Skills Courses
Transferable Skill Courses

 

WEEKLY SUBJECTS AND RELATED PREPARATION STUDIES

Week Subjects Related Preparation
1 Introduction and outline of the course
2 What is Constitutionalism? Whittington, K. E. (2008). Constitutionalism. In Wittington, K. E., Kelemen, R. D. & Calderira, G. A. (eds) The Oxford Handbook of Law and Politics (pp. 281-99). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Sunstein, C. R. (1993). Constitutions and Democracies: an epilogue. In Elster, J. & Slagstad, R. (eds.) Constitutionalism and Democracy (pp.327-357). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Alexander, L. (2005). Constitutionalism. In Golding, M. P. & Edmundson W. A. (eds) The Blackwell Guide to the Philosophy of Law and Legal Theory (pp.248-258). Malden: Blackwell Publishing.
3 Constitutionalism, Democracy and Rights (I): Hayek Hayek, F. A. (1978). The Constitution of Liberty. China Social Sciences Publishing House, Chengcheng Book Ltd. [Introduction, pp. 1-11; Chapter 1, pp.11-22; Chapter 14, pp.205-220]
4 Constitutionalism, Democracy and Rights (II): Dworkin Dworkin, R. (2005). Freedom‘s Law. New York: Oxford University Press. [Introduction: The Moral Reading and the Majoritarian Premise, pp.1-38]
5 Constitutionalism, Democracy and Rights (III): Habermas Habermas, J. (1996). Between Facts and Norms: Contributions to a Discourse Theory of Law and Democracy. (Rehg, W., Trans). Cambridge: The MIT Press. [Chapter 3.1, pp.84-104; Chapter 3.3, pp.118-131]
6 Constitutionalism, Democracy and Rights (IV): Rorty Rorty, R. (1989). Contingency, Irony and Solidarity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Introduction, pp.xiii-xvi; Chapter 3, pp.44-69]
7 Constitutionalism, Democracy and Rights (V): Waldron Waldron, J. (1999). Law and Disagreement. Oxford: Clarendon Press. [Chapter 13, pp.282-312]
8 MIDTERM EXAM
9 Theories on Judicialization of politics (I) Ginsburg, T. (2008). The Global Spread of Constitutional Review. In Wittington, K. E., Kelemen, R. D. & Calderira, G. A. (eds) The Oxford Handbook of Law and Politics (pp. 81-98). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Hirschl, R. (2008). The Judicialization of Politics. In Wittington, K. E., Kelemen, R. D. & Calderira, G. A. (eds) The Oxford Handbook of Law and Politics (pp.119-141). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
10 Theories on Judicialization of politics (II) Hirschl, R. (2004). The political origins of the new constitutionalism. Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies, 11(1), 71-108.
11 The birth of constitutionalism in Turkey Özbudun, E. & Gençkaya, Ö.F. (2009). Democratization and the Politics of Constitution-Making in Turkey. Budapest: CEU Press. [Chapter 1, pp. 7-26} Ahmad, F. (1977). The Turkish Experiment in Democracy: 1950-1975. London: C. Hurst & Company. [Chapter 6, pp.147-177]
12 Comparison of Turkey’s constitutions 1924 Constitution in English: Earle, E. M. (1925). The New Constitution of Turkey. Political Science Quarterly, 40 (1), 73-100. 1961 Constitution in English: http://www.anayasa.gen.tr/1961constitution-text.pdf 1982 Constitution in English: https://global.tbmm.gov.tr/docs/constitution_en.pdf
13 The Constitutional Court of Turkey’s interpretation of the constitution Shambayati, H., & Kirdiş, E. (2009). In pursuit of “contemporary civilization”: judicial empowerment in Turkey. Political Research Quarterly, 62(4), 767-780. Belge, C. (2006). Friends of the Court: the Republican alliance and selective activism of the Constitutional Court of Turkey. Law & Society Review, 40(3), 653-692.
14 Summary and concluding remarks
15 Semester Review
16 Final Exam

 

Course Notes/Textbooks

There is no single textbook.

 

*All course readings are available at the University Library and as open sources.

Suggested Readings/Materials

 

EVALUATION SYSTEM

Semester Activities Number Weigthing
Participation
Laboratory / Application
Field Work
Quizzes / Studio Critiques
Portfolio
Homework / Assignments
Presentation / Jury
1
20
Project
Seminar / Workshop
Oral Exams
Midterm
1
40
Final Exam
1
40
Total

Weighting of Semester Activities on the Final Grade
2
60
Weighting of End-of-Semester Activities on the Final Grade
1
40
Total

ECTS / WORKLOAD TABLE

Semester Activities Number Duration (Hours) Workload
Theoretical Course Hours
(Including exam week: 16 x total hours)
16
3
48
Laboratory / Application Hours
(Including exam week: '.16.' x total hours)
16
0
Study Hours Out of Class
16
4
64
Field Work
0
Quizzes / Studio Critiques
0
Portfolio
0
Homework / Assignments
0
Presentation / Jury
1
15
15
Project
0
Seminar / Workshop
0
Oral Exam
0
Midterms
1
17
17
Final Exam
1
25
25
    Total
169

 

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES AND PROGRAM QUALIFICATIONS RELATIONSHIP

#
Program Competencies/Outcomes
* Contribution Level
1
2
3
4
5
1

To be able to use the theoretical and practical knowledge acquired in the areas of Political Science and International Relations.

X
2

To be able to have the basic knowledge of, and make use of other disciplines which contribute to the areas of Political Science and International Relations.

3

To be able to distinguish the differences between classical and contemporary theories and to assess their relationship.

X
4

To be able to recognize regional and global issues, and develop solutions based on research.

5

To be able to assess the acquired knowledge and skills in the areas of Political Science and International Relations critically.

X
6

To be able to transfer ideas and proposals on issues in the areas of Political Science and International Relations to other people and institutions verbally and in writing.

7

To be able to identify the historical continuity and changes observed in the relations between the actors and institutions of national and international politics.

8

To be able to examine concepts, theories, and developments with scientific methods in the areas of Political Science and International Relations.

X
9

To be able to take responsibility as an individual and as a team member.

10

To be able to act in accordance with the scientific and ethical values in studies related to Political Science and International Relations.

X
11

To be able to collect data in the areas of Political Science and International Relations and communicate with colleagues in a foreign language ("European Language Portfolio Global Scale", Level B1).

12

To be able to speak a second foreign at a medium level of fluency efficiently.

13

To be able to relate the knowledge accumulated throughout human history to their field of experience.

*1 Lowest, 2 Low, 3 Average, 4 High, 5 Highest

 


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