Taking Research Methods Out of Isolation: Teachers’ Experiences with Curriculum-Wide Integration of Research Methods in Substantive Courses

Abstract

Statistics courses stand rather isolated in most political science curricula. Students do not see the value of statistics to political science, and tend to avoid or at least postpone taking statistics courses. Given the importance of statistics to the field, we educators are left with a baring question. To make students see value in research methods, we need to overcome this isolation of research methods courses in the curriculum, but how can we introduce statistics coherently across the curriculum without intruding lecturers’ ‘academic freedom’? The literature on teaching research methods has shown that using real world contexts and relying on students’ spheres of interest are a necessity to engage students. With this in mind, scholars are looking to integrate research methods in single substantive courses. Curriculum-based strategies, however, are lacking. This paper presents such a curriculum-based approach. Moreover, after narrating the project and the method used to integrate statistics coherently, i.e. the Learning Trajectory of Quantitative Methods, the paper presents lecturers experiences with integrating quantitative methods in their substantive courses. Based on interviews with the involved professors we reveal strengths and weaknesses of this curriculum-based approach. This paper does not only contribute to the literature on teaching research methods, but it also provides educators with a tool to integrate research methods in the curriculum. Although quantitative methods are focused upon in this project, the underlying principles can easily be transferred to other research methods and other educational settings.