Duration
30h Th
Number of credits
Lecturer
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the first semester, review in January
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
The Introduction to public law is built on two main axes.
On the one hand, it enables the students to learn - on an abstract perspective - the fundamental concepts of public law such as State, sovereignty, constitution, democracy, federalism, monarchy, government, separation of power or human rights. This approach will be reinforced in particular by references to classical authors of the theory of the State, but also by the comparison of the constitutional systems of different States.
On the other hand, the Introduction to public law draws up - in a more concrete perspective - the schematic portrait of the Belgian state's current institutions. We will focus on the outlines of the federal system, on the main organs of the state and on the relationships existing between one another. Considering the importance taken by the international aspect, we will also discuss the main European institutions and some other international organisations. One chapter specifically concerns human rights.
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
The addition of both of the here above described perspectives aims to inculcate the students with the faculty to understand the modern states main rules of working with the benefit of an historical and philosophical hindsight. The course aims to provide the students with the tools to better understand the political news and to develop a critical analysis while keeping up with them.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
This course is an introduction which does not require any particular prerequisite.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
Le cours accueillant chaque année entre 200 et 300 étudiants, il laisse une place importante aux exposés de l'enseignant.
Cependant, des moments d'interactions avec les étudiants seront aussi régulièrement proposés. Whenever possible, the teacher will try to start from what the students know, through their high school courses or their general culture, to build the subject chapter by chapter.
En marge du cours, des permanences seront tenues par un assistant pour permettre aux étudiants de poser toutes leurs questions sur la matière.
Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning)
Face-to-face.
Recommended or required readings
Students have to buy the information pack with the texts to be analysed during the course and to bring it in the class. This pack will be available on my.ulg.
Slides are projected during the course sessions to show the detailed course outline and some diagrams or documents that are used to support the presentation. These slides are available to students and are accessible through the following link: http://hdl.handle.net/2268/239189.
A detailed syllabus covers 8 of the 10 chapters of the course and is available to students. This syllabus is not considered a mandatory reading: it is the content of the oral course that constitutes the subject and students are therefore strongly encouraged to take good notes. The syllabus supports and allows students to check their understanding, discover additional examples and deepen, if they wish, some aspects of the course. This syllabus can be accessed through the following link: http://hdl.handle.net/2268/239171.
Assessment methods and criteria
The evaluation of students will be organised in the form of a written exam for the January, May-June (the latter session being open only to students enrolled in the first year of their bachelor's degree) and August-September sessions.
During these tests, students may bring the legislation referred to in the section "recommended or compulsory readings". These documents may be underlined or highlighted, but in no case annotated.
Work placement(s)
Organizational remarks
The course will be attended on the first semester, every Wednesday from 1 to 4 pm (Thiry, Opera, in the city centre).
Contacts
Des permanences hebdomadaires sont organisées par Madame Lena GERON, assistante, selon un horaire à déterminer. La dernière séance aura lieu avant le congé de Noël.
Les étudiants peuvent prendre contact avec l'enseignant (f.bouhon@uliege.be) ou avec l'assistante associée au cours.
Adaptation of teaching commitments following the COVID-19 pandemic for the May-June 2020 session
Teaching methods implemented : distance-learning
This is a course that was given in the first period of the academic year, under normal teaching conditions.
Assessment subjects
The examination will focus on the ten chapters seen in the first period of the academic year. In this respect, there is no difference compared to the January examination.
Assessment methods
In the exceptional circumstances we are experiencing, the examination will take the form of a distance written exam on the e-campus platform.
The examination will consist of a multiple-choice questionnaire (MCQ).
The questionnaire will consist of 30 questions. Each question will have three suggested answers, of which one and only one is correct. If the student chooses the correct answer, he/she will receive one point. If the student does not answer any of the questions, no points will be awarded or lost. If the student chooses the wrong answer, he/she loses half a point. The exam is marked on 30 points. The total is then adjusted by 20 points.
Contacts
The students can contact Mrs. Léna Geron (Lena.Geron@uliege.be), or Prof. Frédéric Bouhon (f.bouhon@uliege.be).
Adaptation of teaching commitments following the COVID-19 pandemic for the Aug-Sept 2020 session
Assessment subjects
Like in May-June.
Assessment methods
Like in May-June. There will be 20 questions in the test.
Contacts
Like in May-June.