Gimmick: How to Rig a Non-Gimmicky Class Election

The Fall term is here, and as usual, I'm optimistic. If you are like me and like a good gimmick to kick-off the course (and are planning to cover Chapter 1: The Mathematics of Voting) then I highly recommend getting things started with a "non-gimmicky" class election. Over they years I have tried this many times with varying degrees of success (less success in my first few attempts, better luck lately) and in this blog I would like to share some of my experiences and if I may, offer some suggestions. But before I start, let me first explain in a little more detail what I mean by "a non-gimmicky class election."

The point of having a class election where the students are voting on some particular issue is to motivate the students and generate some excitement about Chapter 1. If you can start the semester with some motivational capital, with a little nurturing and a dose of good luck it can carry you a long way.

For a class election to be motivating, the issue behind the election must be both meaningful (i.e. relevant to the student's experience) and consequential (i.e. students must have something at stake in the outcome). A third criterion (this applies to all elections) is that voters should know enough about the issue to be able make informed choices. (For example, having the students vote on the topics to be covered in the course is not a good idea—the content of the course might be meaningful and consequential to them, but at the start of the semester students are hardly in a position to make informed choices about it.)

It seems to me that as instructors, there are only two broad areas that we can control, that are meaningful and consequential to our students, and where students can make reasonably informed choices: the grading scheme for the course and the timing and deadlines for the assignments. So far, I have only experimented with in-class elections involving the former, as I have no good ideas yet for how to incorporate the latter into an in-class election. (I would very much like to hear some suggestions for an election dealing with timing and deadlines.)

So, that leaves the grading scheme for the course as my default election issue. Clearly, this issue is both meaningful and consequential. Democracy at its best—the students get to choose the grading scheme for themselves! (Warning: If you are going to do this you might want to discuss it with your Dean first.)

As an instructor, there are many variables that you can use to manipulate a grading scheme: the number of homework assignments, the number of tests/midterms, do you have projects/papers?, and the percentages allocated to the various elements. I have found that the two variables that work best for me are the number of midterms (between 2 and 4) and the relative percentage allocated to midterms and final. (Note: I leave the total value of the homework constant because I have found from past experience that it dominates all other variables—students will overwhelmingly choose the option where the homework is worth the most.)

It goes without saying that whatever the outcome of the election is, you should live with it (you are going to lose all your motivational capital if you end up invalidating the election because you didn't like the results). It follows, that all the options should be pedagogically sound so that your learning outcomes are never compromised. (For example, I would not recommend an option where 80% of the grade is based on the homework and only 20% of the grade is based on midterms and final—you are not going to be happy with the learning outcomes.)

I usually stick to three options (I recommend at least three and not more than five) and in my latest election they were:

• Option A: HW = 20%; Four midterms @ 15% each; Final = 20%

• Option B: HW = 20%; Three midterms @ 15% each; Final = 35%

• Option C: HW = 20%; Two midterms @ 25% each; Final = 30%

One of the reasons I like these options is that there seems to be no clear-cut favorite among the three, and the preferences are reasonably well balanced. (I will disclose the outcome of my last election in a later post ... maybe. In the meanwhile, you are welcome to guess.)

One of benefits of having an in-class election is that as you move through the chapter and apply the various concepts to "the" election (which option is the winner under each of the methods?, are any of the fairness criteria violated?, etc.) the students really pay attention. With a little bit of luck you may get different winners under different methods (what do you do then?).

Finally, a couple of suggestions about implementation details.

I introduce the options the first day of class, after handing out the syllabus (with the disclaimer "The grading scheme will be decided by popular vote and will be announced the second week of the semester.") and a brief introduction to preference ballots. The student are then instructed to turn in their ballots on-line (they drop them in my Blackboard dropbox—good practice, since that is how they will turn in all of their assignments). The deadline is midnight of the next day, and as a sweetener I give them a token number of points for turning in their ballots on time . If I have a small class (small for my school means under 60 students) then I collect the ballots and create the preference schedule for the election myself. If I have a large lecture (about 200 plus students) I let my TA have the honors. In either case, by the second class meeting I have a slide with the results of the election and a great segue to the topic of preference schedules.

Implementing a meaningful and consequential class election is a bit of a hassle, but in my opinion, well worth it. I highly recommend that you give it a try (and come back and post a comment telling us how it went.)