LAUSR

In order to develop and improve a course concept in political science, the Design-Based Research approach is employed. The approach involves three phases that form an iterative evolving cycle of course development. In the first analysis/orientation phase, we identify three major student challenges: an inadequate methodological competence, a prevalent and mostly unfounded methodological dogmatism, and a frequently insufficient ability to work in a team. With the second design development phase, we present the course concept to face these challenges and to evaluate the impact of our measures. We opted for a student research project, which is widely regarded as a suitable tool to enhance the students’ methodological competencies. We also included professional coaching to build up team capacities. The third evaluation phase is based on multiple methods and sources. Other than standard course evaluations in higher education, it is not the participants’ overall satisfaction that is of interest, but the impact of our measures to meet the defined challenges. In the remainder of the article, the findings of the course evaluation are presented and discussed. The article concludes with recommendations for similar student projects and their evaluation.