Jon Stewart -- entering a classroom near you

POSTED BY Kristin Linder, 31 August 2007

There has been a lot of discussion in colleges over textbooks, especially in political science. Kids are arriving to undergrad with no knowledge of how the American government works and no real interest in politics. This was a central theme of the American Political Science Association's conference this year in Chicago. What to do?

One professor has turned to Comedy Central -- Jon Stewart to be exact.

When Teten received a copy of America the Book as a Christmas present, he started thinking about whether it could be a substitute for the textbooks. On one criterion for making the switch — would students read the book? — Teten said the choice was easy. But he stressed that he also wanted to consider whether the book would provide a good introduction to the key topics an intro course should cover, and whether it would encourage critical thinking. Inside Higher Ed

So, getting students to read is step one. But what about accuracy? The panel was questioned about Stewart's accuracy, and they declared that factually he is about 90 percent on most the time. They said the other 10 percent actually serves to help the students, because the professor makes them analyze when Stewart goes astray — teaching them to read critically. Each student has to write a paper on every chapter from the book, specifically discussing inaccuracies and misrepresentations.

Another part of the class is the required watching of "The Daily Show" every night. Whether you agree with Stewart's politics is not the issue, they say; it is the larger progress of showing politics as interesting, amusing and even applicable to every person. Teten also pointed out that Stewart makes fun of politicians and policies across party lines, offering another venture into the "think for yourself" mindset.

Since he started using this approach, he said, he has noticed that the most knowledge gains are coming from the group of students who were previously earning D’s and F’s. Teten said that he considered it important both to excite some students enough about political science to become majors, but he also wanted to reach other students, to teach them how to think about what’s going on in the world and not to be intimidated by the news. Inside Higher Ed

This is introductory American government we are talking about, and simply creating interest is a huge step forward. Professors in the audience expressed issue with Stewart's vulgarity (hello, naked Supreme Court Justices), to which Teten responded:

He said that he was comfortable in part because Stewart is “equal opportunity” in his targets for mockery: “Republicans, Democrats, animals, Canadians,” Teten ticked off a list. But he also said that he tells students about his approach on the first day of class, and notes that there are many other sections in which traditional texts are used. He said the only times he has had resistance have been with some older, non-traditional students. However, he said that enrollments in his sections are up, as are his teaching evaluations. Inside Higher Ed

On top of those benefits, kids are saving money. The current intro poli-sci books run you about $80, while Stewart's is only $30 — and often found on Barnes and Noble sale racks for under $10.

The most cutting point was made by a professor with concerns over the portrayal of government:

A few in the audience — generally those with more than a few years of experience — said that they were worried about the approach. One professor said he had considered such a switch, but was bothered because so many of his students have the idea that “the government sucks” and he fears that Stewart’s book reinforces that idea. Inside Higher Ed

If students getting involved leads them to conclude government sucks, then maybe that is a good thing — they will realize the need for their input to change it.