Przejdź do menu Przejdź do treści
Uniwersytet Komisji Edukacji Narodowej
w Krakowie

Erasmus

Dear Students!

Academic courses for International Students

It is with great pleasure that we invite you to study with us at the Pedagogical University in Cracow’s Institute of Philosophy and Sociology. Among the many advantages of studying in Poland, including an acquaintance with Polish culture and language, taking part in cultural and social events within the beautiful expanse that is Cracow, you will have an opportunity to improve your academic knowledge and skills with the helping hand of excellent scholars and researchers in philosophy and the social sciences. Courses in our Institute have been popular among students from Spain, Italy, Greece, Russia, Turkey to mention a few. We have prepared extra courses for students from all over the world through the medium of English, Russian, Spanish and Polish.

General Information
The academic year in our University is divided into two semesters: winter semester (1st October-mid February) and summer semester (mid-February – end of June). Students who choose all the subjects in a given semester will be able to collect at least 30 ECTS credits which is especially significant for students taking part in ERASMUS programme. You may also take any particular course or courses which you find interesting and important in your academic development.

Our courses in English,Russian or Spanish are organised in three various ways:
a. one-to-one tutoring: every student has his own Tutor (lecturer) who provides him with the resources essential to study given subject, Tutor focuses on individual student’s abilities, skills and interests,

b. small group (up to 5 students): the group might consist of Erasmus students, Polish students (who want to study in English, Russian or Spanish) and students from non-EU countries, the group is led by an expirienced lecturer,

d. mixed standard group (up to 30 students): the group consists of Polish students and foreign students and the course is provided in English.

There is as well an opportunity to take part in our courses provided in Polish for those students who feel confident enough in Polish or want to improve their language skills. In this case, please do contact Foreign Students Co-ordinator ( mdzieglewski@wp.pl) in advance at least 2 weeks prior to each semester. To complete each course You will have to meet all the requirements which are set up by the lecturer at the very begining of the course.

 

Our courses

WINTER SEMESTER (1st October – mid-February)

1. Introduction to Sociology (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Dr Anna Karnat-Napieracz
Course Description:
The main objective of the course is to allow its participants to understand the core issues and topics of sociology. The course shall provide  students with: anunderstanding of the basic concepts of sociology, viewing various human behaviour from the sociological perspective, identifying factors and phenomena that contribute to social change, implying fundamental sociological concepts in the analysis of contemporary social life, widening their sociological imagination. The main topics presented within the course will be: sociology as a scientific discipline, sociological perspectives (functionalist, conflict and interactionist), the phenomenon of social interaction, social divisions and social structure, culture and society, socialization process, the modes of individual internalization, social order and social control, sanctions, social groups and institutions, social change, types of societies (traditional, modern), late modernity and post-modernity, the notion of identity (the individual and collective dimension).
2. Introduction to Philosophy (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Dr Marzenna Jakubczak
Course Description:
This course is designed for the students not necessarily acquainted with the history of philosophy but for those who are bothered, at least from time to time, with some serious philosophical questions.  It will let you understand better what philosophy is good for and what makes this subject so important and useful for each human being. The students will be introduced to some of the most important areas of research within ancient, modern and contemporary philosophy. Referring to the assigned readings, we will talk through some of the crucial issues in different areas of philosophical expertise, such as metaphysics, epistemology, moral philosophy, the philosophy of language, philosophy of the mind, etc.
3. Environmental Philosophy (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Prof. Leszek Pyra
Email:  lepyra@op.pl
Course Description:
Fundamentals of environmental philosophy give the students basic information on its historical development and its main theoretical assumptions. During theseries of lectures the main approaches to nature are presented, discussed and compared. The approaches are as follows: anthropocentric, individualist consequentialist, individualist deontological and holistic. In addition to this  animals’ right theory is presented and considered.
4. Cultural Studies 1. Reading Cultural Texts (ECTS: 5)
Lecturer: Dr Mariusz Dzięglewski
Course Description:
Cultural Studies is quite a popular and dynamic academic field of contemporary culture study. What makes it specific is the emphasis on the everyday life experiences of so-called ‘ordinary people’. This course is the first part of ‘Cultural Studies’ and its main focus is on various kind of cultural texts. That is why during the course we will focus on the way we all make sense of such cultural texts as everyday rituals, advertising, TV news, youth subculture, urban architecture or computer games. During the course students will find out how we can conduct research into cultural texts. Beside the theoretical framework which provides the basic concepts of Cultural Studies (representation, ideology, signifying practices), students will have an opportunity to apply these concepts in a wide range of practical activities and the final media project (photo reportage/social TV commercial).
5. Cultural Studies 2. Individual and Collective Identity (ECTS: 5)
Lecturer: Dr Mariusz Dzięglewski
Course Description:
The course is the continuation of the first part of Cultural Studies (Reading Cultural Texts). In this part we focus on issues of identity in its individual (gender) or collective (ethnic/national group) dimension. Cultural Studies sees  identity mainly as a social construct. That said we will study the way these phenomena are constructed in various historical and social contexts. During the classes students will become familiar with such concepts as: hybrid identity, transnationalism, gender, ‘third culture kids’ and will have an opportunity to apply these concepts in their own practical activities in class as well as in their final project: recording their own ‘ID narrative’ programme.
6.Theories of Secularisation (ECTS: 5)
Lecturer: Dr Michał Warchala
Email: mwarch@interia.pl
Course Description:
Secularization is still one of the hotly debated issues in the contemporary social sciences and the purpose of this course is to introduce the student to the present state of that debate. Is secularization still on in the world, or does its wave, perhaps, recede as many observers argue? Is secularization inextricably linked to the processes of modernization? What are the variants of the secularizing process? Do we live in ‘post-secular’ societies? To answer these (and many other) questions we will deal with both classical ‘straight-line’ theories of secularization (M. Weber, E. Durkheim) and the so-called ‘revisionary’ theories (P. Berger, D. Martin, J. Casanova). These latter question both the meaning of secularization and its social and cultural consequences.
7.Psychoanalysis and Social Sciences  (ECTS: 5)
Lecturer: Dr Michał Warchala
Email: mwarch@interia.pl
Course Description:
The course is an introduction to psychoanalytic theory designed for those studying the social sciences and the science of education. We will read classical Freud texts dealing with the problem of man’s relation to culture and society and of his/her mental development within the limits imposed by them (such as Civilization and its Discontents). We will also take into account the works of some post-Freudian thinkers (J. Lacan, M. Klein, D. Winnicott) whose contributions to that field are of enduring value. Our guiding question will be whether a psychoanalytic framework is capable of providing valuable insights into the main problems generated by our existence in society.
8. Gender Identity in Philosophical Perspective (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Dr Marzenna Jakubczak
Email: filozofia.podmiotu@gmail.com
Course Description:
This course will introduce you to the field of Gender Studies. The students will be encouraged to reflect critically on the issue of gender identity as it is represented, defined, conditioned and constructed in various socio-cultural contexts. To detect the tacit assumptions accepted in a naïve pop cultural discourse and to deconstruct some of the traditional axiological hierarchies we are going to refer to those recent theories elaborated by the authors representing such currents as subaltern studies, eco-feminism, feminist theology, and also criticism of androcentric agenda in psychology, epistemology and ethics.
.
9. Антропология религии/Anthropology of Religion  (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Dr Maria Rogińska
Email: mariaroginska@gmail.com
Course Description:
Цель курса – попытка приблизиться к пониманию феномена человека сквозь призму его религиозности. Курс призван ознакомить студентов сключевыми направлениями антропологического исследования религии, его проблематикой и методологией. Мы попытаемся ответить на вопрос, как изачем изучать религию, какие именно явления следует отнести к религиозным, можно ли применить к ним традиционные категории антропологическогоанализа (сакрум и профанум, миф, ритуал, колдовство и магия и др.). Наиболее важные сферы религиозного сознания будут рассмотрены в трехсоциоисторических перспективах: в контексте антропогенеза, на примере племенных культур и в связи с религиозной динамикой современногообщества.

 

10. Procesos migratorios./Migration processes (ECTS: 4)

Lecturer: Dr Paula Malinowski-Rubio
Email:  pmalinowska@bci.pl
Course Description:

Aunque movimientos migratorios los ha habido siempre, no cabe duda de que se intensificaron notablemente a partir del siglo XVI hasta llegar a convertirse en uno de los fenómenos más importantes de nuestros tiempos. La finalidad de esta asignatura es la de procurar a los estudiantes el marco teórico necesario que les permita aprehender los aspectos más importantes que caracterizan los procesos migratorios. Después de delimitar el concepto de migración se hablará de los distintos tipos de migraciones, de las características de las mismas en la actualidad, de la multiculturalidad que de ellas resulta, de la problemática de integración de los inmigrantes en las sociedades de asentamiento, de las distintas formas de gestión de la inmigración y de la diversidad por parte de las sociedades receptoras, así como de de las políticas migratorias que anteceden a las migraciones o que resultan de ellas.

 

SUMMER SEMESTER (mid-February – end of June)

 
1. Great Books of the Western World (ECTS: 5)
Lecturer: Dr Michał Warchala
Email: mwarch@interia.pl
Course Description:
Although the very existence of a ‘canon’ (literary, philosophical or any other) is fiercely contested today, studying ‘great books’ may still be a fascinating intellectual adventure. During this course we will read some of the books usually regarded as ‘canonical’, which belong to the fields of literature and thehumanities in the broad sense of the term: starting with the Bible and going through Plato, St. Augustine, Descartes, Hegel up to Marx, Weber, Freud and Nietzsche. The kind of reading I would like to propose, has as its intention to treat each of these ‘great books’ on its own terms i.e., without paying too much attention to the historical and biographical contexts or secondary commentaries. The course is open to all students.

 

2. Introduction to Population Studies (ECTS: 5)
Lecturer: Dr Małgorzata Krywult-Albańska
Email: m.krywult@autograf.pl
Course Description:
This is an introductory course to the study of human populations and demographic methods, designed for students of sociology and other disciplines. Themes covered include an overview of past and current trends in the growth of the population of the world and of selected regions; basic theories of population growth and change; source materials used in the study of population, research methods and standard procedures for the measurement of key demographic variables; population processes (fertility, mortality and migration) and the ways that these processes influence population growth, composition, size, and distribution; an overview of the contemporary changes in family formation and household structure and their impact on demographic processes and on population size and composition; population forecasts and population policy. Special attention is given to issues such as the social, health and economic consequences of societal aging (primarily in high-income countries), urbanization and globalization of international migrations. A part of the course reviews historic and current health patterns, and examines the demographic forces that have led to the rapid aging of populations worldwide. The course focuses on European societies (Poland in particular) set against the backdrop of worldwide changes. Half-term course.

 

3. Gender and Power (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Dr Tomasz Warczok
Email: greyy@o2.pl
Course Description:
The course explores the issue of gender, particularly in the context of power relationships. It concerns gender inequalities in the public space (economy, politics etc.) as well as the private sphere. Special attention is given to  intimate questions including the division of household labour, sexual life, emotions and the body. The masculine domination, discussed during the course, is treated as an example of symbolic violence, which means that its victims (women) would not be fully conscious of their subordination and perceive it as a natural state of affairs. Thus the basic question is posed not only on what are gender relations but also why the masculine domination is still so effective despite all the historical changes.
4. The Religious and Social Aspects of American Puritanism (ECTS: 5)
Lecturer: Prof. Piotr Stawiński
Course Description:
The subject of the lectures is the religious and social history of the seventeenth-century Puritan colonization of New England including  issues concerning thecharacteristics of the movement known as Puritanism, the difficulty in describing precisely the phenomenon, the idea of special destiny, the mission given by God, which cherished by the settlers motivated their heroic journey across the ocean and the establishment of the Christian Commonwealth based on  theological interpretations and  Biblical patterns.
5. Contemporary Debates on Scientific Rationality (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Prof. Wojciech Sady
Email:  wojciech.sady@gmail.com
Course Description:
Scientific beliefs, because of their successful practical applications, function today as the paradigm of human rationality. But it is not easy to say what this rationality consists of. In the 1930s Moritz Schlick, Rudolf Carnap, Karl Popper and others claimed that scientific beliefs are rational because their content is determined solely by the laws of logic and the results of experiments. This ‘standard view of scientific rationality’ was undermined in two classical ways. In the1930s Ludwik Fleck, and in the 1960s Thomas Kuhn became founders of the sociology of science. They claimed that scientific research is a collective activity. Scientific thought collectives develop their particular thought styles that determine the ways in which any individual perceives ‘reality’ and thinks of ‘reality’. The content of scientific beliefs is determined by the structure of scientific community and the results of experiments (which are always theory-laden). In 1975 Karl Feyerabend published Against Method: science is as rational and irrational as other forms of human beliefs. In 1970 Imre Lakatos formulated the principles of the rational reconstruction of the history of science. It is logic and experience alone that determine the theoretical choices of good scientists.  Extra-experimental and extralogical factors sometimes disturb the growth of knowledge, but in the long run scientific rationality prevails. In the lecturer’s opinion what we need today is a synthesis of Fleck’s theory of thought collectives and thought styles and Lakatos’ methodology of scientific research programmes.

6. Biomedical Ethic (ECTS: 4)

Lecturer: Prof. Katarzyna Gurczyńska-Sady
Course Description:
The aim of this course is to give a basic knowladge concerning medical ethics. Subject publicly  discussed like: abortoion, euthanasia, animal research, or organ sales should have their preexisting, theoretical structure. This course is to provide one. Students learn about four main biomedical princieples like: respecting autonomy of a patient, nonmaleficence, beneficence and justice, all to have a good basis for further discussion on mention subjects.

7. Philosophical Anthropology (ECTS: 4)

Lecturer: Prof. Katarzyna Gurczyńska-Sady
Course Description:
The aim of this course is to give a basic knowledge of medical ethics. Subjects publicly  discussed like: abortion, euthanasia, animal research, or organ sales should have their pre–existing, theoretical structure. This course intends to provide one. Students learn about the four main biomedical principles: respecting theautonomy of a patient, nonmaleficence, beneficence and justice, all to have a good basis for further discussion on the mention subjects.
8. Mind-Body Problem in Philosophical Discourse (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Dr Marzenna Jakubczak
Email: filozofia.podmiotu@gmail.com
Course Description:
The first part of the course is devoted to a brief survey of the most influential ideas of the mind-body interaction discussed by ancient and modern philosophers, including Plato, Descartes, Hume, Leibniz, Locke or La Mettrie. Subsequently, the participants develop their understanding of the more complex positions put forward in contemporary philosophical debate. They will also obtain some basic knowledge about the findings of the neuro- and cognitive sciences. Among the assigned readings there are some commonly debated papers by J. Searle, T. Nagel, D. Parfit, J. Perry, D. Dennett and P. Churchland.
 
9. Comparative Philosophy: Indian and Chinese Ethical Doctrines (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Dr Marzenna Jakubczak
Email: filozofia.podmiotu@gmail.com
Course Description:
The purpose of this course is to give both the beginner and the more experienced student of philosophy a brief guide to metaphysics, epistemology and, above all, the moral philosophy elaborated in non-Western traditions. Although the Indian, let it be Hindu or Buddhist, and Chinese philosophical conceptions are original, well argued and relevant to the moral dilemmas of  contemporary man, they are often neglected in the regular expositions of ethical views. Here, a special emphasis will be put on such problems as cultural contextualism, pluralism, universalism and relativism. All issues will be discussed in a comparative perspective with reference to the Western versus major Asian ethical doctrines.
10. Comunicación intercultural/ Intercultural communication (ECTS: 4)
Lecturer: Dr Paula Malinowski-Rubio
Email:  pmalinowska@bci.pl
Course Description:
En el mundo de hoy en el que a causa de los movimientos migratorios, la política y el comercio internacionales etc., la interacción entre miembros de culturas distintas se ha convertido en una constante, la comunicación intercultural ha pasado a ser un factor clave que no puede ser obviado. El proceso de comunicación es un complejo proceso interactivo de influencia recíproca que tiene lugar a distintos niveles y amplitudes y se lleva a cabo con ayuda de distintos medios y dentro de un determinado contexto sociocultural. Cuando los actores de la comunicación pertenecen a culturas distintas, la comunicación se hace todavía más complicada pudiendo llegar a ser muy difícil e incluso imposible.  En esta asignatura se estudiarán cada uno de los aspectos determinantes de la comunicación desde la óptica de la comunicación intercultural, no sólo en su dimensión teórica sino también en su dimensión práctica a través de la reflexión sobre su transcurso y sus consecuencias en la vida diaria.
Registration Precedure and Contact Details 
Each student wishing to take one or more courses of study at our Institute is expected to email the Foreign Students Co-ordinator, Dr Mariusz Dzięglewski (mdzieglewski@wp.pl)  with the list of courses the student is interested  in enrolling for at least two weeks prior to the beginning of each semester.At the same time students are expected to email directly  the lecturer of the given course to inform him/her of their willingness to enrol on the course.The final decision on enrollment is taken by the given lecturer on the basis of the number of students applying for the course. Students are welcome to contact the lecturer with any question concerning the course.For more details on entry requirements, documents, visa, health insurance, accommodation please visit the INCOMING STUDENTS website at:erasmus

Ważna informacja!

Aktualności