Contemporary liberal democracies face complex and disruptive challenges, such as toxic populism, culture wars, political polarization, religious fundamentalism, the climate emergency, global conflicts, and the influence of powerful social media platforms. This is the disconcerting world that young people are growing up in and need support in…

The use of games and simulation pedagogy has proliferated across political science and international relations, yet remains fledgling in political theory. Irrespective of discipline, the benefit of games and simulations is well established. However, existing simulations in political philosophy tend to address the teaching of the history of ideas,…

It is often said that the number of current world leaders who chose to be educated in another country can serve as a useful, though rough and incomplete, indicator of "soft power." So, since 2015, the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) has been publishing desk research on the tertiary education of serving heads of state and heads…

This article uses new survey data to examine student preferences and experiences with active learning among a graduate student cohort across two key identity markers: international student status and gender. Our survey of students enrolled in a Master of International Relations program suggests that most view active learning favorably and believe…

This article provides a case study of tutor's reflection on practice leading to a different approach to teaching an introductory course on politics and policy at a major Australian university, aimed at better reaching disengaged students. The overhaul led to higher levels of constructive student engagement in the tutorials, resulting in improved…

This article discusses the use of collaborative online technology in the teaching of international relations and politics. Using a case study from Australia, it finds low levels of online innovation in these discipline areas that correlate with broader examinations of technology use in higher education teaching. Themes of time poverty, technical…

Politics courses embedded in business and commerce degree programs have soared in number in recent years. Yet how business students, often compulsorily enrolled in politics courses, learn key politics concepts is an under-researched area. The purpose of this article is to determine where the teaching and learning of political science and business…

This article explores the neo-institutional theory of global policy convergence, or "isomorphism", by comparatively examining one of its most recent manifestations--the global diffusion of national standardised testing--in Australia and Japan. By understanding the particular configurations of national testing as being conditioned by both…

Online role plays, as they are designed for use in higher education in Australia and internationally, are active and authentic learning activities (Wills, Leigh & Ip, 2011). In online role plays, students take a character role in developing a story that serves as a metaphor for real-life experience in order to develop a potentially wide range…

Unlike other disciplines in the social sciences, there has been relatively little attention paid to the structure of the undergraduate political science curriculum. This article reports the results of a representative survey of 200 political science programs in the United States, examining requirements for quantitative methods, research methods,…

This paper reports on research investigating student experiences of learning through face-to-face and online discussions in a political science course in a large Australian university. Using methodologies from relational research into university student learning, the study investigates associations between key aspects of student learning focusing…

Public administration, long considered a poor relation of political science in Australian academic circles, has recently been revitalized by a new concentration in public policy studies. This paper summarizes the efforts of 10 Australian universities to develop public policy degree programs, describes University of New England's new program, and…

An Australian university honors course in political science used an apprenticeship model to develop student appreciation of and skills in the process of research, in preparation for research careers. In the pilot course, students conducted a survey on corruption. Challenges encountered and lessons learned in implementing the course are discussed.…

Illustrates the ways of achieving a measure of political literacy using the case of the bridge link to North Stradbroke Island. Discusses two topics wherein misconceptions occur, what environments are, and the nature of environmental conflict. Provides five figures and two references. (YP)

This volume is part of a series of monographs from Australia devoted to outlining an alternative approach, based on neo-Marxist concepts, to policy studies in education. The opening essay in this volume argues that real and significant educational reform will not come about through a revolution in decision-making and managerial technology, but…