Teaching Better, Teaching Together: A Coordinated Student Exit Poll Across the States

Jennifer Kelkres Emery, Alison Howard, Jocelyn Evans

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    Student exit polling has demonstrated value in the classroom (Berry and Robinson Citation2012; Evans and Lagergren Citation2007; Lelieveldt and Rossen Citation2009), but faculty typically operate these polls in isolation. When faculty collaborate, however, students gain additional benefits from the experience. Collaboration provides a geographically diverse “student community” that allows students to engage in experiential learning beyond the confines of their immediate classrooms. The authors have created assignments and an instructor's manual on running student exit polls in undergraduate courses. Three institutions used these assignments during the Fall 2012 semester. By using structured assignments, these instructors created an opportunity to participate collaboratively with others in survey design and data analysis. Student assessment data showed that students explored their own political communities and honed skills across learning domains. Most importantly, students applied relevant political science concepts to the electoral process, exercised critical thinking, practiced oral and written communication, and grappled with project management. This type of collaboration provides political perspective and community engagement within political science for both faculty and students.
    Original languageAmerican English
    Pages (from-to)471-486
    JournalJournal of Political Science Education
    Volume10
    Issue number4
    DOIs
    StatePublished - Nov 2014

    Keywords

    • civic engagement
    • collaboration
    • exit polling

    Disciplines

    • American Politics
    • Higher Education

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