Governance (GOVN) 505

Overview

The purpose of this course is to enable students to explore and think critically about the fundamental changes that have taken place throughout bureaucracies in the Western world, and to enable students to evaluate these changes from a comparative perspective. It is also designed to enable students to think critically about the decolonization of public administration.

Outline

• Unit 1: Old and New Public Management
• Unit 2: Indigenous Administration and Representation
• Unit 3: Culture, Democracy, and Equity
• Unit 4: Collaborative Governance
• Unit 5: Co-production
• Unit 6: Public Management in a Digital Era
• Unit 7: Data in the Digital Era
• Unit 8: Ethics and Accountability
• Unit 9: Comparative Public Administration
• Unit 10: The Future of the Public Sector

Learning outcomes

After completing GOVN 505, you should be able to

1. assess the strengths and limitations of key public sector reforms.
2. explain why decolonization of the public sector is essential.
3. explain why embedding diversity, representation, and intersectionality within public sector administrative systems is critical to achieving justice and equality.
4. analyze how democracy and the public sector intersect and explain what the potential is for democratic decline in light of recent trends.
5. assess changes in the public sector from a non-Western perspective.
6. explain the challenges that the public sector faces in the digital era.

Evaluation

To receive credit for this course, students must participate in the online activities, successfully complete the assignments, and achieve a final mark of at least 60 percent. Students should be familiar with the Master of Arts—Interdisciplinary Studies grading system. Please note that it is students' responsibility to maintain their program status. Any student who receives a grade of "F" in one course, or a grade of "C" in more than one course, may be required to withdraw from the program.

The following table summarizes the evaluation activities and the credit weights associated with them.

Materials

All course materials are available online through the Digital Reading Room (DRR).

Important links

• Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies
• Focus Areas
• Courses
• Fees and Funding