By Dr. Stephen Schwalbe
Program Director, Political Science, American Public University
For college students contemplating which major they should pursue at American Public University, consider that we live in an ever-globalized world where national and natural borders mean less and less. As such, it is worth contemplating the value of knowing how nations are run around the world.
It is useful to know what kind of government is in operation if you wish to invest in a multinational corporation, if your job places you in a foreign country, or if you are serving in the military and are assigned to an overseas posting. The bottom line, it is important to know about your own government and others around the world.
To facilitate student learning about governments and various political systems of government, the APU Political Science program has just launched three new comparative politics courses, POLS420, POLS430, and POLS440, as part of its new political science concentration – Comparative Politics.
POLS420 Comparative Politics — Parliamentary Democracy is a course that compares Parliamentary Democracy to the American Constitutional Democracy. The case study for this course is the government of the United Kingdom. The government and politics of the British parliamentary system is compared and contrasted with the constitutional democracy of the United States. Students learn about the development of British parliamentary democracy in comparison with the growth and development of democracy in the United States. A number of countries around the world once belonged to the British Empire many of these former colonies adopted the British form of government including India, Canada, and Australia.
The second course we developed is POLS430 Comparative Politics — Communism, where students learn about the government and politics of communism in contrast with the theory and practice of democracy in the United States. The case study for this course is the government of China. Students learn about the development of communist theory, political life in communist China, and China’s political institutions. Students also discuss the comparative merits of both systems of government. Communist governments are found around the world including Cuba, North Korea, and Vietnam.
The third new political science course is POLS440 Comparative Politics — Theocracy, where students learn about the politics of theocracy as compared to democracy. The case study for this course is the government of Iran. The course compares the government and politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran with the United States. Students learn about the development of the Iranian theocratic state, how the political parties differ between the two types of government, how theocracy affects foreign policy, and how a theocratic constitution compares with a democratic constitution. Along with Iran, the theocratic governments in the world today include the Vatican, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, and Yemen.
The instructors of these courses have not only studied comparative politics extensively but have also lived and worked in countries under these political systems. As such, they have a first-hand awareness of how these governments function and can relate their experiences with students.
Your Academic Advisor can help you register for any of these courses.
About the Author:
Dr. Steve Schwalbe served for 30 years in the Air Force Intelligence and retired as a colonel in 2007. He was the Defense Intelligence Agency’s top military analyst, focusing on the Soviet General Staff. He also conducted Intermediate Nuclear Force Treaty inspections in the Soviet Union with the On-Site Inspection Agency.
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