Engaging students as co-producers: A critical reflection on the policy commission model

Abstract

The teaching of political science has a tendency towards traditional classroom-based learning environments. This article describes the development of an innovative model of student learning that takes place outside the bounded nature of the established curriculum through the creation of a Policy Commission. The Policy Commission established an innovative ‘community of action’ that challenged traditional perceptions of the lone student as a producer of knowledge. This article describes the work of the Policy Commission, which engaged students in the act of ‘doing Politics’ and discusses the impact that it had on student learning. The article examines the potential of the Policy Commission model to offer a new form of learning.