History of European Integration - JPB025

• Title: History of European Integration
• Czech title: Historie evropské integrace
• Guaranteed by: Department of Political Science (23-KP)
• Faculty: Faculty of Social Sciences
• Actual: from 2023
• Semester: winter
• E-Credits: 6
• Examination process: winter s.:
• Hours per week, examination: winter s.:1/1, Ex [HT]
• Capacity: 15 / 15 (24)
• Min. number of students: unlimited
• 4EU+: no
• Virtual mobility / capacity: no
• State of the course: taught
• Language: English
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Note: course can be enrolled in outside the study plan; enabled for web enrollment; priority enrollment if the course is part of the study plan
• Guarantor: Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D.
• Teacher(s): Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D.
• Class: Courses for incoming students

Annotation

Last update: Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D. (02.10.2023)

- Lectures will be held Thursdays 08:00 - 9:20 at Jinonice campus, room B 316
- course readings/assignments are available on Moodle
- consultation hours: Thursdays after class in room C 514

This course is designed for students of political science, international relations and humanities who want to gain deeper knowledge of the European Union and its integration processes. It will offer students a comprehensive overview of European integration history, European Union institutions, policies, personalities, treaties and key historical decisions which continue to shape present day policy-making environment.

Throughout the semester, step by step, we will learn about the post-WWII context in which European integration took root, the early European Communities and the reasons behind their inception, enlargement and transformation; we will cover the early years of integration as well as the crises the Communities faced when great political personalities such as Charles de Gaulle or Margaret Thatcher clashed with ideas of supranational governance. We will cover the transformation of economic communities into a political and even a normative union in the post-Cold War era and debate the challenges that await the European Union in the wake of the financial crisis and Brexit today.

Since this course is predominantly knowledge-based, lectures will be the preferred format. This of course does not exclude student participation throughout the course, whether in form of in-class discussion or home work with period documents and discussion of their relevance.

Aim of the course

Last update: Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D. (02.10.2023)

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the students should have a strong foundation for future studies of European Union policies. The students should be able to:

• know the milestones of European integration including primary law (treaties)
• explain the sui generis nature of the European Union integration process
• comprehend the European Union’s institutional structure and understand the specific roles institutions play in the decision-making processes
• understand the current discussions of the European crises in wider politico-historical context

All in all, the students should pass the course with a solid knowledge of the fundamental principles and processes of European Union integration, decision-making and integration policy areas.

Descriptors

Last update: Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D. (03.10.2022)

European Union, European Integration, History of European Integration, Modern European History, European Communities, Rome Treaties, Single European Act, Maastricht Treaty, Amsterdam Treaty, Nice Treaty, European Constitution, Lisbon Treaty, EU Enlargements, European Financial Crisis, European Refugee Crisis, Brexit 

Course completion requirements

Last update: Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D. (02.10.2023)

Assignment	Workload (average)	Weight in Final Grade	Evaluated Course Specific Learning Outcomes
Active Participation	20	10%	Understand the current discussions of the European processes, critical thinking
Quick questions	10	20%	Home-work with period documents, giving brief comments to issues discussed in class
Final exam	70	70%	Know the milestones of European integration Explain the sui generis nature of the European Union integration Comprehend the EU’s institutional structure and EU decision-making processes
TOTAL	100hrs	100%

Grading scale 

• A: 91-100
• B: 81-90
• C: 71-80
• D: 61-70
• E: 51-60
• Fail: <50

Literature

Last update: Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D. (02.10.2023)

All required reading materials are made available for download on Moodle. The core textbooks for the course are:

• Dinan, Desmond (2010) Ever Closer Union - 4^th edition, Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers
• Dinan, Desmond (ed.) (2014) Origins and Evolution of the European Union - 2^nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press

You are welcome to seek out other additional materials on European integration such as:

• Wallace, Hellen, Pollack Mark and Alasdair Young (2015): Policy-Making in the European Union - 7^th edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press
• Cini, Michelle and Nieves Perez-Solorzano Borragan (2019): European Union Politics – 6^th edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press
• Bomberg, Elizabeth, John Peterson and Richard Corbett (2012): The European Union: How Does it Work? 3^rd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press

EU News sites:

• ·         EurActiv: https://www.euractiv.com/
• ·         EU Observer: https://euobserver.com/
• ·         Politico, Europe: https://www.politico.eu/
• ·         University of Luxembourg’s CVCE Digital Archive: https://www.cvce.eu/en
• ·         European Council on Foreign Relations: https://www.ecfr.eu/

EU knowledge:

• ·         European Union official site: https://europa.eu/european-union/index_en

Teaching methods

Last update: Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D. (02.10.2023)

Since the objective of this course is to provide basic but complex knowledge of what is the European Union, how it came to be, how it works and why, emphasis will be placed on lectures complemented by discussions of period sources, and homework "quick questions" to repeat the main points covered during class. The course will be concluded with a test of EU knowledge.

Syllabus

Last update: Mgr. Bc. Daniela Lenčéš Chalániová, Ph.D. (02.10.2023)

	DATE	TOPIC
1.	October 5th 2023	Introduction
2.	October 12th 2023	Interwar Projects of European Unity
3.	October 19th 2023	German Problem is Europe’s Problem
4.	October 26th 2023	Battle over Europe (session will take place online)
5.	November 2nd 2023	Europe in Doldrums
6.	November 9th 2023	Integration Gains Speed
7.	November 16th 2023	Towards European Union
8.	November 23rd 2023	The European Union
9.	November 30th 2023	Reform and the “Big Bang” Enlargement
10.	December 7th 2023	Constitution and the Lisbon Treaty
11.	December 14th 2023	The Eurozone Crisis
12.	December 21st 2023	European Refugee Crisis and Brexit