Quality, not quantity

Students, as we all know, are busy people.  Here, this posting brings you a couple of the best articles in the UK press in recent days

One of the challenges of teaching Politics is trying to encourage students to get into the habit of exposing themselves to quality writing on the subject on a regular basis.

I would hope that students would be convinced of the merits of doing this by reading what I think are two of the best articles in the British press in the past few days.

The first is from The Economist and takes a quizzical look at who stands for the people who tend to populate our suburban regions.

The second is from the Guardian, by Gary Younge.  Even if you don’t study US Politics, it throws up a range of interesting questions about the state of that nation.  That said, we’ve just completed the race relations aspect of the Edexcel course and it should be required reading for my groups.

No copying and pasting and no analysis from this blogger.  I let the articles speak for themselves…

Bagehot

Younge

AS Politics: direct democracy [24 Oct 2011]
Presidential primaries: study note update [20 Oct 2011]
A real alternative? [5 Jan 2011]
How did they vote? [4 Nov 2010]
Disadvantages of direct democracy [28 Dec 2009]
Don’t mess with Texas? [10 Nov 2009]
Media Monday Motown [2 Nov 2009]
USA: who runs government? [29 Sep 2009]
Book review value [29 Sep 2009]
China unmoved on Iran sanctions [26 Sep 2009]
Less advice and consent? [25 Jul 2009]
Obama health check [19 Jul 2009]
Sotomayor and being sleepless in Seattle [18 Jul 2009]
Obama and race [18 Jul 2009]
Obama lacking leadership? [18 Jul 2009]
Obama and Africa [14 Jul 2009]
Did you know? [12 Jul 2009]
Checking out? [11 Jul 2009]
Who’s Roe in Roe v Wade? [7 Jul 2009]
Obama and Russia [6 Jul 2009]
“American Dream” or “American nightmare”? [6 Jul 2009]
Report prize winner [6 Jul 2009]
Palin’s greatest hits [5 Jul 2009]
Can America get out of its economic crisis? [3 Jul 2009]
US foreign policy milestone [30 Jun 2009]
Checks and balances at its best, or partisan obstructionism of the worst kind? [28 Jun 2009]
FPTP - June/July 2009 [25 Jun 2009]
Book for the beach [23 Jun 2009]
Geronimo! [23 Jun 2009]
Change to come in America? [19 Jun 2009]
Americana- New Programme on BBC Radio 4 [10 Jun 2009]
More “stuff do do when the students come back”! [3 Jun 2009]
American Politics revision: separation of powers [22 May 2009]
AS revision: MPs’ expenses [20 May 2009]
AS revision: UK pressure groups and democracy [17 May 2009]
Schott’s presidential almanac [8 Nov 2008]
Obama speech in full [8 Nov 2008]
‘Free’ poster [6 Nov 2008]
Independent resources [4 Nov 2008]
Are you staying up for Obama? [2 Nov 2008]
US elections programming: heads up [1 Nov 2008]
The TV debates [17 Oct 2008]
Colin Powell dancing to hip hop speculation [16 Oct 2008]
Obama in the money [13 Oct 2008]
Panorama: US elections [12 Oct 2008]
US elections: classic campaign ads [10 Oct 2008]
Nader and Obama girl [9 Oct 2008]
Down and dirty in Tennessee: the end of evolution? [7 Oct 2008]
Race for the White House: changing electoral landscape [5 Oct 2008]
The age card [24 Sep 2008]
Tweedledum or Tweedledumber [22 Sep 2008]
US elections: crisis, what crisis? [16 Sep 2008]
US politics documentary heads up [14 Sep 2008]
Joe Sixpack [13 Sep 2008]
Focus on Friday - integrating wider reading into class [7 Sep 2008]
The Democrats and race [3 Sep 2008]
Sarah Palin: hindrance or help? [1 Sep 2008]
McCain’s problem with Bush [1 Sep 2008]
It’s the economy (again), stupid [31 Aug 2008]
Comment on the Obama nomination [30 Aug 2008]
Obama’s problem [27 Aug 2008]
US elections 2008: voting behaviour and race [24 Aug 2008]
House of Lords reform: what’s the argument? [22 Aug 2008]
US elections: swift boat to swift kids? [16 Aug 2008]
US election: ad war intensifies [15 Aug 2008]
US death penalty graphically illustrated [7 Aug 2008]
Blood on the streets [20 Jun 2008]
Tony Benn on democracy [1 Mar 2008]