Czech Parliament in Central European perspective - JPM451

• Title: Czech Parliament in Central European perspective
• Guaranteed by: Department of Political Science (23-KP)
• Faculty: Faculty of Social Sciences
• Actual: from 2023
• Semester: summer
• E-Credits: 6
• Examination process: summer s.:
• Hours per week, examination: summer s.:1/1, Ex [HT]
• Capacity: unknown / unknown (25)
• 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
• Guarantor: Mgr. Ing. Martin Kuta, Ph.D.
• Class: Courses for incoming students

Annotation

Last update: Mgr. Ing. Martin Kuta, Ph.D. (30.01.2024)

Why did the Czech Parliament lean on bicameralism? What is the distribution of labour between chambers? What functions does the Czech Parliament have and how does it use its powers?

The course "Czech Parliament in Central European perspective" looks into the functioning of the Czech Chamber of Deputies and Senate in the context of political, legal, and societal changes after 1989. The course will also pay attention to Central European perspective and compare specific features of the functioning of the Czech Parliament to other parliaments in the region.

Aim of the course

Last update: Mgr. Ing. Martin Kuta, Ph.D. (30.01.2024)

Students will learn main processes that formed and influenced the current functioning of the Czech Parliament and recent trends having impact on both chambers‘ functions. Further, students will learn general description of functioning of both chambers of the Parliament of the Czech Republic within the context of other parliamentary chambers (and their practice) of the region. There is no fixed set of cases that will be compared; the most striking variations of parliamentary practice will be discussed.

Among main areas of interest will fall:

• Parliamentarism and historically determined form of government;
• Transition from socialist parliaments to liberal democratic parliaments
• Functions of parliament and their conduct in Czech (Central European) parliamentary chambers
• Legislative process in the Czech Parliament
• Oversight activities in the Czech Parliament
• Parliament and government and interaction with president
• EU and its influence on national parliament(s)
• Parliamentary expertise and evidence based decision making

After successful graduation, students will be able to 1) describe main parliamentary function (on the example of the Czech Parliament), 2) describe processes that parliaments in the Central European region have faced and adapted to, 3) compare and contrast the main variations, and 4) understand main features of parliamentary expertise. 

Course completion requirements

Last update: Mgr. Ing. Martin Kuta, Ph.D. (30.01.2024)

Students will be required to attend lectures and seminars and actively participate (30%), to prepare an information briefing (30%), and successfully pass an oral exam (40%).

The information briefing shall compare and contrast parliamentary practice (functions and their conduct) in the Czech Parliament and another parliamentary chamber of the region. This comparison shall be based on an analysis of genuine legal documents (i.e. constitution, rules of procedure, resolutions). Details will be discussed during the seminars.

The oral exam shall cover main areas of interest discussed during lectures and seminars.

Literature

Last update: Mgr. Ing. Martin Kuta, Ph.D. (30.01.2024)

FRANCOVÁ, Jana; KOLÁŘ, Petr; KYSELA, Jan; MORÁVEK, Jan; PECHÁČEK, Štěpán et al. Parlament České republiky - Poslanecká sněmovna. Praha: Česká republika - Kancelář Poslanecké sněmovny, 2022. ISBN 978-80-907379-4-5.

HENDERSON, Karen a ROBINSON, Neil. Post-communist politics: an introduction. London: Prentice Hall, 1997. ISBN 0-13-442039-X.

MANSFELDOVÁ, Zdenka; OLSON, David M. a RAKUŠANOVÁ, Petra (ed.). Central European Parliaments: first decade of democratic experience and the future prospective. Prague: Institut of Sociology Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, 2004. ISBN 80-7330-067-2.

OLSON, David M. a ILONSZKI, Gabriella (ed.). Post-communist parliaments: change and stability in the second decade. East European studies : political institutions : democracy. London: Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group, 2012. ISBN 978-0-415-56083-2.

Other literature will be discussed during the course.

Teaching methods

Last update: Mgr. Ing. Martin Kuta, Ph.D. (30.01.2024)

The course will apply passive (lectures, seminars) and active (simulations of parliamentary practice) learning forms.

The overall added value of the course will develop substantive knowledge of parliaments (and their practice), regional and historically determined specifics of parliaments (and their practice), ability to analyse genuine legal documents (constitution, rules of procedures, resolution), and writing skills.