| 1. |
- Ekström, Linda, et al.
(author)
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'How Much Politics Is There'? Exploring Students' Experiences of Values and Impartiality from an Epistemic Perspective
- 2021
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 17:SUP1, s. 616-633
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In this article, we report findings of students’ conceptions of values and impartiality in political science teaching in relation to research on epistemic beliefs. This field of research concerns students’ beliefs about the nature of knowledge in different disciplines; beliefs that are central to learning disciplinary knowledge. Interviews were conducted with students after one semester of political science education, focusing on their experiences of values in teaching. Results show that students give contradicting answers regarding values and impartiality in political science teaching. They oscillate between different epistemic beliefs and they have an unclear understanding of the nature of knowledge in the discipline. Questions on the nature and limits of knowledge, therefore, need to be prioritized in political science education. If students are to become literate within their field, they need to become aware of the multiple epistemological underpinnings inherent in the discipline, and the ways these influence the discipline.
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| 2. |
- Ekström, Linda, et al.
(author)
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“What´s positive about positive rights?" : Students’ Everyday Understandings and the Challenges of Teaching Political Science
- 2018
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 14:1, s. 1-16
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A review of research into teaching and learning in political science education concludes that this literature emphasizes student outcomes and "show and tell" descriptions of pedagogical interventions (Craig 2014). The present study instead aims to open the "black box" of conceptual learning in political science, illustrating the ambiguous role that everyday understandings of core concepts may play in the learning process. Starting from the conceptual change literature, we present findings on how everyday understandings influence learning regarding the concepts of "positive rights" and "anarchy," resulting in various learning difficulties. The results suggest that teaching needs to explore and explain differences in meaning between scientific and everyday understandings.
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| 3. |
- Esaiasson, Peter, 1957, et al.
(author)
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Does Studying Political Science Affect Civic Attitudes? A Panel Comparison of Students of Politics, Law, and Mass Communication.
- 2014
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 10:4, s. 375-385
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The article evaluates the civic implications of studying political science. Previous research has argued that learning rational choice models of political behavior could be detrimental to civic outcomes. However, results from our two panel surveys of students at Swedish universities show the opposite: studying political science has positive effects on trust, and increases the importance that students ascribe to voting. The first panel survey shows that political science students are more affected by their education than are students of law and mass communication. The second panel survey shows that the views of political science students at two different educational institutions changed in a similar way. The results also suggest that political science students became more skeptical towards a participatory democratic ideal and more appreciative of representative democracy.
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| 4. |
- Gelot, Ludwig
(author)
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Adapting a governmental training platform to simulate peace operations in the classroom
- 2021
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Taylor & Francis Group. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 17:2, s. 269-284
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Scholars have developed original pedagogical approaches to impart the knowledge and skills required for professional life in the area of peace and development. Experience-based learning, simulations, games, and role-plays have been used with positive results. Yet most efforts tend to overly simplify and narrow down the learning experience in contrast to the complexity of contemporary post-conflict societies. At the same time, governments and international organizations have developed complex multidimensional and multifunctional training platforms to prepare individuals and organizations to work more effectively in contemporary peace operations. Drawing on elements of the Viking training platform developed by the Swedish government to organize the world’s largest peace operations exercises, this article outlines an original type of classroom simulation designed to address the educational and training needs of future peacekeepers and peacebuilders. Contrary to short simulations and rule-bound games that tend to focus on strategic decision making, it describes a simulation played at the operational and tactical levels and sufficiently long and complex to mimic reality and enable learning across the peace operations spectrum of staff categories and activities.
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| 5. |
- Jansson, Maria, 1968-, et al.
(author)
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Common-Sense Notions of “Nation" : A Challenge for Teaching
- 2013
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Routledge. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 9:1, s. 34-51
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This article examines how students' common-sense conceptualizations of “nation,” specifically the Swedish nation, operate in teaching situations in which a critical constructivist theory of “nation” is part of the curriculum. Taking its point of departure from discussions of conceptual change, this article examines how students negotiate common-sense notions and how these notions affect students' learning processes. We examine group discussions from two different undergraduate courses at a Swedish university. The article discusses obstacles and opportunities for students to understand the concept of “nation” from a constructivist perspective and to challenge the concept of “nation” as a given and natural entity. We find several discursive repertoires in the material. Three of these repertoires are scrutinized to discover how common-sense notions work. The repertories are multifaceted and can function in ways that facilitate as well as block denaturalization. The results show that common-sense understandings remain with the students even if they learn to account for constructivist perspectives. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that students' understandings of scholarly discussions of “nation” are complex and that resisting the content of a specific theory may, in some cases, be productive in terms of learning.
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| 6. |
- Jansson, Maria, 1968-, et al.
(author)
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Teaching Political Science through Memory Work
- 2009
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - London : Routledge. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 5:3, s. 179-197
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In this article, we present the results of a research project where we have tried to elaborate more socially inclusive ways of teaching and learning political science by making use of a specific feminist method of analyzing social relations--memory work. As a method, memory work involves writing and interpreting stories of personal experience, written in relation to a specific theme. The theme we worked with was gender and nation. The article compares memory work to more conventional educational approaches to this specific theme.By focusing on experience and everyday life, we claim that memory work can challenge conventional and gendered understandings of how academic knowledge is produced and what is deemed to be part of the political sphere. We discuss how memory work can open up different forms of knowledge and new ways of learning. At the same time, we put forth the problems encountered and the resistance among the students we worked with. By analyzing the reactions and processes that were initiated by the memory work, we discuss both how gender and nationalism are reproduced and incorporated into understandings of what counts as proper political science and point out under what circumstances these conventional notions can be challenged. (Contains 7 notes.)
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| 7. |
- Karlsson, Rasmus, 1978-
(author)
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Gallery Walk Seminar : Visualizing the Future of Political Ideologies
- 2020
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Routledge. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 16:1, s. 91-100
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This article shows how a gallery walk exercise can be used to encourage broad participation and higher-level thinking among undergraduate students of political science. Asked to visualize the future of different political ideologies, the students work together in groups to create posters that they then present for each other during a vernissage-like event that includes a Q&A session. This seminar format enables an iterative, adaptive, and reflective approach to learning that stimulates higher-level skills such as synthesis and evaluation. As such, the gallery walk exercise can be seen as a useful complement to more traditional didactic learning activities aimed at the lower levels of Bloom’s taxonomy (e.g., knowledge and comprehension). Based on written course evaluations, the students seem to appreciate not only the novelty of the gallery walk seminar format but also how it prompted them to see the different ideologies in a new light and that it significantly deepened their understanding of the subject matter.
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| 8. |
- Lundberg, Erik, Associate Professor, PhD, 1980-
(author)
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Can Participation in Mock Elections Boost Civic Competence among Students?
- 2024
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 20:2, s. 274-291
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Mock elections are an increasingly popular form of active learning, adopted in many European countries and the United States. However, we have limited knowledge regarding the extent to which they enhance students’ civic competence. This article analyzes data from over 9,000 students aged 13-19 who participated in a 2022 mock election in Sweden. The goal is to determine the extent to which mock elections boost civic competence, with an emphasis on potential variations related to gender, ethnic background, and edu-cational stage. Results indicate that such participation positively influences students’ self-reported political knowledge and, to a lesser extent, their political interest, engagement, and efficacy. Yet, the impact varies among student demographics. For instance, foreign- born students reported greater effects than their Swedish-born coun-terparts. Female students displayed heightened political knowledge and interest compared to males, while male students demonstrated higher political engagement. Interestingly, mock elections seemed to enhance political knowledge more in primary school students than in secondary school ones. Conversely, they had a more pronounced impact on the political interests and engagement of secondary school students. The study concludes with suggestions for future research to employ more rigorous methods to assess the influence of mock elections on civic competencies.
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| 9. |
- Lödén, Hans, 1951-, et al.
(author)
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Teaching Citizenship : What if the EU is Part of the Solution and Not the Problem?
- 2014
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; 10:4
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We propose that the European Union (EU) should be used in citizenship education as a possible vehicle for citizens’ influence on issues outside the reach of the nation state. Citizenship education thus ought to include the EU as an arena for political action and relevant ‘EU knowledge’ ought to be part of the curriculum. Concepts from the German politische Bildung tradition are used to discuss what should be the content of an education aiming at educating young people to (become) democratic citizens and the level of competence required in order to function as a democratic citizen. The ‘reflecting spectator’ is given special attention. Environmental issues are chosen, for three reasons, to show how EU education can be part of citizenship education: the trans-border character of environmental problems, the multi-level responsibilities connected to them and the fact that virtually all European environmental policy is made in, or in close association with, the EU.
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| 10. |
- Martinsson, Joel, 1992-, et al.
(author)
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From Laughter to Learning : Teaching Methods through Engaging Narrative Workshops
- 2024
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In: Journal of Political Science Education. - : Taylor & Francis Group. - 1551-2169 .- 1551-2177. ; , s. 1-13
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Can we increase students’ grasp and integration of research methods in political science, and do so in a fun way? We believe the answer is yes. In this article, we introduce the workshop-based narrative framework “The Tale of Folke Folkesson,” where students role-play as the methods expert group Linnaeus Opinion Laboratory (LOL). Through an interactive engagement with the story, students are exposed to the combined utility of various qualitative and quantitative techniques such as content analysis, survey research, experiments, and interviews. This methodological exercise enables students to recognize not only the individual strengths and weaknesses of each method, but also how one method can offset the limitations and/or amplify the benefits of another. Importantly for student learning, it does so in a fun and engaging way. Beyond introducing the narrative framework, we describe how educators can adapt the “Tale of Folke Folkesson” to meet their specific educational needs.
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