Introduction: What’s Public Policy

Understanding Policies (10700193-90)

Yue Hu

Tsinghua University

Overview

No hardcore knowledge today (since you’ll get a LOT in the next several weeks), just tips that may save your semester😜

  • Mutual introduction
  • Target audience
  • What you can learn
  • Commitment

Who are we

Who am I?

Your lovely TA

Scope & goals

What a course it is (not)

  • Not a typical PA course
  • Not a typical GE course
  • Not one you can take through without love

An Atypical PA Class

A PA class is a program that prepares individuals to serve as managers in the executive arm of local, state, and federal government and that focuses on the systematic study of executive organization and management. — National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) of the US.

Typical PA

  1. Policy whisperer
  2. Paradigm of social science
  3. Academic writing/presenting

My course

  • Little about concrete policies
  • Little about statistics
  • Foci: perspectives and methods
  • Bonus: Professional training

Course Map

Key point to learn: illustrated by a story

William Taft & Robert Hutchins

William Taft & Robert Hutchins

1927, Yale

Chief Justice vs. Chancellor of the School

  • [Taft:] Well, I understand that at Yale you teach your students that judges are fools.
  • [Hutchins:] No, Mr. Chief Justice, at Yale we teach our students to find that out for themselves.

Finding out for yourselves, how?

Commitment

Let’s meet each other halfway

Finding out for yourselves

You do the “finding out”💪

I guarantee that they are “for you” 💕

Why you should take the course

Practically

As a policy taker

  • Speak the language of funders
  • Persuade like a pro
  • Live smarter as a citizen

Epistemologically

As a (future) policy maker

  • Decode policy logic
  • Diagnose like the state
  • Bridge knowledge and governance

Your job

  1. Reading
  2. Listening
  3. Expressing
  4. Writing

Reading

  • “Birkland (2007); 孙昶林(1991)”

    • Required readings (word by word, just going through, if you want😏)

  • “参考文献: Lindblom and Woodhouse (1993); Lindblom (1965); Kingdon (2014)”

    • References (a.k.a., no need to read immediately)

  • “Must-read: Hansen (2019)”

    • You should read the articles in this part! They are certainly fun 😈

Listening and Expressing

  • Let me see your pretty 🙃 EVERY TIME
  • 🗣️ gives you a high score
  • Please help the shy peers 😣
  • Please help me also 😘 (point out the typos)~

Oh oh, btw, “retail English” all the time…

Target

Being smart

The Challenge

Ready to be Challenging and Challenged

Presenter

  • Content
  • Connection
  • Inspiring

Challenger

Answering: “I indeed read it!”

Asking: “I bet you don’t get it!”

Target

Being critical

The final project

A presentation of a policy analysis proposal

  • A term-long project
    • Topic brief (< Week 5)
    • Lit review (< Week 9)
    • Presentation (Week 14, 15)
    • Full proposal (< Week 16)

Target

Being convincing

Extra Credits

  1. Tournament with the course project (5’ max)
  2. Voluntary presenter in the Challenge (2’ max)

Let’s learn more about you

Introduce yourself with an elevator pitch

Introduce yourself with an elevator pitch

Why doing this

  1. Policy communication is a critical step of public policy implementation (oft-ignored)
  2. (One of) the primary goals of this class

Tips for elevator pitch

  • Smile 😁
  • Body language 👋
  • Audience view: Question, fact, story

Introduce yourself

30s preparation

&

30s presentation

Ready?

Take-Home Points

  • Goal: Finding out for yourselves
  • Why bother:
    • Practically (policy taker): funding, persuasion, citizenship
    • Epistemologically (policy maker): logic, diagnosis, governance
  • How we get there:
    • Reading & listening → being smart
    • Expressing & challenging → being critical
    • Writing & presenting → being convincing

Will I see you in next week?