Effectively teaching research methods as a series of simulation exercises

Abstract

While simulations have become important pedagogical tools in many undergraduate political science courses, research methods courses seem to be an exception. This chapter explores an approach to teaching research methods that structures the course around a series of miniature simulations. These simulation exercises occur once every two weeks throughout the semester. Students are randomly grouped with two or three other students, given a fictional role (e.g., consulting firm) and scenario, and must use the entire 75-minute session to accomplish a specific research-related task or solve a research-related challenge. Each group simultaneously co-authors a report on its findings within a single Google Docs file. After briefly justifying this approach, the chapter focuses on the mechanics of these simulation sessions and reports on student learning outcomes in the Fall 2019 and Spring 2020 sections of my course, “Research & Writing in Political Science.”