Annex 21:

2-1TA: Public Policy and Administration: Curricula Development Program

1. Project description

2.  Project purposes and goals 

The project proposal states that in Slovakia, as in many other transition countries, very little emphasis has been placed on formal education and training in public policy analysis and formulation.  Most policymakers or those debating policy issues (media, academics, NGOs, issue groups) have learned policy skills solely through practical experience. Educational programs exist only in public administration, and they concentrate primarily on juridical issues or managerial skills, but offer no or very limited training in policy analysis skills. This situation creates a real need for development of specific public policy programme.

The principal general goal of the project was to develop an appropriate curriculum for a state-of-the-art programme in public policy that meets Slovakia’s current needs, to locate and develop teaching materials and to establish an on-going evaluation process of the M.A. program to allow for change and calibration.

The program would provide skills in policy analysis and formulation to prospective policymakers, policy researchers and analysts, ultimately contributing to the building of a policy culture in Slovakia and improving policy outcomes for the country’s citizens. TA from our colleagues in NASPAA institutions in the United States are expected to help to place the program within the context of current trends and developments in teaching public policy, and to help familiarize Slovak university teachers with current methods and techniques in teaching the new programme. Partnership with and participation of NISPAcee partner Charles University of Prague, which runs an MA Program in Public and Social Policy, would allow for the sharing of advice on experiences with public policy teaching in the regional and cultural context. The partnership will allow the creation of a compatible structure of optional courses with the view of exchanging of students and teachers in the future.

The following phases were envisaged:

1.       Programming:  the conceptual phase will be established and materials will be gathered, NASPAA members will travel to Bratislava with proposed curricula and teaching materials (one week) and will be joined by the NISPAcee partner from Prague.

2.       Development and design: curricula will be designed with appropriate methodologies and learning approaches.  Experts, stated above, will share knowledge and insights with FSES teachers and other working group members.

3.       Evaluation: evaluate and prepare study programs and curricula for accreditation by Slovak authorities.

According to the project proposal, the project was expected to produce the following outputs:

1.          A written program of study detailing core and optional courses based on current standards in policy analysis and formulation.

2.          Specific curricula offerings for selected individual subjects based on the study program including reading lists, literature references, case studies (approximately three to four curricula are  expected to be completed at this stage).

3.          A package of background materials including the above outputs to be disseminated to other institutions in Slovakia and elsewhere in the region to serve as blueprints for the preparation of other related academic programs.

3. Project realization

No problems occurred during the project realization. The project team actively cooperated with government officials; the project implementation went as planned; and the project timeline was kept almost on target. All team members and other participants actively cooperated in the project, fulfilling their roles and responsibilities on time and with quality work.

4. Project outputs, outcomes and impacts

The project has fulfilled its principal goal by developing a curriculum for the MA program in public policy to be used in the Institute of Public Policy at the Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences of the Comenius University.

The program has been submitted to and approved by the Scientific Council of the Comenius University and has now been formally submitted for accreditation to the Accreditation Committee through the Ministry of Education. The program designed contains specific references to current relevant teaching materials used in the world.

Partners from NASPAA institutions and from Prague played a key role in developing the program, and added value to the project. Excepting direct consultations on curricula, all three partners delivered other outputs: lectures for students, seminars, etc.

General course outlines have been designed for most of the courses planned:

Compulsory courses

·          Public Policy (Theory and Methodology)

·          Economic Aspects of Public Policy

·          Law and Public Policy

·          Instruments and Implementation of Public Policy

·          Analytical and Research Methods—Quantitative and Qualitative

·          Public Finance

·          Comparative Public Policy

·          Policy Analysis and Decision-Making

·          Thesis Seminar and Internship

Compulsory elective cross-sectoral courses

·          Multilevel governance and its effects (integration, decentralization)

·          Politico-Administrative Relations

·          Ethical Issues, Transparency and Corruption in Public Policy

·          Drafting Legislation in Public Policy

·          European Traditions of Human and Civil Rights

·          Policy Evaluation

Compulsory elective sectoral seminars

·          Education Policy

·          Formulation and Implementation of Regional Policy in Europe

·          Social Policy

·          Health Care Policy

·          Agricultural Policy and Rural Development

·          Competition Policy

·          Economic Policy

·          Communal Policy

With the help of NASPAA counterparts, the curricula for the following subjects have been developed in detail: Policy Analysis, Political-Administrative Relations, Regional Policy.

A package of background material on teaching public policy in English collected by the working group from NASPAA partners and other sources has been compiled and is now available for other Slovak institutions and other NISPA member institutions.

The program and background materials discussed above have been made available online at the institute’s webpage which can be found at www.fses.uniba.sk/ustavy/. In conjunction with the actual program, this package can serve as a blueprint for the preparation of MA programs at other institutions.

Thanks to all mentioned achievements as the outcome, there is good chance for introducing the programme into the system of university education in Slovakia (based on a positive accreditation). Outputs might also be used by other institutions. Institutional capacity of the school improved, and the quality of preparation of public policymakers should strengthen with potential impact for public sector performance in the country.