Politics is everywhere. Although a seemingly evident concept, perhaps the greatest challenge facing an instructor of introductory courses in American Government is to aid students in fully embracing the relevance of this concept. To help students recognize that in some sense what they learn about “government” and “politics” is more valuable than ingesting knowledge to simply meet the requirements of the course. Instead, that the principles underlying the formation and maintenance of government for instance, civic engagement, liberty and equality, are those which apply to most, if not all, of society’s constructs. That is, those things which we investigate, debate and analyze in Political Science are those concepts upon which our understanding of society and its institutions are based.

My charge in teaching is rooted in this desire to help students find applicable that which they might initially perceive as irrelevant to their individual lives. In some sense, to help students discover the relevance of democracy and government and the privileges and responsibilities that the aforementioned entail. As a means to this end, I try to foster in students a desire to become knowledgeable about the world in which they live as a means of becoming civically and ultimately politically engaged. To achieve this I begin each class session with a discussion of current events, making sure that they work to intertwine these singular instances with the larger concepts of government, democracy, pluralism, etc. In addition, I encourage students to examine their everyday experiences, be they in the classroom, or in the university community at large, as a means of expanding the concepts they learn in Political Science to a broader view of the world.

To encourage students to be constant observers, evaluators and above all learners, I too must embrace these concepts as valuable. To this end, I consider it part of my obligation to students to be constantly informed about events both inside and outside of the discipline. As part of my professional development as an instructor, I must strive to remain abreast of developments within the discipline as well as to be willing to find creative ways in which to engage students. I envision my role as an instructor of American Government as something more than a provider of rudimentary facts and anecdotes, seeking instead to help students refine and broaden their perceptions of government and the world at large.

I believe that as instructors of introductory courses in American Government, and for that matter introductory courses in any disciple, it is our obligation to help students develop critical and analytical thinking skills. In addition, to help students learn to place individual course materials into the broader context of a well rounded education. In short, I believe it imperative that we as instructors seek to foster in students a desire to remain active learners well beyond their years in the university community. To find valuable the desire to be informed, industrious and above all, civic-minded individuals. This is what I view as my charge in teaching undergraduate students at a higher-education institution.

Last edited 08 September 2003.