Introduction to Teaching US Politics in the Age of Trump: International Perspectives

Item Type Journal paper
Abstract Introduction to PS Spotlight: "Teaching US Politics in the Age of Trump: International Perspectives" First paragraph: In recent semesters, beginning courses on US politics with a survey on questions that students want to address has yielded the same results. Before the 2016 election, students—in these cases, mostly of Swiss and German origins—were equally concerned about the causes and effects of party polarization, the “costs” of American democracy, and the influence of the media and lobbies. Although these questions are still at the center of many discussions, a resounding “why?” pervades the classroom whenever the Trump administration is mentioned. They ask, “Why could someone who has never held any public office and lacks a strong tie to any political party still be elected to the nation’s highest office while speaking and acting so divisively, and how has that impacted the American democracy?” At the end of the semester, students report that although they better understand how the US system works and why it now may favor polarizing candidates, they are not fully convinced that it can be effectively shielded from democratic erosion. Referencing Federalist Paper No. 51, students recognize that the system was designed to withstand the grasp of not particularly angelic executives; however, intention and reality may diverge.
Authors Brühwiler, Claudia Franziska & Okayama, Hiroshi
Journal or Publication Title PS: Political Science & Politics
Language English
Subjects political science
HSG Classification contribution to scientific community
Refereed Yes
Date April 2020
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Volume 53
Number 2
Page Range 355
ISSN 1049-0965
Publisher DOI https://doi.org/10.1017/S1049096519002014
Official URL https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ps-politic...
Depositing User PD Dr. Claudia Franziska Brühwiler
Date Deposited 09 Apr 2020 12:33
Last Modified 20 Jul 2022 17:42
URI: https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/publications/260071

Download

[img] Text
PS Spotlight publ..pdf - Published Version
Restricted to Repository staff only

Download (55kB)

Citation

Brühwiler, Claudia Franziska & Okayama, Hiroshi (2020) Introduction to Teaching US Politics in the Age of Trump: International Perspectives. PS: Political Science & Politics, 53 (2). 355. ISSN 1049-0965

Statistics

https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/id/eprint/260071
Edit item Edit item
Feedback?