Teaching and Learning in Political Science in Higher Education: International and Multi-Disciplinary Approaches

A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102). This special issue belongs to the section "Higher Education".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2022) | Viewed by 11656

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
School of Politics, Security, and International Affairs, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, USA
Interests: scholarship of teaching and learning; political science education; online teaching and learning; West European politics

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Guest Editor
1. School of Politics, Security, and International Affairs, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
2. The Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI), Bergen, Norway
Interests: human rights; comparative judicial politics; Latin American politics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
College of Sciences and Human Studies, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, Dhahran 34754, Saudi Arabia
Interests: cognitive psychology; cultural psychology; teaching and learning in higher education,; statistics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue provides an opportunity to showcase research in Political Science education from a broad range of perspectives and multi-disciplinary lenses. We invite contributions that present new insights into teaching and learning in Political Science at a variety of higher education institutions, and in different countries. We also invite contributions regarding different research approaches and multi-disciplinary methodologies. By embracing a broad and eclectic approach to teaching and learning in Political Science, we aim to address the diversity of learning experiences in the field, which are provided by the various contexts in which students study Political Science. Our ultimate goal is to facilitate information sharing of practices across contexts and disciplines to enhance learning and teaching. Thus, we encourage the examination of a variety of research approaches to illustrate the assortment of tools available to educational researchers whose work focuses on understanding different aspects of the instruction and curriculum of Political Science. Practical applications demonstrating strategies of assessment of the effectiveness of developed applications are welcome. Critical analyses of existing applications underlying their strengths and weaknesses are also welcome. This broad approach sets this Special Issue apart from other, more focused, Special Issues by allowing broader comparisons across disciplines and methodologies while linking to existing literature on Political Science education.

Dr. Kerstin Hamann
Dr. Bruce M. Wilson
Dr. Maura M.E. Pilotti
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • political science education
  • political science teaching and learning
  • assessment
  • cross-cultural diversity

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 3252 KiB  
Article
Learning through Collaborative Data Projects: Engaging Students and Building Rapport
by Matthew T. Pietryka and Rebecca A. Glazier
Educ. Sci. 2022, 12(12), 897; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12120897 - 7 Dec 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 4231
Abstract
Many instructors strive to make students more active participants in their own learning. Yet recommended methods for this purpose, such as project-based learning or providing personalized feedback, are impractical in larger classes or virtual classrooms. To overcome these barriers, we designed a series [...] Read more.
Many instructors strive to make students more active participants in their own learning. Yet recommended methods for this purpose, such as project-based learning or providing personalized feedback, are impractical in larger classes or virtual classrooms. To overcome these barriers, we designed a series of collaborative data projects to engage students even in large, online classes. Our goal is to describe and evaluate the efficacy of these projects. The projects offer two major benefits. First, the collective nature of the projects helps students to see how their individual efforts contribute to a larger outcome. Second, the instructor can aggregate the student input and provide personalized feedback using free software, thus, reducing the grading and contact burden while simultaneously building rapport. We examine survey data from about 120 students from four classes during Spring and Fall 2021. The students report that they tend to learn more and find these collaborative assignments more enjoyable compared to a typical college assignment. They also report that receiving individualized feedback increases their interest in the material and makes them feel like the instructor is invested in their learning. We include assignment examples and programming recommendations to help instructors adapt this collaborative engagement method for their own courses. Full article
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12 pages, 246 KiB  
Article
A Corruption Course through a Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: The Need for an Assessment That Fits
by Khadija El Alaoui and Maura A. E. Pilotti
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(8), 412; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11080412 - 9 Aug 2021
Viewed by 1805
Abstract
The present study examines the challenges and the rewards of assessing learning in a seminar on corruption which is taught in a country (Iraq) where political corruption is seen as the main source of structural instability and sectarian tensions. It specifically focuses on [...] Read more.
The present study examines the challenges and the rewards of assessing learning in a seminar on corruption which is taught in a country (Iraq) where political corruption is seen as the main source of structural instability and sectarian tensions. It specifically focuses on the role of culturally relevant pedagogy in defining the most suitable summative assessment. To this end, essay test questions were developed concerning the relevance of political corruption, the impact of investigative journalism, the role of humor in investigative journalism, and the appropriate remedies (besides journalism) to political corruption. In students’ responses, investigative journalism (with or without humor) was consistently reported to be a dangerous undertaking, but disagreement emerged on its effectiveness as one of the possible remedies for corruption. Dishonesty was seen as the universal cancer of political systems and thus difficult to extirpate, albeit some systems (e.g., Al-Muhasasa) were seen as tolerating it more than others. In our study, the qualitative examination of students’ responses served three objectives: (a) it offered evidence about the extent to which culturally relevant pedagogy was realized in the course; (b) it served to put forth a proposal on how students’ test responses can inform teaching and assessment in future offerings of the course; and more broadly, (c) it synopsized the views of a sample of college students who represent the population upon whom the country heavily relies for its economic and political recovery. Full article
12 pages, 269 KiB  
Article
What Lies Beneath: The Role of Self-Efficacy, Causal Attribution Habits, and Gender in Accounting for the Success of College Students
by Kerstin Hamann, Maura A. E. Pilotti and Bruce M. Wilson
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(7), 333; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11070333 - 5 Jul 2021
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4409
Abstract
Existing research has identified gender as a driving variable of student success in higher education: women attend college at a higher rate and are also more successful than their male peers. We build on the extant literature by asking whether specific cognitive variables [...] Read more.
Existing research has identified gender as a driving variable of student success in higher education: women attend college at a higher rate and are also more successful than their male peers. We build on the extant literature by asking whether specific cognitive variables (i.e., self-efficacy and causal attribution habits) distinguish male and female students with differing academic performance levels. Using a case study, we collected data from students enrolled in a general education course (sample size N = 400) at a large public university in the United States. Our findings indicate that while students’ course grades and cumulative college grades did not vary by gender, female and male students reported different self-efficacy and causal attribution habits for good grades and poor grades. To illustrate, self-efficacy for female students is broad and stretches across all their courses; in contrast, for male students, it is more limited to specific courses. These gender differences in cognition, particularly in accounting for undesirable events, may assist faculty members and advisors in understanding how students respond to difficulties and challenges. Full article
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