POLS211 - The Dragon Awakens: China and the New World

Year

Credit points

Campus offering

Prerequisites

Teaching organisation

Unit rationale, description and aim

Napoleon Bonaparte once dubbed China 'the sleeping dragon'. But in the early twenty-first century, it seems that China has truly awoken from its slumber to become a world power with ambitions to reshape the global political order. This unit explores China's rise through the political developments that have transformed Chinese society since 1949. Specifically, it explores the nature and evolution of Communist rule in China under Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao, and Xi Jinping. It also analyses key contemporary social and political developments, including China's meritocratic political system, the One Belt, One Road initiative, the growing disparity between urban and rural China, and China's foreign interference. By tracing the key shifts in economic, social and cultural trends within China, and its emerging role as a regional and global superpower, the unit aims to offer students the skills necessary to critically analyse what the rise of China might mean for both Australia and the world in the so-called Asian Century.

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

LO1 - Describe the nature and significance of Chinese politics and governance and the key institutional arrangements of the Chinese political system (GA5) 

LO2 - Critically discuss diverse political perspectives in Chinese politics and culture, particularly with respect to marginalised, disadvantaged, and vulnerable peoples and communities (GA2) 

LO3 - Demonstrate the capacity to gather, analyse and advocate solutions to political problems through evidence-based argument and evaluation of secondary and primary sources (GA7, GA8, GA9) 

LO4 - Apply concepts and theories used in the study of Chinese politics to the analysis of interests, ideas, institutions and political behavior (GA6, GA10). 

Graduate attributes

GA2 - recognise their responsibility to the common good, the environment and society 

GA5 - demonstrate values, knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the discipline and/or profession 

GA6 - solve problems in a variety of settings taking local and international perspectives into account

GA7 - work both autonomously and collaboratively 

GA8 - locate, organise, analyse, synthesise and evaluate information 

GA9 - demonstrate effective communication in oral and written English language and visual media 

GA10 - utilise information and communication and other relevant technologies effectively.

Content

Topics will include: 

• The birth of Communism in China. 
• The evolving nature of communist rule  
• Key political institutions of Chinese politics 
• Tiananmen Square protest and massacre 
• Human rights in China 
• China’s foreign relations 
• China-Australia relations 
• The One Belt, One Road Initiative 
• China’s political meritocracy 
• The issue of ‘Two Chinas’ 
• China’s foreign interference 
• Political repression in China  

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This unit employs two formal ways of learning and teaching. Lectures are structured to promote case-based learning, a format that involves collaborative deep learning. Students will explore real world challenges and problems, a process that requires them to demonstrate their investigative, problem-solving and decision-making skills. Case-based learning requires learning specific theories and concepts that will complement the conceptual tools and theoretical knowledge critical to analysing divergent approaches in Chinese politics.  

Tutorials for this unit provide students opportunities for active learning. Students will engage in activities including reading, writing, interrogating ideas, exploring case studies, doing role plays, debating, and giving presentations. These activities, as well as promoting analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of lecture content, are designed to build skills appropriate to the second-year study in Politics and International Relations. 

This is a 10-credit point unit and has been designed to ensure that the time needed to complete the required volume of learning to the requisite standard is approximately 150 hours in total across the semester. To achieve a passing standard in this unit, students will find it helpful to engage in the full range of learning activities and assessments utilised in this unit, as described in the learning and teaching strategy and the assessment strategy. The learning and teaching and assessment strategies include a range of approaches to support your learning such as reading, reflection, discussion, webinars, podcasts, video etc. 

Assessment strategy and rationale

A range of assessment procedures will be used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes consistent with University assessment requirements. The assessment strategy allows students to engage in a variety of tasks, each aligned to their own learning outcomes.  

The descriptive task (quiz) requires students to describe the nature and significance of Chinese politics and governance and the key institutional arrangements of the Chinese political system.  

The written analytical task (policy recommendation) helps students to research and write a policy recommendation on a policy of the Chinese Communist Party that requires reform. It offers students an opportunity to critically discuss diverse political perspectives in Chinese politics and culture, particularly with respect to marginalised, disadvantaged, and vulnerable peoples and communities, and to demonstrate the capacity to gather, analyse and advocate ethical solutions to political problems through evidence-based argument and evaluation of secondary and primary sources. 

The major written task (essay) helps students to develop, research, and write an essay on an issue that most interests them analysing what the future may hold for China in the Asian Century. In doing so, the task enables students to apply concepts and theories used in the study of Chinese politics to the analysis of interests, ideas, institutions and political behaviour in a way that informs students’ own practices of engaged citizenship. 

Overview of assessments

Representative texts and references

Bell, DA. (2016). The China Model: Political Meritocracy and the Limits of Democracy. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 

Clark, P. (2008). The Chinese Cultural Revolution: A History. New York: Oxford University Press. 

Friedman, E. (Ed.). (2005). China’s Rise Taiwan’s Dilemma and International Peace. New York: Routledge. 

Guo, S. (2013). Chinese Politics and Government: Power, Ideology and Organisation. Abingdon: Routledge.  

Kipnis, A., Tomba, L. and Unger, J. (Eds.). (2009). Contemporary Chinese Society and Politics. London: Routledge.  

Kissinger, H. (2011). On China. London: Penguin. 

Mitter, R. (2016). Modern China: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

Pan, C. (2012). Knowledge, Desire and Power in Global Politics: Western Representations of China’s Rise. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.  

Weatherley, R. (2006). China Since 1949: legitimizing authoritarian rule. New York: Routledge. 

Zhang, X. (2008). Postsocialism and Cultural Politics: China in the last decade of the Twentieth Century.