F1HH 4305 - Advocacy: Philosophy and Practice

OUR OBJECTIVES:

• Develop a keen understanding of the history, philosophy, tools, and current methods of advocacy with reference to key texts and case studies.
• Identify your interests and refine your skills as an advocate, amplifying your natural talents and developing new ones.

METHOD:

The course applies a “flipped classroom” model using the virtual educational platform Moodle, on which you will find reading assignments and submit classwork. The class sessions are intended as encounters with texts and concepts which will be explored challenged in open dialogue with instructors and fellow students.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

By the end of the course, the students will be able to:

• Develop a keen understanding of the history, philosophy, tools and current methods of advocacy with reference to key texts and case studies.
• Appreciate the capacity of organizing communities and nonviolence strategy in advocacy campaigns targeting policy-makers and transnational companies.
• Identify your interest and refine your skills as an advocate, amplifying your natural talents and developing new ones.

PROFESSIONAL SKILLS:

• Conceive high-quality strategies for advocacy campaigns, whether as part of a large organization or a small community association.
• Recognize key concepts from the history of advocacy, including dialogue, community organizing and systems thinking.
• Understand how to use these concepts across a range of cultural settings and contexts.

None

Advocacy is the art of peaceful persuasion to create social and political change.

This course is intended to strike a balance between the collective exploration of key concepts in advocacy, the analysis of personal and professional experiences, and the exploration of emerging trends and problems. You will learn three core skills of advocacy: public narrative, powermapping, and theory of change.

Early in the semester you will form small research groups of 4-6 students, in which you will carry out an advocacy research project with guidance from an NGO partner.

In addition, you will each write a 5-page personal essay on an advocacy problem of special interest, drawing upon the texts and concepts from class.

To validate the course, the student is expected to pass the following assignments:

• 5-page personal essay (40%); small-group research project (50%); class participation (10%).
• The personal essays are evaluated with comments and a projected grade range out of 20. Students are given the option to keep the current draft and grade range or do revisions.
• The research project is presented during Session 6 to the professor and NGO partners where appropriate. Feedback is given and integrated for the final deliverable. A single grade is given to all members of a group.

• In Class Presence: 4 hours a week (6 sessions) / 24 hours total
• Reading and Preparation for Class: 40-50 hours total
• Research and Preparation for Group Work: 40-50 hours total
• Research and Writing for Individual Assessments: 20-25 hours total

Total: ~150 hours