Pedagogical Value of Polling Place Observation By Students
Research Question
What are the pedagogical and civic effects of involving students in systematic polling-place observation on Election Day?
Main Finding
Students who participated in polling-place observation reported meaningful gains in knowledge, interest, and engagement. The project increased confidence in conducting research and strengthened civic efficacy.
Research Design
Multi-campus experiential-learning project combined with post-election assessment of student learning outcomes.
Data Employed
Observations from more than 500 students across 23 colleges and universities during the 2016 election, plus post-election student survey responses about learning and engagement.
Substantive Importance
The study demonstrates a scalable, nonpartisan model for integrating real-world election observation into political science training. It shows how field-based learning can simultaneously improve instruction and contribute useful evidence on election administration.
Research Areas
Election Administration, Field Research, Pedagogy, Civic Engagement, Research Methods
Citation
@article{polling,
author = {Mann, Christopher B. and Alberda, Gayle A. and Birkhead, Nathaniel A. and Ouyang, Yu and Singer, Chloe and III, Charles Stewart and Herron, Michael C. and Beaulieu, Emily and Boehmke, Frederick and Boston, Joshua and Cantu, Francisco and Cobb, Rachael and Darmofal, David and Ellington, Thomas C. and Finocchiaro, Charles J. and Gilbert, Michael and Haynes, Victor and Janssen, Brian and Kimball, David and Kromkowski, Charles and Llaudet, Elena and Miles, Matthew R. and Miller, David and Nielson, Lindsay and Panagopoulos, Costas and Reeves, Andrew and Seo, Min Hee and Simmons, Haley and Smidt, Corwin and Stein, Robert and VanSickle-Ward, Rachel and Wood, Abby K. and Wronski, Julie},
title = {Pedagogical Value of Polling Place Observation By Students},
journal = {PS: Political Science \& Politics},
volume = {51},
number = {4},
pages = {831--837},
year = {2018},
}