Pedagogical Recommendations for Applied Statistics Courses

Abstract

The practice of policymaking and governance increasingly relies on analytics, which means both undergraduate and graduate political science methods courses are well-positioned to provide students with career-ready and highly marketable skills. The COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to many other significant policy challenges, highlight the need for leaders who can analyze, interpret and communicate quantitative information. This chapter first reflects on my journey as a quantitative methods instructor and then offers suggestions for how instructors in this field can ensure our courses have long-term value for our students. Specifically, the chapter suggests that political science statistics courses should employ real-world applications, incorporate both secondary technical skills and soft skills into the course content and provide more direct instruction in effective scientific writing.