EDUC Online-Kurse

Discipline: international relations

Course description:
Course Aims - The new dynamics of the global system, together with its actors (the newly industrialised economies and the more developed forces at play) and their relevant connections, co-operations with Africa will be in the centre of investigation.

In 2020, Africa celebrated the 60th anniversary of gaining independence from the former colonial powers and nation-statehood (17 territories got independent during the ‘annus mirabilis’, 1960). Many say Africa is the loser of globalisation, but many others think the new forces at play, i.e. China, India, Brazil offer alternative ways of development. In parallel, we witness (due to increased competition on African soil) the rethinking about policies on Africa on behalf of the US, the UK, the European Union, as well as re-engagements of countries of the former Soviet Bloc, including the Visegrad Four and even Russia. Can all these bring real development for Africa? The course will investigate current political processes and events, and will look into Africa’s potential place and role in a possible new world order.

Competencies - Students will have the chance to get more engaged with analysing Africa-related political issues – not only African politics, but e.g. Africa-strategies of China, India, the EU, etc. Students will understand more about the new dynamics of the global world and the changing world order.

Students will be able to critically analyse and evaluate the effects and possible scenarios of the involvement of the new actors in Africa.

Students will develop critical skills in working with different academic sources, mostly scientific journal articles, ranging from American, African to Chinese authors. They will develop both their oral and written argumentative skills about defending their opinions.

Methodology - The course intends to present some fresh perspectives on the “consummate challenges and abundant opportunities” (as Robert I. Rotberg indicated it in the title of his book) of Sub-Saharan Africa and critically look at the “Africa rising” mantra. It will apply an interdisciplinary approach operating with a number of theories of International Relations, Political Science and Social Geography, but also presenting field research experience from sociological and anthropological perspectives.

During the module we will use the “journal club method” and thus, hold educational meetings, in which our group discusses already published journal articles about the central topic of the course. We will improve our skills to be able to differentiate, as Bhattacharya (2017) put it, “a genuine recent advance from a clever but outright harmful rediscovery of the wheel which has been long discarded”. We will look at how to formulate research questions, describe the methods, present the results and the conclusions of the given research. We will better understand how to present our research. At the same time, with the help of some invited journal editors and reviewers, we will learn about the entire editing process, with an emphasis on peer review, and therefore, on how to assess a manuscript.

Language level required: English B2

Starting date and timetable of the course: Friday 1 October 15:30-17:00, 15 October 15:00-16:30, 22 October 15:30-17:00, 12 November 15:00-16:30, 19 November 15:00-16:30, 3 December 15:00-16:30, 10 December 15:00-16:30    

Number of ECTS: 3

Discipline: law & political sciences

Course description: The main objective of this course is to develop the pratical skills of the participating students in carrying out real law enforcement and legally relevant activities and to prepare them for the necessary knowledge. In addition, the couse aims to promote students' ability to cooperate internationally and develop their foreign language competence in solving professional tasks. The couse aims to prepare students to deal with problems encountered in practice, to synthetize key legal requirements and literature. In addition, it aims to promote students' ability to cooperate internationally and to develop their foreign language competencies.

Language level required: English B2

Starting date and timetable of the course: Wednesday 13:00-14:30

Number of ECTS: 4

Discipline: pharmacy

Course description: The course will provide insight into the current issues of the online pharmaceutical market and the dangers of counterfeit medicines. Real world data on legitimate and rogue online pharmacies, various stakeholders, networks, products and information content will be introduced, along with the discussion of measures combating illegal peddling of pharmaceuticals. Novel information technology and data-science methods on the evaluation of this enormous online market will be discussed. 

Language level required: English B2

Starting date and timetable of the course: 1st of October (Friday) 13:00-16:00, 5th November (Friday) 13:00-16:00, 3rd December (Friday) 13:00-16:00

Number of ECTS: 1

Description : The goal of this course is to focus on the artistic, visual, material, and performative cultures that
coexisted in this extraordinary moment of history.
ECTS: 5
Who is it for: Anyone with an interest in art, culture, Roman Empire, no prereqs required
When will it run: Go at your own pace during fall 2021. Must start by October 13
Application requirements: B1/B2 level of English
Link to apply: https://forms.office.com/r/Lysrbwe06E
Application deadline: 30 September
Course questions: Erin Anna Smith – smithczs.municz

Description: The aim of the course is to show the broader context of digital competences. We start from DigComp,
which defines five areas of competence within which each citizen should develop. It tries to show how
individual competences influence and change the information society and what impact their
development or absence can have. At the same time, they also seek to deepen them in practice.
ECTS: 5
Who is it for: Anyone with an interest, expected is the basics of English and interest in the issue, no prereqs
required
When will it run: October 13
Application requirements: B1/B2 level of English
Link to apply: https://forms.office.com/r/Lysrbwe06E
Application deadline: 30 September
Course questions: Klára Holíková - holikovaczs.municz

Description: This course will introduce students to a wide range of analytical techniques applied in ceramic studies
providing an overview of recent archaeometric and archaeological approaches to pottery analysis and
interpretation of ceramics. It is intended to provide knowledge of analytical methods and approaches
to the study of clay artefacts, including the acquisition of practical skills in ceramics analysis and data
interpretation using pXRF.
ECTS: 3
Who is it for: Anyone with an interest in, no prereqs required
When will it run: October 13
Application requirements: B1/B2 level of English
Link to apply: https://forms.office.com/r/Lysrbwe06E
Application deadline: 30 September
Course questions: Klára Holíková - holikovaczs.municz

Description: The course is aimed at learners with no or almost no prior knowledge of German. As a fully Moodle-based online learning material, it could serve as a self-directed learning activities within and beyond classroom courses. Built on an action-orientated approach, it addresses reception, production, interaction and mediation in terms of language activities in connection to language strategies in various, but typical areas of communication related to academic life. Therefore it does neither claim to “cover” the whole level A1 according to the CEFR nor to provide A1 exam training but instead to empower successful participants to take their first steps in a German speaking surrounding and – equally important – to manage their further language acquisition.  

Upon successfully engaging in this course, learners:

-can recognise concrete information (e.g. places and times) on familiar topics encountered in everyday life, provided it is delivered slowly and clearly.

-can understand some expressions when people are discussing them: personal and  academic life, hobbies or surroundings, provided the delivery is slow and clear.

-can understand instructions addressed carefully and slowly to them and follow short, simple directions.

-can understand very short, simple texts a single phrase at a time, picking up familiar names, words and basic phrases.

-can guess the probable meaning of an unknown word/sign that is similar to one in the language they normally use.

-can produce simple, mainly isolated phrases about people, time and places.

-can ask and answer simple questions, initiate and respond to simple statements in areas of immediate need or on very familiar topics.

-can make an introduction and use basic greeting and leave-taking expressions.

-can ask for food and drink using basic expressions.

-can handle numbers, quantities, cost and time.

The course design will be topic-related (myself getting to know others, food and shopping, time and appointments, places and local orientation, academic life) with a modular yet interlinked structure. Each module will be organised along five steps (expose oneself & recognise, explain & understand, practise, apply & act, reflect & test) and be focusing on reception, production, interaction and mediation activities and the respective strategies.

ECTS: 6 ECTS equivalent, EDUC certificate

Application requirements: none

Application deadline: 01 October 2021

Course questions: Christoph Lehker - lehkeruni-potsdamde