HIST 402A: Diplomacy: History and Practice
Student Directed Seminar, Fall 2015
Mondays, 16h00-19h00, BUCH D307

Course Description
The course aims to explore the history of diplomatic theory and practice from ancient times to the modern era as well as the geopolitics that drove these developments. The course is divided in 2 parts: students will examine 1) prominent scholars of diplomatic theory and concepts of diplomacy (negotiation, diplomatic protocol, multilateralism) through time and 2) challenges faced by professional diplomats today. Historical case studies will be used throughout the course, and students will learn how to analyse them and apply them to the theories and concepts learned. Through this 2-part structure, the course aims to introduce students to the complex nature of diplomacy as a practice and profession.

Course Objectives
By the end of the course, students will successfully gain a broad understanding of the foundations of modern diplomatic practice. More specifically, they are also expected to:

• Explain fundamental diplomatic concepts like negotiation, bilateralism, multilateralism, regionalism, diplomatic protocol, etc., and their development
• Acknowledge the comparative history of diplomacy, including Western and non-Western perspectives
• Compare and contrast different theoretical perspectives on diplomacy
• Analyze case studies, and thus primary and secondary sources, according to context
• Connect diplomatic theory with historical examples of diplomatic practice.

Assignments

• Weekly Journal- 10%
  After every class, students will write a short 300 word/page journal entry exploring the ideas and concepts discussed in that week’s class and their thoughts, reflections, ideas, and opinions on those topics. These entries will result in an individual reflection journal which will be evaluated by at least 2 peers at the end of the term. Grading will be based on completion.
• Participation– 10%
  This is a crucial component to not only grades, but the success of the course overall. Good participation not only means consistent attendance, but coming to class having done the readings, actively engaging in discussion, respectfully listening to your peers, proposing questions and ideas for the class to consider, etc. There will be a mid-term and end-of-term evaluation done by 2 classmates, determined randomly the day of. Participation includes attendance, participation in discussions, as well as 1-2 mini presentations of relevant articles and primary sources.
• Readings Presentation – 25%
  Each week, 2 students will provide a summary of the week’s readings, including a critical review, followed by facilitating the class discussion using a set of developed questions about the material for the week. The reading presentation and facilitation will be evaluated by 2 of your peers during the presentation, who will be determined at the beginning of the semester.
• Pre-Simulation Position Paper and Participation – 25%
  The course includes a simulation of a significant historical event for diplomacy, the 1923 Lausanne Conference. Student will be assigned as a “diplomat” of a participating country in the conference, and will be writing a 2-page diplomatic briefing in advance, before engaging in in-class debates. Evaluation includes the briefing in the point of view of the country the student will be representing in the midterm simulation, as well their performance during the simulation, done by 2 classmates, who will be determined randomly the day of. The position paper is DUE OCTOBER 25, IN CLASS so your peers can read it in advance.
• Final Research Paper – 30%
  A 12-15 page research paper of any topic relating the themes and topics of the course, to be evaluated by 2 peers. DUE MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, IN CLASS.

Grading
Considering the nature of this course, where all assignments are peer-reviewed, it is highly important to take care when evaluating the performance of fellow students. We will be discussing evaluation standards and good grading practices in class, and will be consulting detailed evaluation rubrics to guide in the process.
Not only will there be a sign-up process for the presenters of weekly presentations, but for their evaluators. It is equally important for both presenter and evaluator to be present in the class they signed up to play their role in.

If you have any concerns regarding your grades, or if you are struggling with the course content, please let me know asap. Professor Lee is also available during his office hours.

Course Policies and Class Agreements
These apply to all SDS students, including me (Jennine).

• Student Directed Seminars are a different way to learn and together we will be undertaking learning from each other without a professor in the room.
• We all have a responsibility to help each other learn and listen to one another as we move through the course content. I would encourage you to talk to me about any concerns or suggestions you may throughout the course.
• You will have an opportunity to provide feedback and adjust some of the course goals/content/assignments/rubrics during the first week of class and I would welcome your feedback.
• This course is a rigorous upper-year seminar. By university standards, seminars generally involve moderate amounts of readings. Expect an average of 100pages reading per week. Please be prepared to complete the readings and assignments on time.
• Please let me know in advance if you need an assignment extension for any academic, medical, or personal reasons. Extensions will be considered on a case-by-case basis and may not always be granted due to the peer-grading involved. Late assignments will be penalized with a 2% grade deduction/day.
• What else? Let’s discuss!
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UBC Policies
As with all courses in UBC, the following policies apply:

• Access and Diversity
• Academic Misconduct
• Academic Honesty
• Attendance
• Religious Holidays

Student Directed Seminars (SDS)
This course is a SDS, and with this status there are several things to keep in mind. Read here for more information.

Bibliography
Readings vary weekly, and will be available for download on the course website (see the Readings link on the menu above) at least 2 weeks in advance of the class.

Schedule
The schedule could very well be subject to change, depending on current events, guest speakers, or group consensus. See the Schedule link on the menu above to consult this semester’s schedule.