TLC at APSA: Teaching Political Science with Normative Case Studies

Session Submission Type: TLC Workshop

Session Description

The 2019 APSA theme invites scholars to explore the rise of populism and privilege around the globe. Equally important is the question of how political scientists can—in their role as teachers—teach their students about these political currents. This, we think, is not an easy task insofar as engaging in inquiry about populism at this moment is to do so in highly-charged, partisan times. This workshop proposal offers attendees at the 2019 APSA TLC an opportunity to explore how the normative case study (Levinson and Fay, 2016, 2018; Thacher, 2006) can be a useful method for teaching students about populism and privilege, particularly the messy ethical dilemmas that arise while wrestling with the rhetoric of such movements and the political norm-shifts they have incurred.

The Normative Case Study

Normative case studies are “richly described, realistic accounts of complex ethical dilemmas that arise within practice or policy contexts, in which protagonists must decide among courses of action, none of which is self-evidently the right one to take” (Levinson and Fay, 2016). They concern realistic ethical dilemmas; in other words, problems that are not of the “You find a wallet on the street; what should you do with it?” variety. Rather, they describe dilemmas without sacrificing complexity and with intricate attention to context. People’s identities matter. The composition and structure of institutions matter. Social, cultural, historical, and political contexts matter. The “answers” that emerge from considering a normative case study may be as nuanced as the cases themselves. This is all to be expected; normative case studies are tools that aim to match the intensity and complexity of the decisions that people actually make.

Normative case studies reflect a different approach to ethical theorizing, thinking, and acting. It is commonplace within the discipline of political theory to approach ethical dilemmas by first identifying a fundamental moral theory and then applying the principles of that theory to the specific dilemma. We reject that approach to ethical inquiry, favoring instead what Levinson and Fay (2016) call phronetic inquiry: an approach that synthesizes theory and practice by combining philosophical insight, social scientific analysis, and practical expertise. Normative case studies are meant to facilitate such an approach; they immerse readers in rich detail and encourage people to think between and across disciplinary boundaries. This approach not only leads to answers about specific problems, but also develops peoples’ ability to ask the right sort of questions regarding complex ethical dilemmas. In short, normative case studies are “problem focused rather than principle focused” (Levinson and Fay, 2018).

Furthermore, deliberating about ethical dilemmas through normative case studies can promote the civic aims of political science education. Reasoning together about politically and ethically charged issues—like the attitudes, policies, and principles of populist movements—can cause tension to build quickly, to the point that collaboration and learning—especially across lines of difference—seems counterproductive. In college classrooms, especially those with ideological diversity, educators need tools to help student learn how to engage across political differences in ways that are academically-focused, but that will likely also really matter outside the classroom, too. Normative case studies can thus be tools that allow students to practice the deliberative skills they will need to use if and when they are faced with ethical dilemmas of democratic life in a moment of resurgent populism and privilege.

The Workshop

We propose to lead a highly-interactive workshop experience that provides attendees an opportunity to engage in a discussion about a normative case study that narrates the challenges of selecting appropriate controversial issues for a high school civics course. While we think demonstrating a normative case study discussion will be useful for attendees, we also think that this particular case will be of interest insofar as thinking about what issues are and are not controversial also highlights the profound norm-shifts that coincide with the rise of populist movements.

The structure of our workshop will be as follows:
- Introduction to normative case studies (15 minutes)
- Reader’s Theater presenting the case “Politics, Partisanship, and Pedagogy” (15 minutes)
- Small group discussions, guided by a protocol (40 minutes)
- Debrief and Q&A (20 minutes)

We expect that this workshop would be useful for all attendees of the 2019 TLC: from college educators to high school teachers to graduate students.

Work Cited
Levinson, M., & Fay, J. (2016). Dilemmas of Educational Ethics: Cases and Comments. Cambridge: Harvard Education Press.
Levinson, M., & Fay, J. (forthcoming 2018). Democratic Discord in Schools: Cases and Comments in Educational Ethics. Cambridge: Harvard Education Press.
Thacher, D. (2006). “The normative case study.” American Journal of Sociology 111, no. 6. Pp. 1631–1676.

Sub Unit

• TLC at APSA

Chair

• Meira Levinson Harvard University

Presenter

• Jacob Zadorozny Fay Harvard University