ERIC Number: EJ815692
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007-May
Pages: 26
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1551-2169
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Experiencing New Hampshire: The Effects of an Experiential Learning Course on Civic Engagement
Elder, Laurel; Seligsohn, Andrew; Hofrenning, Daniel
Journal of Political Science Education, v3 n2 p191-216 May 2007
In January of 2004, we took 35 college students to Manchester, New Hampshire, where they were immersed in the crucial final weeks of the Democratic Presidential Primary as part of a course on the presidential election. This course required students to work on the campaign of their choice in the weeks leading up to the state's primary as well as take part in more traditional classroom academic activities. This article examines the impact of that political immersion experience on students' civic attitudes and engagements. While some hypothesized effects were not supported by the data, we do find a substantial impact on engagement and a modest effect on some measures of political efficacy. In light of the importance to a democratic society of engaging young people in the political process, we believe our research justifies greater experimentation with political immersion experiences and careful evaluation of the effects thereof. (Contains 4 tables and 7 notes.)
Descriptors: Political Science, Experiential Learning, Citizen Participation, Instructional Effectiveness, College Students, Elections, Political Campaigns, Democratic Values, Political Attitudes, Hypothesis Testing, Quasiexperimental Design, Student Surveys, Participant Satisfaction, Case Method (Teaching Technique)
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: New Hampshire
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A