A Reply to the Evaluation of the AP Program in Political Science (original) (raw)
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A Century of Continuity and (Little) Change in the Undergraduate Political Science Curriculum
American Political Science Review, 2006
A lthough in recent years there has emerged a renewed interest in teaching and learning issues in the APSA, relatively little attention has been paid to the structure of the undergraduate political science curriculum. In this article we conduct a broad survey of articles that appeared in the APSR from 1906 to 1990 and find that (1) in the past the association paid much attention to the undergraduate political science curriculum; (2) over time attention shifted from a conception of the major as promoting substantive knowledge to a conception that emphasized skills; and (3) current concerns regarding skills, sequencing, and capstone experiences were all discussed several decades before the appearance of the "Wahlke Report" in 1991. We offer an explanation for the ebb and flow of the attention curricular issues received historically in the APSA, and suggest what the future may hold for current efforts to reexamine the structure of the undergraduate political science curriculum.
Best practices in the American undergraduate political science curriculum
Handbook on Teaching and Learning in Political Science and International Relations
This chapter describes various models for organizing the undergraduate political science major. 1 Though debate and discussion of the proper goals and structure of the political science curriculum go back to the founding of the discipline (Ishiyama, Breuning and Lopez 2006), the present review focuses on activities in the USA since the 1980s to reform the major. Curriculum reform efforts in political science have taken place in the midst of reform waves in higher education. The circumstances surrounding the last reform effort sponsored by the American Political Science Association (APSA), the 1991 'Wahlke Report' on liberal education and the political science major (Association of American Colleges 1990; Wahlke 1991), are illustrative. After several years of studies criticizing academic majors as loosely organized collections of distribution requirements and faddish electives (Association of American Colleges 1985; Zemsky 1989), the Association of American Colleges (AAC) called on disciplinary associations to formulate recommendations to 'strengthen study-in-depth' (Association of American Colleges 1990). In response, APSA appointed a task force with John Wahlke from the University of Arizona as chair. Sharing AAC's view that depth of understanding cannot be reached 'merely by cumulative exposure to more and more subject matter', the authors of the political science report set out to design a model that featured sequential learning, 'building on blocks of knowledge that lead to more sophisticated understanding. .. leaps of imagination. .. and efforts at synthesis' (Association of American Colleges 1990, p. 131). Following a similar process, three distinct curricular frameworks in the discipline have developed since the Wahlke Report. The drive for greater student civic and political engagement began with the service-learning movement of the late 1980s and 1990s (Battistoni and Hudson 1997). Outcomes-based curricula grew as part of the assessment movement, which evolved from external demands for accountability (National Commission on Excellence in Education 1983; National Governors Association 1986) and increased interest in student learning within the academy (Study Group on Conditions of Excellence in Education 1984; McClellan 2009). More recently, the successor to AAC, the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), spearheaded the use of 'high-impact practices' (HIPs) as a means to broaden and deepen student attainment of 'essential learning outcomes' (Kuh 2008). Despite the array of curricular models with high potential for increasing student learning, the political science curriculum at most institutions remains organized by distribution requirements. After describing the four alternatives to the distribution model and their status in the discipline, the final section of this chapter will address the question of why the political science curriculum appears impervious to change.
Political History and/as the Future for Undergraduate American Politics Curriculum
This paper outlines our response to fundamental challenges confronting undergraduate political science education. While enrollments in the political science major have declined at many institutions, including our own, we believe a structured APD approach offers an opportunity to capitalize on the wave of youth activism as well as the turbulent moment in contemporary politics by framing our major as the place where students can go to learn more about how we reached this particular political moment, think about what it takes and means to make change in a thoughtful, meaningful way, and equip themselves with the tools to interpret both the rhetorical and institutional contexts in which they hope to make this change while also overcoming some of the hurdles posed by the distribution model that remains the prevalent structure of many political science undergraduate programs.
Journal of Political Science Education, 2020
Prepublication version of forthcoming piece. Despite the essential position of introductory courses within most political science department’s curriculum, comprehensive comparisons of introductory requirements for majors have been somewhat rare. In this manuscript, I report on the state of introductory requirements through analyses of data from 381 national liberal arts colleges and universities (164 colleges and 217 universities, respectively) that offer a major or its equivalent in political science. My analyses reveal that a great deal of curricula diversity exists across departments: while nearly 30% of departments require at least 3 distinct introductory subfield courses, another near-30% do not require any specific introductory courses. Despite this diversity, an introductory course in American politics represents the de facto standard introductory course within the discipline. In comparison, a general, cross-subfield introductory course in political science is required in a minority of the departments sampled. My analyses reveal that structural and curriculum-based variables, including the total number of courses required, whether or not a department grants Ph.D.’s, and faculty size, are correlated with a general introductory requirement.
Syllabus and student evaluations of POL 120 -- Introduction to the American Political System
International Relations and Global Politics Program, American University of Rome, 2018
This course provides students with an understanding of the operation of the American political system. The primary focus will be on the structure and operations of federal governmental institutions (congress, the presidency and executive branch, and the judiciary) and their respective roles in formulating, implementing and adjudicating public policy. The course also examines the context of American politics, including the historical setting, the constitution, American political theory, the place of political parties, and public opinion and participation.