Review:
Professor Smith is a very interesting professor who really tries to incorporate current events into his class. He regularly handed out op-eds from the New York Times and other publications of importance. The class was based on two halves, each a graded assigment: The case for going to war in Iraq, and how one person of importance to Bush's rationale arrived at their position. Smith was usually available and encouraged participation and attendance of events in Boston-area pertaining to the course. States his views and says that if you are opposed to them, support your beliefs and he will not grade against sound reasoning.

Workload:
A fair amount of reading, 40-50 pgs. per class, although not all the time. Assigned approximately 7-8 books to be read in addition to reserved readings in Tisch. Midterm was fairly straight forward, 10-12 pg paper on democratic liberalism and how it applies to the war in Iraq. Required a comprehensive knowledge of the material though. Final (10-12 pgs. as well) was about a person (Rice, Bush, Krauthammer, Paul Berman, etc.) a student selected and then dissected their position on liberalism (the IR theory). It is very important to read the books he assigned. Also, seek out the TA's to clear up any potential confusions prior to writing the paper.

review a class you took with Tony Smith - help your classmates make informed decisions!

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Tony Smith | PS178 - Democratizing Iraq | Political Science

2006-01-11

Review:
Professor Smith is a very interesting professor who really tries to incorporate current events into his class. He regularly handed out op-eds from the New York Times and other publications of importance. The class was based on two halves, each a graded assigment: The case for going to war in Iraq, and how one person of importance to Bush's rationale arrived at their position. Smith was usually available and encouraged participation and attendance of events in Boston-area pertaining to the course. States his views and says that if you are opposed to them, support your beliefs and he will not grade against sound reasoning.

Workload:
A fair amount of reading, 40-50 pgs. per class, although not all the time. Assigned approximately 7-8 books to be read in addition to reserved readings in Tisch. Midterm was fairly straight forward, 10-12 pg paper on democratic liberalism and how it applies to the war in Iraq. Required a comprehensive knowledge of the material though. Final (10-12 pgs. as well) was about a person (Rice, Bush, Krauthammer, Paul Berman, etc.) a student selected and then dissected their position on liberalism (the IR theory). It is very important to read the books he assigned. Also, seek out the TA's to clear up any potential confusions prior to writing the paper.

professor rating: | course rating: | major: International Relations

review a class you took with Tony Smith - help your classmates make informed decisions!

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Tony Smith | PS178 - Democratizing Iraq | Political Science

2006-01-08

Review:
Professor Smith is, without a doubt, the best professor I have had at Tufts. He takes a genuine, personal interest in each of his students in a way few professors do. Each of his lectures is very well organized, and engagingly presented- I was never bored in his classes. He clearly puts a lot of time into preparing the class as a whole and each individual session, and it shows. He encourages involvement from everybody, but doesn't force anything.

The class itself was very good, and I would encourage anybody with an interest in US Foreign Policy to take a class on this or a similar subject from Prof. Smith. The class focused primarily on the ideology that led up to the Iraq War, and understanding how the US got to where it is today, rather than where we're going.

Workload:
A lot of reading, all of which is better than your average poli sci reading. Two big papers- that's where most of the grade came from. Paper assignments were reasonably straightforward, and Smith is easily available to help students sort out what to do.

professor rating: | course rating: | major: International Relations

review a class you took with Tony Smith - help your classmates make informed decisions!