CF 579 – Critical Thinking and Writing in a Canadian Context

Canadian Forces College 2011-12
National Security Program
CF 579 – Critical Thinking and Writing in a Canadian Context

Instructor: Dr. Adam Chapnick
Office: Curtis 316
Office phone: 416-482-6800, ext. 6853
Office email: chapnick@cfc.dnd.ca

Texts: For all readings, see the DS 572 course guides. Students are expected to complete all readings in advance of every class.

Schedule: Five lecture-discussions during international student orientation followed by a weekly class (primarily) on Mondays.

Course Description: This course provides international students with a rigorous introduction to critical thinking and writing in a Canadian context. After a series of introductory lecture-discussions (which will be open to all international students at the Canadian Forces College), the remaining classes will be taught in a workshop mode, meaning that they will combine discussion, presentations, and dedicated time for independent and collaborative reading and writing.

Teaching / Assessment Strategy: The 13 sessions will be three and one half hours long including a thirty minute coffee break. The format will be interactive with a heavy emphasis on peer support and feedback. The course will be assessed on a complete/incomplete basis. Participants must complete all of the designated assignments at a satisfactory level in order to complete the course.

Deliverables: This is a writing intensive course that will support the student experience in DS 572. There will be one primary style of deliverable:

Analytical summaries will be 250-500 words long and based on a single article. They will include a thesis statement, which assesses the effectiveness of the author’s argument. They will comment on (1) the quality and development of the argument, (2) the evidence used to support the argument, and, when appropriate, (3) the implications of the argument for Canadian foreign and public policy. They will be written in sentences and paragraphs. For more detail on how to complete the analytical summaries, please consult the course outline for DS 572 (page 3) as it relates to seminar participation.

In addition to submitting these summaries for instructor feedback, students will be expected to present summaries of their conclusions during the weekly discussions.

For more detail on specific weekly expectations, see the individual session descriptions.

Students agree that by taking this course all required papers may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted papers will be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com reference database solely for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of such papers. The terms that apply to the Canadian Forces College’s use of the Turnitin.com service are described on the Turnitin.com website.

Related Courses and Activities: This course is designed to be taken in conjunction with DS 572: Canadian Government and Decision-making in a Strategic Context

Course Schedule:

August 15, 2011
Session 1: Canadian History: Ten Events that Shaped the Country

This lecture-discussion will outline some of the most prominent themes in Canadian history by reviewing ten critical events that have shaped the country. The discussion that follows will combine responses to the arguments from the lecture with comparisons to the students’ experiences in their home countries.

August 15, 2011
Session 2: Canada’s Military Past

This lecture-discussion will outline some of the most prominent themes in Canadian military history by reviewing a series of critical events that have shaped the country. The discussion that follows will combine responses to the arguments from the lecture with comparisons to the students’ experiences in their home countries.

August 16, 2011
Session 3: The Canadian Political System

This lecture-discussion will introduce students to the way that Canada is governed at the federal level and explore some of the challenges and controversies associated with the state of the Canadian political system today. The discussion that follows will combine responses to the comments from the lecture with comparisons to the students’ experiences in their home countries.

August 16, 2011
Session 4: The Canadian Social Fabric

This lecture-discussion will outline some of the demographic challenges and realities that face Canada today with special attention being paid to the impact of immigration and efforts to integrate members of visible minorities into the social fabric of the country. The discussion that follows will combine responses to the observations from the lecture with comparisons to the students’ experiences in their home countries.

August 17, 2011
Session 5: Canadian Politics Today

In this session, the students will investigate the most pressing issues in Canadian politics and foreign policy as they are portrayed in widely circulated Canadian newspapers. Prior to the class, the students will (collectively) read the front sections of the previous day’s (or week’s) Globe and Mail, Hill Times, National Post and Toronto Star. In their syndicate, they will, again collectively, select the most significant story in each paper as it relates to the themes of their CFC programs.

A short plenary session will follow.

***

After the first five sessions, CF 579 will become exclusive to the NSP.

29 August 2011
Session 6: Fundamentals I

This seminar is designed to assess the competency of the participants as well as to begin to acclimatize them to the standard approach to critical thinking and writing in a Canadian, graduate-level context. Students will discuss the assigned readings as well as their experiences completing the first written deliverable.

Deliverable: Students are to arrive in class having completed a 250-500 word analytical summary of any one of the required readings for session 1 of DS 572. Students are to have written this without any assistance from peers or colleagues. Students should be prepared to speak to their summary during the discussion

Required

One reading from DS 572, session 1 (for discussion): Canada’s Values and Interests

2 September 2010
Session 7: Fundamentals II

This seminar builds on session 6 by allowing participants to apply what they learned during the previous session.

Deliverable: Students are to arrive in class having completed a 250-500 word analytical summary of any one of the required readings from session 3 of DS 572. Students are to have written this without any assistance from peers or colleagues. Students should be prepared to speak to their summary during the discussion.

Required

One reading from DS 572, session 3 (for discussion): Foreign Aid and Canadian Humanitarianism

12 September 2011
Session 8: Fundamentals 3

This seminar continues to develop the participants’ analytical skills and writing abilities.

Deliverables: Students are to arrive in class having completed a 250-500 word analytical summary of one of the readings from session 4 of DS 572. Students are to have written this without any assistance from peers or colleagues. Students should be prepared to speak to their summary during the discussion.

Required

One reading from DS 572, session 4 (for discussion): Canadian Political Culture (1): Immigration, Multiculturalism, and Diaspora Politics

19 September 2011
Session 9: Fundamentals 4

This seminar builds on session 8 by allowing participants to apply what they learned during the previous session.

Deliverables: Students are to arrive in class having completed a 250-500 word analytical summary of one of the readings from session 5 of DS 572. Students are to have written this without any assistance from peers or colleagues. Students should be prepared to speak to their summary during the discussion.

Required

One reading from DS 572, session 5 (for discussion): Canadian Political Culture (2): The Relationship with the United States.

26 September 2011
Session 10: Fundamentals 5

This session serves as the final opportunity for the students to gain practice drafting analytical summaries.

Deliverables: Students are to arrive in class having completed a 250-500 word analytical summary of one of the readings from session 7 of DS 572. Students are to have written this without any assistance from peers or colleagues. Students should be prepared to speak to their summary during the discussion.

Required

One reading from DS 572, session 7 (for discussion): Jurisdictional Challenges (2): Federalism, the Provinces, and Canadian International Policy

12 October 2011
Session 11: Introduction to the Ottawa FSE

This seminar is meant to help the participants prepare for the upcoming field study exercise in Ottawa.

Deliverables: Students are to arrive in class prepared to give a 5 minute presentation on one of the departments or agencies that will be visited in Ottawa. Further details will be provided closer to the date of the seminar.

No readings.

24 October 2011
Session 12: Peer Critique / Ottawa Debrief

This session is designed to improve participants’ ability to evaluate the work of their peers. Time will also be spent reviewing the participants’ experience on the Ottawa FSE.

Deliverables: Students are to arrive in class with a draft of at least one section of their DS 572 written deliverable. In class, the students will be expected to formally critique the work of their peers through 5-10 minute presentations that focus on each paper’s strengths and weaknesses.

No readings.

31 October 2011
Session 13: Session Review

This session will provide participants with an opportunity to reflect on their experience throughout the fall session of the National Security Programme.

No readings or deliverables.