About Curriculum

The academic curriculum is based on three broad tenets.

The first one is Public Policy Practice, a practice-oriented understanding of public policy that informs learners of the intricacies of our public programs and public administration.

The second one is Decoding Society, Polity and Governance contextualizes public policy to the enduring and dynamic needs and issues of the societies and communities the public programmes target. Here the budding public policy practitioner learns a practice of policy that has the marginalized communities as its locus. Through the programme, the learners get equipped with the leadership skills needed to navigate India’s public system.

This brings us to the third tenet – Adaptive Leadership. This course hones the learners’ ability to exercise in complex contexts of the resource-starved public administrations, in which they are embedded.

Our Pedagogy

We emphasise a practice-oriented pedagogy that invites the learners to investigate the complexities in public policy practice arising from their real-life experience at the district administration. This is an innovative pedagogy where learnings from in-person boot camps, virtual workshops, and guest- seminars are used by the Praxis learners in solving problems in a real-time setting at the public administration where they spend almost 70% of their time during the programme.

The Bootcamp prepares participants for the academic and practicum rigour of the Course. The Praxis Seminars provide opportunities for reflection, drawing insights and generalisations on public policy approaches. These would also focus on contemporary development challenges such as economic development, climate change, public health and citizen accountability. Participants have to participate in all programmes, these involve several evening meetings for required workshops and speaker events. They must also conduct a dissertation focusing on concrete “public policy”. They are also expected to attend separately scheduled faculty workshops and lectures by distinguished guests.

Course Contents

The following course contents were delivered over in-person and virtual classes/ sessions

COURSES	Practicum	Credits
1. Public Policy: Analysis, Design & Delivery Module 1: Understanding the Rural Context: Complexity and Uncertainty of Public Policy Delivery Module 2: Economics for Public Policy Module 3: Statistics for Public Policy Module 4: Public Policy Analysis and Communication Module 5: Public Policy Delivery Architecture Module 6: Key issues in Last-Mile delivery	Practicum 1	1
2. Decoding Society, Governance, & Development Module 1: Anthropology and Public Policy Module 2: Sociology and Public Policy Module 3: Evolution of Human Rights Module 4: Evolution of the State Module 5: Good Governance Initiatives Module 5: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Module 6: Gender and Development	Practicum 1	1
3. Adaptive Leadership I: Self-in-the-system Technical Vs Adaptive challenges Leadership and Authority Analyzing the system, stakes, and losses Holding the environment and intervening Allies, Rituals, Sanctuaries	Practicum 1	1
4. Adaptive Leadership II: Exercising Leadership/ Leadership Praxis Module 1: Technical Vs Adaptive Challenges Module 2: Leadership and Authority Module 3: Analysing the system, stakes, and losses Module 4: Holding environment and intervening Module 5: Allies, Rituals, Sanctuaries	Practicum 2	1
5. Policy Implementation I: Intervention Design Module 1: User-Centred Design Module 2: Results-based management Module 3: Developing Theory of Change Module 4: Activity Planning and Scheduling Module 5: Budgeting and Resourcing	Practicum 2	1
6. Policy Implementation II: Managing-for-Results Module 1: Ten Steps of Managing-for-Results Module2: Developing the Performance Monitoring Framework Module 3: Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning System Module 4: Developing and Implementing Monitoring Protocols Module 5: Implementation Architecture and Sustainability Thinking	Practicum 3	1
7: Impact Evaluation and Communication Module1:Purpose of Evaluation, Contribution-Attribution Module 2:Impact and Program Evaluation Module 3: Evaluation Process Module 4: Designing and conducting evaluations Module 5: Presenting Evaluation findings Module 6: Op-ed/Column Writing	Practicum 4	1
8: Contemporary development and environmental policies Module 1: Approaches to Resolving Conflict and Advancing Social Justice Module 2: Introduction to Climate change and Human rights Module 3: Internet Technologies and Regulation	Practicum 4	1
9: Perspectives on Public Policy Engendering Public Policy Public Administration and Democracy Influence as a Part of Development Design The Last Mile Turning Public Policy Upside Down Data for Public Policy The Transformative Power of Local Governance Introduction to Community-based Adaptation to Climate Change Fundamentals of Participatory Research	Practicum 1,2,3, and 4	1
10: Capstone		1

1. Public Policy: Analysis, Design & Delivery

Module 1: Understanding the Rural Context: Complexity and Uncertainty of Public Policy Delivery
Module 2: Economics for Public Policy
Module 3: Statistics for Public Policy
Module 4: Public Policy Analysis and Communication
Module 5: Public Policy Delivery Architecture
Module 6: Key issues in Last-Mile delivery

2. Decoding Society, Governance, & Development

Module 1: Anthropology and Public Policy
Module 2: Sociology and Public Policy
Module 3: Evolution of Human Rights
Module 4: Evolution of the State
Module 5: Good Governance Initiatives
Module 6: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion
Module 7: Gender and Development

3. Adaptive Leadership I: Self-in-the-system

4. Adaptive Leadership II: Exercising Leadership/ Leadership Praxis

Module 1: Technical Vs Adaptive Challenges
Module 2: Leadership and Authority
Module 3: Analysing the system, stakes, and losses
Module 4: Holding environment and intervening
Module 5: Allies, Rituals, Sanctuaries

5. Policy Implementation I: Intervention Design

6. Policy Implementation II: Managing-for-Results

Module 1: Ten Steps of Managing-for-Results
Module 2: Developing the Performance Monitoring Framework
Module 3: Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning System
Module 4: Developing and Implementing Monitoring Protocols
Module 5: Implementation Architecture and Sustainability Thinking

7. Impact Evaluation and Communication

Module 1:Purpose of Evaluation, Contribution-Attribution
Module 2:Impact and Program Evaluation
Module 3: Evaluation Process
Module 4: Designing and conducting evaluations
Module 5: Presenting Evaluation findings
Module 6: Op-ed/Column Writing

8. Contemporary development and environmental policies

9. Perspectives on Public Policy

Engendering Public Policy
Public Administration and Democracy
Influence as a Part of Development Design
The Last Mile Turning Public Policy Upside Down
Data for Public Policy
The Transformative Power of Local Governance
Introduction to Community-based Adaptation to Climate Change
Fundamentals of Participatory Research