UWO Transfer Credit

Instructor: Nigmendra Narain

Course Code: Political Science 1020E

When Taken: Fall/Winter 2019/2020

Class Notes: Class Notes

Assignments: Policy Brief – Due Feb 24, Final Copy – Bonus Assignment, Essay for term 1 – final copy (1),  Bonus assignment final

When I was in grade 12 I took one course, Political Science 1020E at Western University in London Ontario. This class discussed basic political theories in the first (Fall) half, with a focus on Canada. In the second half we discussed more international topics. I chose this class on somewhat of a whim, I was going to take anthropology, but it was at an inconvenient time for my highschool schedule, so I took this class because it was offered in the evenings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I ended up loving the content, and applying for Politics for my undergrad.

One of the most interesting things about this course, upon reflection, was how much it differed from the equivalent politics introductory course at Trent. Some schools teach politics as “political science”, as Western does, while others teach it as “political studies”, as Trent does. The schools that refer to it as a science tend to focus more on ways to collect data on politics, like surveys and polls, and emphasize measurables such as the economy. In fact, on the first day of my Western course the professor stated that political science was “a harder science than physics”. This was in stark comparison to politics at Trent which is far closer to the humanities than being a true social science, and as such focuses more on theories, historical trends, and motivations behind certain actors actions.

This class at Western shaped my undergrad, it caused me to pick politcs as a major, and it offered a point of comparison for the pedagogical methods used at Trent within the Political Studies department.