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Teaching Methods

Entailing state of the art teaching methods - ranging from interactive working groups to simulations – the Global Politics Summer School China is an enriching and enjoyable learning experience.

Five courses are dedicated to important issues of Global Politics. Each of them provides in-depth knowledge about current developments, as well as the actors and institutions involved. In addition, the Global Politics Summer School familiarizes students with theory-based empirical research in IR. In the introductory course, students will become acquainted with the knowledge and skills necessary to identify relevant problems in IR, to explore theoretical references, and to design a research proposal. During Summer School courses, students are asked to discuss and critically evaluate the explanatory power of different theoretical frameworks.

The five theoretically based courses are complemented by two practice-oriented modules that encourage students to expand their potential outside of the traditional academic setting.  The first module consists of a simulation game in which students take the roles of different global actors, thereby looking beyond their personal positions and seeking to understand the rationales of all actors involved.  This simulation offers a unique opportunity to train strategic understanding and negotiation skills. The second practice module focuses on intercultural communication, and allows students to examine global interactions from yet another perspective.  In this case, students act as teams of advisors for international companies in Shanghai. This course is designed to impart communicative and practical competence in the field of consultancy.

The Summer School’s goal is to offer an intensive two-week program with students becoming actively involved through presentations, group work and discussions.  In order to enable this goal to be reached in the limited timeframe of the program, the Summer School’s seven courses are introduced and supported through the e-learning Blackboard. This learning-management system allows students to access the required reading and other study material well in advance of the start of the program, giving them sufficient time to prepare for the courses and for their presentations.  In addition, the e-learning Blackboard gives program participants long-distance access to the professors and lecturers in case of any questions or difficulties.

Moreover, all participants get a personalized log-in to the internal area of the Summer School homepage. In this section, students gain access to a rich resource pool with a wide range of links to research databases, libraries, actors, and issues in the field of international relations, thus providing an excellent start for individual research.