Popular culture as pedagogy in the political theory classroom: reflections from higher education

Jester, Natalie ORCID: 0000-0002-7995-3028 (2021) Popular culture as pedagogy in the political theory classroom: reflections from higher education. European Political Science, 20 (4). pp. 685-697. doi:10.1057/s41304-020-00287-6

[img]
Preview
Text (Peer-reviewed version)
9135-Jester-(2020)-Popular-culture-as-pedagogy-in-the-political-theory-classroom.pdf - Accepted Version
Available under License All Rights Reserved.

Download (288kB) | Preview

Abstract

Political theory, with its abstract reasoning and unfamiliar vocabulary, is a subject that students are often apprehensive about. Whilst popular culture has been employed extensively in the teaching of other areas of political science, such as international relations, I seek to draw attention to its comparative under-use in political theory and argue that it is a highly effective teaching tool for this subject. I use the autoethnographic method to make my case, drawing on my years-long experience in the university classroom, and take this position for three key reasons: the familiar nature of popular culture allows students to more easily acclimate to the political theory classroom, it renders abstract political theory concrete, and provides a useful arena in which to better test the logic of political theory arguments, enhancing student criticality.

Item Type: Article
Article Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: Political theory; Popular culture; Teaching
Subjects: L Education > LB Theory and practice of education
L Education > LB Theory and practice of education > LB2300 Higher Education
Divisions: Schools and Research Institutes > School of Business, Computing and Social Sciences
Research Priority Areas: Culture, Continuity, and Transformation
Depositing User: Nat Jester
Date Deposited: 16 Dec 2020 11:10
Last Modified: 21 Jun 2024 13:21
URI: https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/id/eprint/9135

University Staff: Request a correction | Repository Editors: Update this record

University Of Gloucestershire

Bookmark and Share

Find Us On Social Media:

Social Media Icons Facebook Twitter Google+ YouTube Pinterest Linkedin

Other University Web Sites

University of Gloucestershire, The Park, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL50 2RH. Telephone +44 (0)844 8010001.