Description du cours

Intitulé de l'Unité d'Enseignement

European Union : History, Culture and Institutions

Code de l'Unité d'Enseignement

22MEP20

Année académique

2025 - 2026

Cycle

MASTER

Nombre de crédits

Nombre heures

Quadrimestre

Pondération

Site

Anjou

Langue d'enseignement

Anglais

Enseignant responsable

SALEH Ruba

Objectifs et contribution de l'Unité d'Enseignement au programme

The students are expected to :

- Improve their understanding of the EU through History, Culture, Policy and Institutions.

- Understand the structure and decision-making processes of EU institutions and to develop the skills needed for effective negotiation within an enlarged EU.

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

Prérequis et corequis

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 one’s knowledge up to date of current European affairs.

Description du contenu

Introduction

Session 1: First part: course organization

History Module (Aurélien Goutsmedt)

Sessions 1 to 5:

Europe before Europe – The European Union in the Making (From the Communities to the Union) – Europe and (its) Crises.

Culture Module (Ruba Saleh)

Sessions 8, 9 & 11:

-European cultural policies

-Cultural practices and project

Introduction to the notion of culture and cultural policies at European level. How culture is gaining importance at the EU level and what are the main challenges.

Institutions, Decision Making and Negotiating (Adam Steinhouse)

Sessions 12-13:

-The treaties and the spirit of the EU

- Overview of the main institutions and the EU decision-making process

- EU lobbying exercise and lobbying tips

- EU enlargement and the future development of the EU, including the effects of Brexit

- EU negotiation exercise.

Méthodes pédagogiques

This course adopts an interactive class setting and it incorporates the following elements:

- Lectures given by the lecturers and invited experts

- 2-day workshop in December which includes preparatory readings, interventions by the students, pitch and discussions.

- Group work, debate, individual & collective reflections

Teaching activities are all in person. Presence and active participation in the course are compulsory. Students are also expected to attend the European career conference, and the two visits as follows:

-Visit to House of European History on Friday 24 October 2025

-EU career conference on Thursday 06 November 2025

-Visit to the European Parliament on Friday 21 November 2025

Mode d'évaluation

Globally student will be evaluated by the 3 lecturers. Each module represents 25% of the total mark. This assessment is made based on class participation, pitch, Wooclap/Quiz/Miroboard interactions. 25% of the final grade is based on your learning log and the quality of your feedback with regards to your learning journey.

Objective: Demonstrate the ability to argue and produce critical thinking.

The overall evaluation will be as follows:

History Module (Aurélien Goutsmedt) 25%

Culture Module (Ruba Saleh) 25%

Institutions, Decision Making and Negotiating (Adam Steinhouse) 25%

Personal learning log 25%

In accordance with ICHEC study regulations, the average points are calculated on the basis of an arithmetic average if there is no failure in any of the activities. In case of failure in one or more activities, it is calculated on the basis of a geometric average.

In case of no class participation or late enrollment these students will be graded down and evaluated during the second session on the basis of their participation in class and conferences (20%) and an exam in January on the subjects seen in the course (80%).

The workshop and conference are one-time event. Please note that in case of non-participation in the workshop, students will be graded down.

History and cultural modules group work: You may use AI (ChatGPT & image generation tools) as long as it is conformed to ICHEC’s general guidelines. AI can be used for assisting you in gathering relevant information for the production of your assignments which includes exploring a topic, finding relevant sources, translating a text or reformulate points seen in class. AI must not be used to generate text and content from scratch. Please remember that AI is a tool which you need to acknowledge using otherwise you will be graded down.

Learning log: This journal is intended to help you make the most of the course. You may find it useful as a way of structuring your thoughts and thinking about the future.

You are expected to fill in the relevant section after each module and at the end of the course, and to upload it at each step on moodle. Please note that the maximum word count is of 300 words per question. The learning log is personal and the use of AI is strictly limited to reformulations when necessary.

You will be required to submit progress on your learning log on Moodle at several designated submission deadlines:

Part 1: History Module Friday 24 October 2025 by midnight

Part 2: Culture Module Friday 05 December 2025 by midnight

Part 3: Institutions, Decision Making and Negotiating Friday 12 December 2025 by midnight

Part 4: Overall thoughts Friday 19 December 2025 by midnight

Références bibliographiques

- Moodle: Announcements, Forum, class presentations, Handouts & reading materials, uploading group work slides and learning log.

- Wooclap: Students are asked to generate a personal account with their ICHEC email mentioning their first name and surname.

- Miroboard: Group work & class interactions.

Useful links:

www.cvce.eu/en

https://european-union.europa.eu/index_en

https://www.politico.eu/

https://eu-historians.org/?page_id=20

https://www.europeanheritagehub.eu/

Bibliography:

Walter Lipgens, A History of European Integration, vol.I: 1945-1947, Oxford, 1982.

Roy Price, The Dynamics of European Union, London, 1987.

Alan S. Milward, The Reconstruction of Western Europe 1945-1957, London, Routledge, 1992.

Norman Davies, Europe, a History, London, Pimlico, 1997.

Stuart T. Miller, Modern European History, second ed.,New York, Palgrave, 1997.

Anthony & Andrew Cowgill, The Treaty of Lisbon in Perspective, British Management Data Foundation, STROUD, Gloucestershire, England, UK, 2008.

Neill Nugent, The Government and Politics of the European Union, seventh edition, Palgrave Macmillan, 2010 (ISBN 9780230241183).

Gabriele Suder, Doing Business in Europe, second edition, Sage, 2012 (ISBN 9780857020857).

Luuk Van Middelaar, The Passage to Europe, How a Continent became a Union, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2013.

Derek W. Urwin, The Community of Europe, A History of European Integration since 1945, London and New York, Routledge, 2014.

Meurs, W., Bruin, R., Grift, L., Hoetink, C., Leeuwen, K., & Reijnen. The Unfinished History of European Integration. Amsterdam University Press. 2018.

Pinder, J., & Usherwood, S. M. The European Union?: A very short introduction (2nd Edition 2007). Oxford Univ. Press. 2018.

Philippe Kern, The Future of Cultural Policies. Editions KEA, Brussels, 2020.

Triandafyllidou, A., & Gropas, R., What is Europe? (21st Century Europe, 8) (1st ed. 2015). Routledge, 2022. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003278375

European Crew, The next renaissance. Culture and creativity shaping Europe. Odile Jacob, Paris, 2022.