Course Schedule*

Tuesday's Section of PLS 505

Class

8/25

Introduction

	Introductions
	Review syllabus & assignments
	Policy Analysis - Art vs. science
	Assign teams & cases

M: 1 - 43, 90 - 174

RES #1

9/1

What is Policy Analysis?

	Policy analysis as an extension of rational decision making
	Individual vs. group decision making
	Steps in the policy analysis process
	Working for client
	Working with the public
	Ethical issues & value conflicts
	Policy analysis as a profession

B: 1 - 46, 97 - 102

P & S: 1 - 73

M: 175 - 196, 229 - 256

RES #2, 10, 12

9/8

9/15

Collecting, Interpreting, & Analyzing Data on Policy Problems

	Problem definition
	Problem Framing
	Thinking creatively
	Types of data & sources
	Conducting interviews
	Evaluating data & information
	Displaying information

B: 47 - 70

P & S: 74 - 185

M: 44 - 89

L & D: 1 - 191

RES #3, 11

Library tour room 1022 in the library at 7:45 PM (9/8)

9/22

9/29

Public Policy Process

	Steps in the policy process
	Agenda setting and the democratization of policy analysis
	Policy analysis as an extension of rational decision making
	Role of policy analysts in the policy process
	Steps in process of policy analysis

RES #1, 10, 12

P & S: 362 - 397

Problem memo assn. for your policy paper (9/29)

10/6

No Class - Fall Break

10/13

10/20

Rationales for Public Policy

	What govt does & why it does it?
	Are all problems public policy problems
	Public goods vs. private goods
	Market failures
	Externalities
	Monopolies
	Information asymmetries

RES #12, 13

10/27

11/3

Identifying Alternatives

	Finding alternatives
	Lesson drawing & best practices research
	Diffusion of innovations
	Policy instruments

B: 71 - 95

P & S: 227 - 256

RES #4

Alternatives memo assn. for your policy paper (10/27)

Memos for Case #13 (11/3)

11/10

Evaluative Criteria

Efficiency

Equity

Economic, financial, technical, political feasibility

Optimization & constraints

B: 19 - 27

P & S: 186 - 226

M: 197 - 228

RES #14

Memos for Case #14 (11/10)

11/17

Evaluating Alternatives

	Goals vs. policies
	Comparing outcomes not alternatives
	Goals, alternatives, outcomes matrices
	Sensitivity analysis
	Forecasting
	Trend extrapolation
	Decision trees
	Game theory
	Operations research & linear programming

B: 27 - 46

P & S: 257 - 361

RES #5

RES #6

RES #7

Memos for Case #15 (11/17)

11/24

No Class

12/1

Benefit-Cost Analysis

	B-C Analysis vs. cost effectiveness analysis
	Opportunity costs
	Tangible vs. intangible costs Discount rates & time
	Valuing inputs & outcomes
	Present vs. future value

P & S: 257 - 331

RES #8

Memos for Case #12 (12/1)

12/4

Final policy project is due at 5:00 PM

12/8

Take Home Exam is due at 6:30 PM

RES = Reading is on reserve in the library; B = Bardach, A Practical Guide for Policy Analysis; M: Mintrom, People Skills for Policy Analysts; P & S = Patton & Sawicki, Basic Methods of Policy Analysis and Planning; L & D = Levitt & Dubner, Freakonomics.

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Page last modified 11/17/05

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