Middle East Politics, Society and Economy

Study Abroad to Doha, Qatar

Graduate Course – Fall 2019

4 Credits - Research and Reading

October 30 – November 12, 2019

Topics:

International Relations, Politics, Development Studies, Global Studies.

This course is a collaborative joint effort between:

Shanghai University, China.  http://www.shu.edu.cn/

Hamad bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar. https://www.hbku.edu.qa/en

   

Course Description and Objective:

As the birthplace of Islam, the Arabian Peninsula has historically been one of the most diverse, unique and important parts of the world. From Pre-Islamic Arabic culture (Jahiliyya) to Modern Islamic civilization, the region has served as a crossroads for Muslims as well as non-Muslims. With the beginning of the 7^th century, Islam has also become a core element of the social, and political characteristics of the Arabian Peninsula and has significantly shaped Arabic culture. However, the emergence of nation-states in the region has produced a more economically based environment, which has led to social and political transformations in the Middle Eastern society. Over the last twenty years, with the emergence of the global economy, Qatar has become a center of an economic boom in the Gulf. This economic transformation has also shaped the social and political characteristics of Middle East and Qatar. In the Gulf region, Qatar has one of the fastest growing education systems, increased levels of women’s participation in education and the workplace, and more open media and communications systems. Therefore, Qatar uniquely represents a new trend in the Middle East. In this study abroad course, we will explore and try to understand these changes based on our interactions with Qatari organizations, politicians, citizens, educators and etc.

By the end of this course, students should have the following understanding and experience:

• Basic knowledge of Islam and Muslim Societies

• Cultural understanding of the Arabian Peninsula – specifically      Qatar

• Knowledge of economic development trends in Middle East and North      Africa

• Participation in a constructive and respectful civic discussion      focused on some of the important topical current issues in the region

• Understanding of Qatari Higher Education

• China’s relations with Middle East and Qatar

Instructor/Organizer

· Reem Meshal Associate Professor Middle East Studies Department Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar. rameshal@hbku.edu.qa

· Marc Owen Jones, Assistant Professor Middle East Studies Department Hamad bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar. mojones@hbku.edu.qa

· Sophie Richter-Devroe, Associate Professor Middle East Studies Department Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar. srichterdevroe@hbku.edu.qa

· Steven M. Wright, Associate Professor and Associate Dean College of Humanities and Social Sciences Hamad bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar. stwright@hbku.edu.qa

· Najm al-Din Yousefi, Associate Professor and Director of the Middle East Studies, California State University-Chico. USA. nyousefi@csuchico.edu

· Tugrul Keskin, Professor, History, College of Liberal Arts and Institute of Global Studies, Shanghai University, China. tugrulkeskin@t.shu.edu.cn

· Abdurrahim Sagir, Research Assistant, Shanghai University, China  abdurrahimsagir@gmail.com

This course assumes an interest in Islam and Muslim Societies and a willingness to engage with ideas regarding the efforts of the Gulf region in achieving social and political development. Beyond that, a wide range of viewpoints are welcome.

The course will involve experimental learning and fieldwork. It will include at least 6-hours of daily fieldwork, 16 days of face-to-face class meetings, site visits and tours. Each day, we will spend three hours in lectures and classroom discussions, and the afternoons will be spent on site visits to government agencies, historical sites, foundations and universities.

· Embassy of the People's Republic of China, Qatar http://qa.china-embassy.org/eng/

· Qatar Education City – http://www.qf.org.qa/output/page301.asp

· Islamic Museum – http://www.mia.org.qa/english/index.html#home

· Qatar Interior Ministry –http://www.moi.gov.qa/site/english/

http://www.qatarvisitor.com/

· Heritage of Qatar - http://www.heritageofqatar.org/index.htm

Learning outcomes:

1. Students will become familiar with significant aspects of Middle Eastern and Qatari society, politics and the economy, and will be able to appreciate and compare the range of contemporary experiences related to these areas to other communities in the Middle East.

2. Explore the socio-economic challenges faced within Middle Eastern and Qatar and understand the complex inter-connections of Qatari economy and religion by engaging in direct observation and interaction in the host country.

3. Compare Chinese society, cultural values, and perceptions with those of Middle Eastern and Qatari society, and develop an awareness of different cultural frames  of reference in order to interpret events from more than one cultural lens.

4. Recognize, critically analyze and respectfully defend or challenge underlying assumptions regarding the Middle and Eastern Qatari economy, politics and society through course readings and discussion.

5. Identify global issues and inter-dependencies that impact Middle Eastern and Qatar,  such as its relationship to the Greater Middle East.

6. Create a bridge between Shanghai University students and Hamad bin Khalifa University students, scholars, politicians, religious leaders and community members, through the mutual exchange of ideas.

7. One of the most important goals of this course is to establish a mutually beneficial learning and exchange opportunity between Shanghai University and Hamad bin Khalifa University students. Therefore, Shanghai University students will take classes with their Hamad bin Khalifa University counterparts.  Each day there will be sessions to exchange ideas and thoughts with Hamad      bin Khalifa University students.

Possible Visiting Sites for the afternoons:

· Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs Qatar -http://english.mofa.gov.qa/get_gov_info.cfm?id=28

· Ministry of Environment http://www.moe.gov.qa/English/SitePages/Default.aspx

· Al-Jazeera http://www.aljazeera.com/

· Qatar Foundation - http://www.qf.org.qa/

· Qatar Ministry of Foreign Affairs http://english.mofa.gov.qa/

· Qatar Electricity and Water Company  http://www.qewc.com/Web.nsf/index?OpenPage

· Qatar Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage http://www.moc.gov.qa/en/e_home.html

· Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning

· Doha International Center for Interfaith Dialogue http://www.dicid.org/english/index.php

· Museum of Islamic Art Doha, Qatar http://www.mia.org.qa/english/#home

· The Brookings Doha Center http://www.brookings.edu/doha.aspx

· Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies http://english.dohainstitute.org/

· The Doha Debate - http://www.thedohadebates.com/

Course Program:

Saturday	Arriving in Doha
Sunday	Morning: · Meeting with Reem Meshal   Associate Professor Middle East Studies Department Hamad Bin Khalifa   University, Doha, Qatar. · Introduction to the course by Tugrul Keskin,   Shanghai University, China. · Meeting and exchange of thoughts with Hamad   bin Khalifa University students Afternoon: · Visiting Souq Waqif: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C86_U0nvqbg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Souq_Waqif
Monday	Morning: · Steven M. Wright, Associate Professor and Associate   Dean College of Humanities and Social Sciences Hamad bin Khalifa University,   Doha, Qatar. · Meeting and exchange of thoughts with Hamad   bin Khalifa University students Afternoon: · Lecture by Marc Owen Jones, Assistant Professor Middle East Studies Department   Hamad bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar. · Visiting Al-Jazeera Center for Journalism https://www.aljazeera.com/
Tuesday	Morning: · Lecture by Sophie Richter-Devroe, Associate Professor   Middle East Studies Department Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar. · Meeting and exchange of thoughts with Hamad Bin Khalifa   University student Afternoon: · Ministry of Environment http://www.moe.gov.qa/English/SitePages/Default.aspx
Wednesday	Morning: · Lecture   by Najm al-Din Yousefi, Associate Professor and Director of the Middle East   Studies, California State University-Chico. USA. · Meeting and exchange of thoughts with Hamad Bin Khalifa   University students Afternoon: · Visit to the Museum   of Islamic Art Doha, Qatar http://www.mia.org.qa/english/#home with Professor Mohammedmoin Sadeq · The Doha Debate - http://www.thedohadebates.com/
Thursday	Morning: · Professor Khalil al-Anani, The Doha Institute for   Graduate Studies. https://www.dohainstitute.edu.qa/EN/people/academic-affairs/school-of-social-sciences-and-humanities/pages/faculty/khalil-al-anani.aspx   · Meeting and exchange of thoughts with Hamad Bin Khalifa   University students Afternoon: · Qatar Ministry of Foreign   Affairs http://english.mofa.gov.qa/
Friday	Morning: · Visiting the Imam   Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wa ab Mosque and observance of Jumah Prayer Afternoon: Free   time
Saturday	Morning: A   Class visit: Meeting and exchange of thoughts   with QU students · Dr. Mohammedmoain Sadeq - Associate Professor of   History and Archaeology · Meeting and exchange of thoughts with Hamad Bin Khalifa   University students Afternoon: · QNFSP - Food Security in Qatar · Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs Qatar http://english.mofa.gov.qa/get_gov_info.cfm?id=28
Sunday	Morning: · Professor Mehran Kamrava, Director of the Center for   International and Regional Studies at Georgetown University’s School of   Foreign Service in Qatar. · https://cirs.georgetown.edu/profile/mehran-kamrava   Afternoon: · Doha International Center   for Interfaith Dialogue http://www.dicid.org/english/index.php
Monday	Morning: · Afternoon: · Visiting education city and Georgetown University http://qatar.sfs.georgetown.edu/ · Meeting with Dr. Gerd Nonneman, Dean of the Georgetown   University-Doha
Tuesday	Morning: · Dr. Mahjoob Ahmad Zweiri – Qatar University,   Doha, Qatar. · Meeting and exchange of thoughts with Hamad Bin Khalifa   University students. Afternoon: · The Brookings Doha Center    http://www.brookings.edu/doha.aspx
Wednesday	Morning: · Dr. Dheen Mohamed - Associate Dean of College   of Sharia and Islamic Studies for Academic Affairs, Qatar University. · Meeting and exchange of thoughts with Hamad Bin Khalifa   University students. Afternoon: · Qatar Electricity and Water Company    http://www.qewc.com/Web.nsf/index?OpenPage
Thursday
	Morning: · Visiting Embassy of the People's Republic of China,   Qatar http://qa.china-embassy.org/eng/   Afternoon: · Qatar Ministry of   Culture, Arts and Heritage http://www.moc.gov.qa/en/e_home.html
Friday	Morning: · Lecture on Society and Economy in GCC by Qatar   University Faculty Afternoon: · Free time
Saturday	Morning: · Student Presentations about their experience Afternoon: · Lecture by Tugrul Keskin and Mohammedmoin Sadeq
Sunday	Departure to China

Required and Recommended Readings:

1. Constitution of Qatar - http://www.qatarembassy.net/constitution.asp Provided in the PDF file on D2L. (Required)

2. Alexander Melamid. Qatar. Geographical Review, 1987. 77:1. 103-105. (Required)

3. Rathmel, A. & Schulze, K. (2000). Political Reform in the Gulf: The Case of Qatar. Middle Eastern Studies, 36(4), 47-62. (Required)

4. Birol Baskan and Stewen Wright (2011). Seeds of Change: Comparing State-Religion Relations in Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Arab Studies Quarterly, 33(2), 96-111. (Required)

5. Justin Dargin. Qatar's natural gas: the foreign-policy driver. Middle East Policy. 14.3 (Fall 2007) p136. (Required)

6. Mehran Kamrava. Royal Factionalism and Political Liberalization in Qatar. The Middle East Journal, 2009. 63:3. 401-420. (Required)

7. J.E. Peterson. Qatar and the World: Branding for a Micro-State. The Middle East Journal, 2006. 60: 4. 732-748. (Required)

Recommended Readings from:

1. David CHADDOCK. Qatar. London: Stacey International Publisher, 2006.

http://www.stacey-international.co.uk/v1/site/product_rpt.asp?Catid=279&catname=

2. Simeon Kerr. Qatar art show dispels cultural doubts, The Financial Times, December 13, 2010.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/feaa1ab8-061e-11e0-976b-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1gi4EwpcW

3. Qatar: State Society and History http://www.mongabay.com/history/qatar/

4. The Report: Emerging Qatar, 2007.

http://www.oxfordbusinessgroup.com/product/report/report-emerging-qatar-2007

5. Ian Black, Wary Qatar Digs in for More Trouble, The Guardian, March 4, 1996, p. 8.

6. Neil Ford, Qatar: The sky’s the limit, The Middle East (April 2007), p. 26.

7. Neil Ford, Qatar Punches above its Weight, The Middle East (March 2004), p. 50.

8. Rosemarie Said Zahlan. The Creation of Qatar (London: Croom Helm, 1979).

9. Fazlur Rahman. 2002. Islam. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

10. James L. Gelvin, The Modern Middle East: A History. Oxford University Press, 2007. ISBN13: 9780195327595.

11. Ira M. Lapidus. A History of Islamic Societies. Cambridge University Press, 2002. ISBN-13: 9780521779333 | ISBN-10: 0521779332

12. Mehran Kamrava. 2005. The Modern Middle East: A Political History since the First World War. Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press ISBN: 9780520241503 - http://www.ucpress.edu/books/pages/10207.php

13. Tugrul Keskin, The Sociology of Islam: Secularism, Economy and Politics. Ithaca Press, 2011.

Documentaries and Movies:

1. 30 Days as a Muslim, a 2006 film by Morgan Spurlock http://freedocumentaries.org/film.php?id=113

2. Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet 2005 a film by Michael Schwarz http://www.pbs.org/muhammad/

3. Education City (Qatar) http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/420/index.html

1. Inquiry and Critical Thinking

Students in this course will become familiar with the basic tenets of Islamic Civilization and Muslim Societies. Through the readings and topical explorations, in-class discussion, small group discussion, online discussion, and online chat sessions, they will explore the richness of Islamic Civilizations in Qatar. Using the aforementioned modes of discussion, students will be encouraged to develop well-reasoned and well-supported positions on Islamic Civilization and Muslim Societies. They will also be encouraged to enter into respectful and constructive debate with their fellow students and to defend the positions that they have developed. Students will compare and contrast the various strategic approaches to achieve mutual understanding between Muslims and Americans. In terms of inquiry and critical thinking, Qatar provides a very different approach to politics and social organization from the model that most students grow up with in the United States.

2. Variety of Human Experiences

This course will have students comparing and contrasting between social markers of religion, society and economy in Qatar. Moreover, students will become acquainted with the history, culture, ideas, and social conditions of Qatar. Students will discuss and debate their experiences and conclusions through in-class discussion, small group discussion, online discussion, and online chat sessions. In addition, they will be encouraged to reflect on their experiences and thinking through the online journal.

3. Ethical and Social Responsibility

Students in this class will be asked to consider Qatar’s historical and contemporary experience and lessons related to Islamic Civilization and culture, and to consider what in this experience might be helpful in the development of an approach to mutual understanding between the China and Qatar.

Course Philosophy:

The goal of this course is to enable students to write a theoretically guided and empirically rooted research paper.  I expect you to become familiar with the social, political and economic underpinnings of Qatar.

The success of this course depends on your continued and sustained reading and participation. The course will be based on a four-dimensional method of learning, and this includes inquiry and critical thinking; communication; the diversity of human experience; and ethics and social responsibility. First, I would like you to critically analyze what you learn in this class or have learned so far through the media and education, because in today’s world, truth is a relative concept. Throughout human history, critical thinking is the one of the most important factors that has contributed to human development.  In order to become active, self-motivated, empowered learners and future leaders, you will need to have the ability to think critically, and therefore your criticism, feedback and suggestions are necessary. Second, I would like you to enhance your writing and oral communication skills in this course. Therefore, it is important to clearly elaborate your arguments in the class discussion as well as in the written assignments.

Third, we are each part of the human mosaic, and all have different experiences based on our social, political and economic differences. We can all learn from and respect each other and benefit from our diversity. Please try to learn from and understand those with different perspectives than you. Lastly, we need to learn that we are all part of this intellectual community and larger society, and all have social and ethical responsibilities to our family, community, classmates, and humanity. We live in a globalized world and therefore, we need to be aware of events in our community, and the world today. In order to enhance our knowledge, we must critically examine our social, political and economic environment in order to apply this knowledge to our experience.

Course Requirements

To prevent confusion later, please read the following information:

Daily Reflection Notes: This will include open book notes that will describe what you have learned in class from course lectures and readings and site visits each day. The Daily reflection notes should be at least a page long and single-spaced. Font size should be Times New Roman, 12 point. The due date for each paper is everyday by 11:59 PM. Criteria: If your paper is less than a page, or late, you will loose 2 points.

Final Paper: This requirement is only for graduate students. You will choose a topic in Contemporary Qatari Society and Politics and will analyze and explain it within the theoretical framework of this class. I must approve your topic and plan ahead of time. The final paper is a short empirical or theoretical paper of at least 12 pages in length, Times New Roman, 12 point, doubled spaced, and on a focused topic related directly to this course.

· I must approve your topic and plan ahead of time. The final paper proposals are due as MS Word attachments emailed to me by Monday, April 9th.

· The last day to submit your final paper is May 7^th. Criteria: If your final paper proposal is late you will loose 2 points, if your final paper is late you will loose 5 points. Therefore, you should be careful about timing. You will also present your final paper in the last week of class. The presentation is worth 4 out of 20 points.

· Format: ASA citation and bibliography format will be followed. All work should adhere to the guidelines published by the American Sociological Association (ASA) at

http://www.asanet.org/cs/root/topnav/sociology_depts/quick_style_guide

This is not a definitive source, but is a Quick Guide provided by ASA.

Attendance: Regular attendance is one of the important parameters to successful completion of the course requirements.

Participation: Each student must read course material before they attend class and I expect them to participate the class discussion.

Grades: Your grade for this course will be based on your performance on the following components, shown with their dates and respective weights.

Item Date Weight (%)

Daily Reflection Notes (10) Every Day   60.0

Final Paper   May 7 40.0

The grading system in this class is as follows:

A 95-100

A-  90-94

B+  86-89

B  85

B-  80-84

C+  76-79

C  75

C-  70-74

D+  66-69

D  65

D-  60-64

F  (Failure)