Understanding Political Concepts

This course is part of the IPSAMOOC project, a joint venture Federica Weblearning - IPSA, the International Political Science Association

Political science discourse brings us face to face with many important concepts like authority, democracy, and power. However, all of them are used differently in different contexts, and their specific meaning depends on the theory they relate to.

There is no way around such puzzling diversity. Students of political science simply have to accept this challenge. Yet, the diversity of political science concepts can be used as a powerful resource for learning, through intellectual techniques for stirring personal creativity.

This MOOC teaches conceptual thinking and elementary theory-building through Hyperpolitics, an interactive dictionary for understanding and working with the most central concepts in political science. Its aim is to provide students with fresh critical insights about key political concepts by offering a methodology that enables users to unpack and reconstruct them on their own.

Its companion open-access website serves as a powerful tool for students to practice forging their own vocabulary while learning how to make professional use of authoritative PS internet resources. Through ten lessons, this MOOC comprises lecture sections based on visualizations of the arguments presented, reading assignments, and practical exercises.