Measuring the practice of engagement in public administration

Abstract

Following recent calls for greater synergies between public administration's (PA)’s academic and practitioner communities, this paper examines the prevalence and use of engaged teaching and faculty practices in Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA)-affiliated schools. Results are reported from a survey of PA academic program leaders that includes specific practices – such as the use of service-learning pedagogies, teaching-cases, and faculty–practitioner exchange programs – suggested in the literature. While anecdotal evidence suggests that these practices promote connectedness between PA’s scholarly and practitioner communities, little is known empirically about how widely they are employed or how their use differs across faculty cohorts and institutional settings. This study attempts to address that gap, providing both empirical context and a baseline against which future studies can be compared.

Public Administration Education in the CEE Countries: How has it Developed during the Recent Decades ?

“…Haupt et al 2017). A specifi c strand can be represented by measuring the practice of engagement in PA -to what extent practitioners are involved in PA education -how widely they are employed or how their use diff ers across faculty cohorts and institutional settings (Neely et al 2018).…”

Got HIPs? Making student engagement enhancement a core part of program development with high impact practices

“…Public administration is an applied field that benefits from opportunities of engagement in regards to engaged teaching, student engagement and faculty-to-student-to-community engagement or partnerships. Neely et al (2018) present findings that show that most faculty at NASPAA-affiliated schools utilize some form of engagement and seek to situate learning squarely within the field of practice. Other forms of engagement such as service-learning and community-based research are being utilized but at modest rates.…”

“…Another important element is the use of pracademics—public administration scholars who are practitioners. This allows for curricula development toward issues of concern to practitioner audiences and community partners that is grounded in theory (Neely et al, 2018).…”

When public administration education switches online: Student perceptions during COVID-19

“…Since working in teams or work units is often a key component of policy work (Infeld and Adams, 2013), public administration programmes usually emphasize group exercises and team projects as a way of cultivating collegial and respectful work styles and behaviour while giving students the opportunity to benefit from each other's experiences and knowledge (Crosby and Bryson, 2007;Schafer, 2016). Other salient features of public administration programmes, such as capstone projects, internships (Gerlach and Reinagel, 2016) and clientbased projects (Meltzer, 2013), help provide students with networking and professional development opportunities (Neely et al, 2018). Social activities also play an important role in Manuscript for Teaching Public Administration these programmes, as they can help create a sense of community among students (Cohen, 2013), which, in turn, helps nurture a strong alumni base.…”