Course: Anthropology of Policy

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Course title Anthropology of Policy
Course code KSKA/EAPOL
Organizational form of instruction Lecture + Seminary
Level of course Bachelor
Year of study not specified
Semester Summer
Number of ECTS credits 5
Language of instruction English
Status of course unspecified
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Lecturer(s)
  • Konopíková Michaela, Mgr. Ph.D.
  • Synková Hana, PhDr. Ph.D.
Course content
1. Anthropology of policy and the study of public policy 2. Development of the study of policy in anthropology 3. Role of the expert knowledge and elites in the formulation of policy, formulation of policy in the higher levels of bureaucratic apparatus 4. Lower-level bureaucrats or street-level bureaucracy 5. Methods in research for/of policy, evaluation of public policies and projects 6. Study of social reforms, comparison of current reform trends 7. State approaches to poverty, measuring poverty, precarization and changing nature of work 8. State and local cultural models of welfare 9. Securitization and policies of zero tolerance 10. Gentrification and idea of social mix 11. Commodification and decommodification of housing, social housing 12. Policy analysis discussion/presentation with students 13. Finishing and evaluation of the course

Learning activities and teaching methods
Monologic (reading, lecture, briefing), Dialogic (discussion, interview, brainstorming), Work with text (with textbook, with book)
  • Participation in classes - 26 hours per semester
  • Home preparation for classes - 40 hours per semester
  • Term paper - 30 hours per semester
  • Independent critical reading - 40 hours per semester
  • Preparation of a presentation (report) in a foreign language - 14 hours per semester
Learning outcomes
The course prepares students for the critical analysis of mainly public policies and understanding of the process of their creation. Students will learn to understand the contexts influencing the creation of policies and to evaluate the possible impacts of policies not only on the formerly planned target groups, but also on the bureaucratic systems themselves. Particular examples will illustrate policy as a moral concept, tool of the government, complex network of actors, mobiliser of resistance and form of governance, that influences everyday lives of many people.
The course prepares students for the critical analysis of policies and understanding of the process of their creation. Students will learn to understand the contexts influencing the creation of policies and to evaluate the possible impacts of policies.
Prerequisites
knowledge of English

Assessment methods and criteria
Home assignment evaluation, Student performance assessment, Work-related product analysis, Presentation

Regular presence and activity in the course - reading of the texts, discussion, homework based on study support (uploaded before the lesson) and handing in an analysis of policy with the possibility of presentation in the class.
Recommended literature
  • The reader is uploaded in documents.
  • Shore, C., S. Wright, D. Pero (eds.). Policy Worlds: Anthropology and the Anatomy of Contemporary Power. London, UK: Berghahn, 2011.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester