Public administration has a long tradition of close connections to the field of political science. As the field of public administration evolved from a basic politics administration dichotomy, it became evident that the distinction between politics and administration was nebulous at best. As such, public affairs students need exposure to, and…

Scholars and commentators are increasingly concerned about the erosion of democratic norms in the United States. Political science education stands at the forefront of higher education's mission to create an educated citizenry, and civic education is linked to outcomes like civic engagement and trust in government. Much of the research on civic…

Discussion is a crucial component for learning in a college classroom. Increasingly, university and college faculty are using online learning management systems to facilitate and assess course discussions. Given this reality, are there ways to frame prompts to generate normatively better discussions, or discussions where students are better able…

Faculty at many colleges and universities are redesigning courses to address differences in student learning preferences. In this study, the researchers surveyed students in two similar American Politics classes. In one, the instructor used a traditional large-class lecture format. In the other, lectures were supplemented with weekly small-group…

What delivery modality is most effective in teaching undergraduate, political science research methods? Using systematically collected data from two academic terms and employing a quasi-experimental design, this paper explores variation in learning outcomes between face-to-face and distance-hybrid course offerings. Variation in the dependent…

In an effort to promote learning in classrooms, political science instructors are increasingly turning to interactive teaching strategies--experiments, simulations, etc.--that supplement traditional lecture formats. In this article, I advocate the use of student-generated data as a powerful teaching tool that can be used in a variety of ways to…

This article describes and evaluates an implementation of team-based learning (TBL) in a large (180 student) section of a U.S. government course. The author argues that TBL presents an opportunity for instructors of large classes to increase student engagement with the course content as well as student interaction with the instructor and with each…

Much of the research on the use of simulations in the political science classroom focuses on how simulations model different events in the real world, including political campaigns, international diplomacy, and legislative bargaining. In the case of American Politics, many simulations focus on the behavior of Congress and the legislative process,…

In this article, the author addresses both the costs and benefits of implementing clickers into an introductory political science course. Comparing student responses to a mid-semester survey in both a clicker and non-clicker course, the results show that students have higher satisfaction of the course and instructor, higher exam scores, and feel…

Perceiving political engagement to be dangerously low among American citizens, many political science professors in recent years have attempted to promote engagement and "healthier" political attitudes. The effectiveness of these efforts appears variable and generally quite modest. Following the model of Canadian citizens' assemblies, we…

Problem-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered learning model used heavily in the natural sciences. By supplying students with contextualized problems and stopping short of handing them the tools to solve the problems, instructors take on the role of facilitator rather than expert. Use of PBL in political science, and more generally the social…

When political knowledge is scarce, affective attitudes, which can consist of emotion-driven feelings regarding political figures, government, country, and foreign nations, often assist policy judgment. Based on pre- and post-surveys administered in Introduction to American Politics courses, fall 2003-fall 2005, this study examines how political…

This study examines the effect of a 10-week campaign internship course on political efficacy and trust. We compared changes in these key political attitudes between a group of 33 undergraduate students in a campaign internship course and a control group of 65 students taking government courses. A multiple regression analysis indicates that…

This article describes a political debate among congressional candidates that the authors organized in 2006. The debate was structured to maximize student involvement both in the planning stages and during the event itself. After discussing relevant literature on experiential learning, the article describes the debate format and details the issues…

The purpose of this article is to make a case for the preparation of students in government and history courses designed to train them in the complicated art of self-government. (Author/RK)