Course description

Title of the Teaching Unit

European History and Institutions

Code of the Teaching Unit

22MEP20

Academic year

2022 - 2023

Cycle

Number of credits

Number of hours

Quarter

Weighting

Site

Anjou

Teaching language

English

Teacher in charge

GODTS-PETERS Sabine

Objectives and contribution to the program

History (Sabine Godts-Péters): The students should get a historical knowledge in order to have a better understanding of Europe today.
Institutions (Adam Steinhouse): The students are expected to understand the structure and decision-making processes of EU institutions and to develop the skills needed for effective negotiation within an enlarged EU.
This course contributes to the following learning goals:
Enable students to be open to the world.
Make students aware of the complexity and importance of critical thinking.

Competency Goals :

CG 1 Disciplinary Knowledge
CG4 Open to the world
CG5 Aware of complexity / Critical Mind
CG6 Communicate orally and in writing in several languages

Prerequisites and corequisites

There are no specific requisites for this course. However, students are expected to be fluent in English and to have a basic knowledge of European history and to keep informed of current European affairs.

Content

History (Sabine Godts-Péters)
Introduction: What’s Europe? How fare does History help to define Europe?
Part 1. Europe at Wars
Part 2 European Integration from 1945 to the Treaty of Rome
Part 3 : European Integration from 1945 to the Treaty of Rome
Part 4 : From theTreaty of Rome to the Brexit
Conclusion and today challenges : Eurozone crisis, Security, climate changes, Migration

Institutions, Decision Making and Negotiating (Adam Steinhouse)
Introduction: The structure of the EU
Part 1: The treaties and the spirit of the EU
Part 2: Overview of the main institutions and the decision-making process
Part 3: The future of Europe, EU enlargement and institutional evolution
Part 4: Negotiation exercise
Conclusion: review, final questions and assessment

Teaching methods

The teaching method is the following: conference or lectures given by the lecturers or invited professor, workshop in December. This includes preparatory readings, interventions made by the students and discussions.
Most of the teaching activities are in person to all the students of the group; there are some specific activities online.
The presence and the active participation in the course are compulsory. Each student will be requested to make a presentation of a subject related to the course.
Students will also attend specific events, visits or conferences such as visits of the European institutions and exhibitions.

Assessment method

To measure if the students meet the courses objectives, the evaluation is made on the basis of their active participation in the class, their paper, and their oral presentation of the paper.
In case of no class participation or late enrollment these students will be evaluated on the basis of their participation in class and conferences and an exam in January on the subjects seen in the course.
Note that in case of non-participation in the workshop, students will be graded down without access to the January exam.
The workshop and conference are one-time event. Note that in case of non-participation in the workshop, students will be graded down without access to the oral exam.

References

Slides European History (Sabine Godts-Péters), European Institutions (Adam Steinhouse)
Website of the course
www.cvce.eu/
Luuk Van Middelaar, The Passage to Europe, How a Continent became a Union, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2013.