Engaging Students in American Politics: Effort and Accomplishment

Abstract How much should student effort matter in their course grades? How much does student effort actually matter? What is the link between student effort and student performance, especially when the effort is not specifically focused on a specific performance metric? This paper examines these questions normatively as well as by analyzing student data generated from an introductory course in US politics. We argue as follows. First, student effort should comprise a substantial share of student grades: otherwise, the grade is likely to reward student resources (“human capital”), which are in large part morally arbitrary. Second, in a course in which effort was appropriately incentivized, weighted, and measured, effort was the principal determinant of final grades through its direct and indirect effects. Finally, although there was intriguing evidence that certain kinds of effort mattered more than other kinds in affecting student performance, we were not able to draw firm conclusions on this point.