PL SC 426:
Political Parties and Interest Groups
Tuesday & Thursday 4:15 - 5:30 p.m. – 105 Rackley Building
Pennsylvania State University
Political Science
Fall 2015
Contact Information
Zachary Baumann, Ph.D.
Pennsylvania State University
Department of Political Science
329 Pond Lab
Office Phone: (814) 867-5305
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @profbaumann
Office Hours: Wednesday 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. or by appointment
Course Description
American government can be understood by examining the conflict that exists between groups;
for example, business versus labor, manufacturing versus agriculture, or Republican versus Democrat. Policymaking in the United States is not achieved by one person acting independently,
but by groups working in concert to propose, lobby, pass, and even enforce law. Both parties
and interest groups foster democratic governance by structuring conflict in society and holding
officeholders accountable for their actions. They provide alternative policy recommendations,
promote candidates, and structure the operation of government. Parties and interest groups
serve an essential role in the operation and maintenance of a healthy democracy in the United
States yet are viewed with substantial skepticism both inside and outside government.
This is a course about parties and interest groups in American politics. Throughout the semester
we will answer a number of questions including: why have parties and interest groups emerged
and how have they changed over time? How do these group influence (and are influenced by)
citizens and government? What are the positive and negative effects of parties and interest
groups in American politics? This course pushes you to critically evaluate parties and interest
groups and their place in society. We move past much of the social commentary regarding these
groups to explore their operation and value to the American political system.
Learning Objectives
I have five goals for you in completing this course. By the end of the semester you will be able
to:
1. Identify the ways parties and interest groups are involved in American politics.
2. Describe how parties and interest groups form and how they have evolved over time.
3. Assess the influence of parties and interest groups on the public and policymaking processes.
4. Summarize and critique the positive, and potentially negative, effects of parties and interest
groups in American politics.
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5. Grow in your ability to read, interpret, and apply social science research and communicate
with both scholars and laypeople.
Student Objectives: To accomplish these goals and be successful in this course, you will be
responsible for meeting the following standards:
1. You will come to class promptly and will be prepared to discuss all assigned readings.
2. In class discussions, quizzes, and other in-class assignments you will correctly apply the
ideas and theories contained in our readings.
3. You will complete tests demonstrating your knowledge of parties and interest groups,
correctly employing the concepts and theories discussed in class.
4. You will write a research paper examining a critical question concerning parties or interest
groups, reviewing the relevant literature, and posing a clear answer.
Course Materials
The following items are required for this course (all other readings will be made available to you
on ANGEL or the Library’s website):
• Hershey, Marjorie Randon. 2013. Party Politics in America, 15th ed. Upper Saddle River,
NJ: Pearson. ISBN: 978-0-205-25177-3.
• Lowery, David and Holly Brasher. 2004. Organized Interests and American Government.
Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press, Inc. ISBN: 978-1-57766-729-2.
Assessment
Please record all of your grades and double-check your final semester score in the event of a
miscalculation. You are not given grades, but earn them – exams, discussions, and the research
note are your chance to exhibit your knowledge and command of the literature. Your grade in
this course will be determined using the following formula:
Midterm Exam
Final Exam
Research Note
Participation
25%
25%
40%
10%
We will use the following grading scale:
Letter
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
D
F
Percent
94 to 100
90 to 93
87 to 89
83 to 86
80 to 82
76 to 79
70 to 75
60 to 69
59 and below
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Exams: To demonstrate your knowledge and command of the literature you will complete
two exams, a midterm and final. We will discuss the format of each in class, but expect a
variety of question types (i.e. multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, short answer, and essay). These
questions will ask you to provide information about the concepts and theories read and discussed
in class and will also prompt you to think critically about these topics. Material will be obtained from both the readings and our in-class discussions and I will make a study guide available.
Research Note: Throughout the semester you will work to answer an important question in
the field of parties and interest groups. To complete this assignment you will propose a research
question (and your justification for its selection), summarize the articles and books you have
read, outline the paper, and submit a final draft. Your final paper will introduce the question
and its importance, review the applicable literature, and provide a clear and concise answer.
More information about this assignment can be found attached to this syllabus.
Participation: Learning is an active process that requires you to become engaged in the
material. Students who complete and think critically about the assigned readings, ask questions,
and contribute to classroom discussion gain a better understanding of the material and earn
higher grades. Someone who participates in class has completed all the readings and is able
to demonstrate their comprehension of the material. They make thoughtful comments, show
respect and interest in other student’s views, and occasionally contribute without prompting.
They make a good-faith effort to contribute to class. Details on how your participation grade is
calculated is attached to this syllabus.
Attendance & Make-Up Work
Your attendance in class is assumed. Poor attendance is correlated with low grades, and students
who read the relevant material, come to class, and are engaged often have the highest grades.
Attendance is not a component in your final grade, but classroom participation is assessed during
every meeting time and you cannot participate if you do not attend. Because of the breadth of
the material covered in this course we will move quickly and absences will result in missing a
considerable amount of information.
You are allowed to make-up academic work only in the case of excused absences. These absences
may include missing class for a University-sanctioned activity (with appropriate documentation),
illness (a physicians note is necessary in the case of prolonged illness), religious observance, or a
death in the family. If you know you are going to miss class or an exam, please contact me before
the absence occurs to make arrangements about completing the work. If you have questions
about this policy, please do not hesitate to ask – it is always better to inform me you are going
to be absent before the event than after.
Other Important Notes
Be Flexible: While this syllabus represents an agreement between you, the student, and me,
the instructor, I reserve the right to revise and modify any parts herein. Situations beyond
either of our control can emerge causing us to change the original plan this document puts forth.
Academic Dishonesty: The Department of Political Science, along with the College of the
Liberal Arts and the University, takes violations of academic dishonesty seriously. Observing
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basic honesty in one’s work, words, ideas, and actions is a principle to which all members of the
community are required to subscribe.
All course work by students is to be done on an individual basis unless an instructor clearly
states that an alternative is acceptable. Any reference materials used in the preparation of any
assignment must be explicitly cited. Students uncertain about proper citation are responsible
for checking with their instructor.
In an examination setting, unless the instructor gives explicit prior instructions to the contrary,
whether the examination is inclass or takehome, violations of academic integrity shall consist
but are not limited to any attempt to receive assistance from written or printed aids, or from
any person or papers or electronic devices, or of any attempt to give assistance, whether the one
so doing has completed his or her own work or not.
Lying to the instructor or purposely misleading any Penn State administrator shall also constitute
a violation of academic integrity.
In cases of any violation of academic integrity it is the policy of the Department of Political
Science to follow procedures established by the College of the Liberal Arts. More information
on academic integrity and procedures followed for violation can be found at: http://laus.la.
psu.edu/current-students/academics/academic-integrity/college-policies
Note to students with disabilities: Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into
the University’s educational programs. If you have a disability-related need for reasonable
academic adjustments in this course, contact the Office for Disability Services (ODS) at 814863-1807 (V/TTY). For further information regarding ODS, please visit the Office for Disability
Services Web site at http://equity.psu.edu/ods/. Instructors should be notified as early in
the semester as possible regarding the need for reasonable accommodations.
Course Schedule
We will attempt to follow this schedule as closely as possible, however, it is possible that we take
more time on some subjects and less on others. All changes to the schedule will be announced
in class. Please note the following acronyms used below: Hershey (Party Politics in America)
and Lowery & Brasher (Organized Interests and American Government).
Week 1:
Aug. 25: Introduction to the Class
Aug. 27: Reading and Conducting Political Science Research
How do you conduct social science? How do you measure and analyze concepts? How do you
read regression results? How do you analyze a journal article?
• Carlson, James M. and Mark S. Hyde. 2003. “Conceptualizing, Operationalizing, and
Measuring Variables.” In Doing Empirical Political Research, Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin Company. Pp. 143-147.
• Powner, Leanne C. 2015. “Doing Pre-research.” In Empirical Research and Writing: A
Political Science Student’s Practical Guide, Los Angeles, CA: SAGE. Pp. 55-80.
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• EGAP: Experiments in Governance and Politics. 2015. “10 Things to Know About
Reading a Regression Table.” http://egap.org/resources/guides/10-things-to-kno
w-about-reading-a-regression-table/ (August 17, 2015).
Week 2:
Sept. 1: Parties as Intermediaries
What is a party and why do they exist in our political system? How has the party system changed
over time? How has the role of parties in elections and policymaking changed over time?
• Federalist #10 (You can find this online)
• Hershey, Chapter 1
• Silbey, Joel H. 2010. “American Political Parties: History, Voters, Critical Elections,
and Party Systems.” In The Oxford Handbook of American Political Parties and Interest
Groups, eds. L. Sandy Maisel and Jeffrey M. Berry. Pp. 97-120.
Sept. 3: The American Two Party System
Why does the US have a two party system? How competitive are these parties? Why aren’t third
parties successful?
• Hershey, Chapter 2
• Rapoport, Ronald B. 2010. “Winning Isn’t Everything: Third Parties and the American
Two-Party System.” In The Oxford Handbook of American Political Parties and Interest
Groups, eds. L. Sandy Maisel and Jeffrey M. Berry. Pp. 222-242.
Week 3:
Sept. 8: Party as an Organization
What is a strong party? How are parties organized in the US? How has party strength changed
over time? What are the components of the national party organization? What role does the
national party play in campaigns?
• Hershey, Chapters 3 & 4
Sept. 10: Party as an Organization
Why do people become party activists? What is the difference between a professional and amateur
activist? What types of people become activists? What is the value of responsible versus functional
parties?
• Hershey, Chapter 5
• Jackson, John S. and John C. Green. “The State of Party Elites: National Convention
Delegates, 1992-2008.” In The State of the Parties: The Changing Role of Contemporary
American Parties, 6th ed. eds. John C. Green and Daniel J. Coffery. New York: Rowman
& Littlefield. Pp. 55-77.
Week 4:
Sept. 15: Party in the Electorate: Party Identification
What is party identification? How is partisanship developed? How does partisanship change over
a lifetime? Who are independents? What is the relationship between independents and third
party candidates?
• Hershey, Chapter 6
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• Green, Donald, Bradley Palmquist, & Eric Schickler. 2002. “Chapter 1: Introduction.”
In Partisan Hearts & Minds: Political Parties and the Social Identities of Voters. New
Haven, CT: Yale University Press. Pp. 1-23.
• Research Note: Research Question Checkpoint Due
Sept. 17: Party in the Electorate: Party Coalitions & Voting
How have party coalitions changed over time? Who composes current party coalitions? What is
a realigning or dealigning election? How has suffrage changed over time? Who votes? What
implications follow from who participates – in the party and public?
• Hershey, Chapters 7 & 8
Week 5:
Sept. 22: Party in the Electorate
How do parties choose nominees? What nomination systems are used in the US? Who are the
candidates? How much power does the party have in selecting its nominees? How does presidential
nomination system work? Who votes in primaries? What is the role of the convention and
delegates?
• Hershey, Chapters 9 & 10
• McGhee, Eric, Seth Masket, Boris Shor, Steven Rogers, and Nolan McCarty. 2014. “The
Primary Cause of Partisanship? Nomination Systems and Legislator Ideology.” American
Journal of Political Science 58(2): 337-351.
Sept. 24: Party in the Electorate, continued
Do campaigns matter? What is the role of party in elections? How are modern campaigns run?
How has campaigning changed over time? How are campaigns financed and what is the role of
the party? What rules govern the amount of money in elections and why do/should we care?
• Hershey, Chapters 11 & 12
Week 6:
Sept. 29: Parties in Government
What is the role of the party in organizing government? What role does the party play in
legislative voting? How much power do parties have in legislatures? What is the relationship
between parties and the executive branch? How does partisanship influence the actions of the
executive branch? Does partisanship influence the courts?
• Hershey, Chapters 13 & 14
Oct. 1: Parties in Government
How do parties exercise their power in the legislative arena? How powerful are parties in
Congress? What role do parties play in state politics? Are parties more (or less) powerful in
state legislatures compared to Congress?
• Sinclair, Barbara. 2010. “Partisan Models and the Search for Party Effects in the US
Senate.” In The Oxford Handbook of American Political Parties and Interest Groups, eds.
L. Sandy Maisel and Jeffrey M. Berry. Pp. 339-357.
• Wright, Gerald C. 2010. “State Parties Research: The Quest for Strong, Competitive State
Parties.” In The Oxford Handbook of American Political Parties and Interest Groups, eds.
L. Sandy Maisel and Jeffrey M. Berry. Pp. 403-422.
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Week 7:
Oct. 6: Party Polarization: Causes
What is party polarization and how is it measured? How polarized is American politics and has
it always been like this? What causes polarization?
• Layman, Geoffrey C., Thomas M. Carsey, and Juliana Menasce Horowitz. 2006. “Party
Polarization in American Politics: Characteristics, Causes, and Consequences.” Annual
Review of Political Science 9: 83-110.
• Theriault, Sean M. 2006. “Party Polarization in the US Congress: Member Replacement
and Member Adaption.” Party Politics 12(4): 483-503.
• McCarty, Nolan, Keith T. Poole, and Howard Rosenthal. 2009. “Does Gerrymandering
Cause Polarization?” American Journal of Political Science 53(3): 666-680.
Oct. 8: Party Polarization: Effects
What is the effect of polarization on legislators’ priorities? How does polarization impact the
legislative process?
• Lee, Frances E. 2015. “How Party Polarization Affects Governance.” Annual Review of
Political Science 18: 261-282.
• Jones, David R. 2001. “Party Polarization and Legislative Gridlock.” Political Research
Quarterly 54(1): 125-141.
• Legislative Portfolio: Polarization Data Presentations
Week 8:
Oct. 13: Catch-Up & Review
Oct. 15: Midterm Exam
Week 9:
Oct. 20: Bridging the Gap Between Interest Groups and Parties
What is the relationship between parties and interest groups? Why do Americans join groups?
What structure have successful groups adopted to encourage membership and success?
• Heaney, Michael T. 2010. “Linking Political Parties and Interest Groups.” In The Oxford
Handbook of American Political Parties and Interest Groups, eds. L. Sandy Maisel and
Jeffrey M. Berry. Pp. 568-587.
• Skocpol, Theda, Marshall Ganz, and Ziad Munson. 2000. “A Nation of Organizers: The
Institutional Origins of Civil Voluntarism in the United States.” American Political Science
Review 94(3): 527-546.
• Research Note: Literature Summaries Checkpoint Due
Oct. 22: The Purpose of Interest Groups
What is an interest group? What different types of groups exist in the US? Are interest groups
new in American politics? What are the four stages of the influence production process? What
three theories have emerged to explain the emergence and influence of interest groups?
• Lowery & Brasher, Chapter 1
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Week 10:
Oct. 27: Organization, Mobilization, and Maintenance
According to each major school of thought, how are IGs mobilized? How are firms mobilized in
comparison to private citizens? What explains the mix of incentives IGs provide their members
to encourage their future support?
• Lowery & Brasher, Chapter 2
Oct. 29: Organization, Mobilization, and Maintenance
How do interest groups encourage the continued support of their members? What makes some
interest group members more likely to drop out relative to others?
• Walker, Jack L. 1983. “The Origins and Maintenance of Interest Groups in America.”
American Political Science Review 77(2): 390-406.
• Rothenberg, Lawrence. 1988. “Organizational Maintenance and the Retention Decision in
Groups.” American Political Science Review 82(4): 1129-1152.
Week 11:
Nov. 3: Interest Group Communities
Differentiate between IG system density and diversity. How can density and diversity be measured?
What explains IG system density and diversity.
• Lowery & Brasher, Chapter 3
• Research Note: Outline Checkpoint Due
Nov. 5: Interest Group Communities
Explain the claim of bias often leveled against IG systems. How concerned should we be about
the composition of IGs in government? What explains the size and scope of the interest group
system?
• Schlozman, Kay Lehman. 1984. “What Accent the Heavenly Chorus? Political Equality
and the American Pressure System.” Journal of Politics 46(4): 1006-1032.
• Lowery, David and Virginia Gray. 1995. “The Population Ecology of Gucci Gulch, or
the Natural Regulation of Interest Group Numbers in the American States.” American
Journal of Political Science 39(1): 1-29.
Week 12:
Nov. 10: Interest Groups and the Public
How do IGs influence the context in which citizens make decisions? How do IGs influence the
content of the choices placed before citizens? How do IGs influence the choices citizens make
with regard to politics?
• Lowery & Brasher, Chapter 4
Nov. 12: Interest Groups and the Public
What role do interest groups play in elections? What causes groups to adopt divergent electoral
strategies? What is the impact of campaign contributions on electoral outcomes?
• Wilcox, Clyde and Rentaro Iida. 2010. “Interest Groups in American Elections.” In The
Oxford Handbook of American Political Parties and Interest Groups, eds. L. Sandy Maisel
and Jeffrey M. Berry. Pp. 552-567.
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• Malbin, Michael J., Clyde Wilcox, Mark J. Rozell, and Richard Skinner. 2002. “New
Interest Group Strategies – A Preview of Post McCain-Feingold Politics?” http://www.
cfinst.org/books_reports/pdf/int_groups_CFIpaper.pdf (July 23, 2015).
Week 13:
Nov. 17: Interest Groups and the Legislature
How do interest groups try to influence the creation of legislation? What role do we observe IGs
playing in the legislative process? What is the relationship between IG activities and members’
votes? What strategies might IGs employ to advance their agenda?
• Lowery & Brasher, Chapter 5
Nov. 19: Interest Groups and the Legislature, cont.
How much influence do interest groups have over the legislative process? Who do lobbyists try to
target and how do they advance their goals? Do campaign contributions buy votes?
• Wright, John R. 1990. “Contributions, Lobbying, and Committee Voting in the U.S. House
of Representatives.” American Political Science Review 84(2): 417-438.
• Hojnacki, Marie and David Kimball. 1999. “The Who and How of Organizations’ Lobbying
Strategies in Committee.” Journal of Politics 61(4): 999-1024.
• Hall, Richard L. and Alan V. Deardorff. 2006. “Lobbying as Legislative Subsidy.” American
Political Science Review 100(1): 69-84.
Week 14:
Nov. 24 & 26: Fall Break – No Class
Week 15:
Dec. 1: Interest Groups and the Executive
What are the goals of IGs in lobbying the executive branch? What typology can be used to explain
IG involvement with the executive? How do IGs lobby the bureaucracy? How much power do
IGs have with bureaucratic agencies?
• Lowery & Brasher, Chapter 6
Dec. 3: Interest Groups and the Judiciary
How is lobbying the courts different from lobbying the legislature or executive branches? How do
IGs lobby the judiciary? How successful are IGs in trying to influence the courts? When will
IGs use the courts to try to advance their agenda?
• Lowery & Brasher, Chapter 7
Week 16:
Dec. 8: Future of Interest Groups
What are the common problems cited with interest groups in American politics and society?
What are the potential solutions? Should we restrict the access IGs have to government?
• Lowery & Brasher, Chapter 8
• Research Note: Final Draft Due
Dec. 10: Catch-Up & Review
Finals Week:
Dec. 14-18: Final Exam
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Research Note
The study of political parties and interest groups is extensive; researchers are concerned with
many questions including how people form their party attachments, how these change over
time, how groups impact elections, their role in legislatures, how they coordinate the actions of
branches (and levels) of government, influence who runs, and who has power. While we will
touch on many of these questions in class there is much to be explored.
Throughout the semester you will be working to answer a question you find interesting and
important in the study of parties and interest groups. Your final paper will discuss why this
is an important question, what the relevant literature reveals, and what conclusions we can
draw. To help guide you through this process you will complete three checkpoint assignments:
proposing the question, summarizing the articles and books you’ve read, and outlining the arguments you wish to make. The final paper will be due at the end of the semester (December 8th ).
Formatting: Your final paper should be double-spaced with 11-point font and 1-inch margins
on all sides. All citations should be formatted using the APSA style guide (link on ANGEL)
and your paper must contain both a title page and a references section. The paper is due on
December 8th at 4:15 p.m. EST. No late submissions will be accepted.
Grading: This assignment comprises 40% of your total grade and will be determined by your
performance on the following factors:
Research Question
Literature Summaries
Outline
Final Draft
10%
20%
10%
60%
Checkpoint 1 – Research Question: Submit three potential research questions ranked based
on your preference (list the question you like the most at the top). Under each question write a
paragraph explaining why it is important to the general public (i.e. why someone walking down
the street should care) and why scholars might also be interested. This assignment is due Sept.
15th . I will provide feedback on these choices and you will make the final decision regarding the
question to be pursued.
Checkpoint 2 – Literature Summaries: Your final paper must include at least 12 scholarly
sources (a book with more than 100 pages will be equivalent to three articles).1 Using the
method of summarizing articles discussed during the second class period, you will submit a single
sheet for each of the items you’ve reviewed.2 You will submit these twelve pages summarizing
the literature you’ve read by Oct. 20th .
Checkpoint 3 – Outline: Using the information you’ve read you will compose an outline of
your final paper. This will be include three principle sections: 1) the introduction, explicitly
stating the question and its important to scholars and the general public; 2) the literature review
that explains what’s been written about the subject, how authors have built on the work of
1
You are certainly encouraged to use items read in class, but these will not count toward your total of 12
sources.
2
Each one-page summary should include a correctly formatted bibliographic reference, the research question, a
discussion of the theory and hypotheses, a data section, a summary of the results, and an explanation of how this
fits into the other items you’ve read.
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others, similarities among the pieces and points of departure; and 3) the conclusions which
provide an answer to the question and propose additional hypotheses or other questions that
deserve further attention. The outline should be more than a series of bullet points, but should
provide sufficient context that I’m able to understand the points you will be making and how
each item flows into the next. It will be important to think about the story you’re trying to tell
and how the evidence can be ordered to make this compelling. This assignment is due Nov. 3rd .
Final Draft: Your final paper will build on your outline and will contain the same three parts:
an introduction, literature review, and conclusion. The requirements for each remain the same
– the introduction will clearly articulate the question and demonstrate its relevance scholars
and the public at large. The literature review explains the research that has been conducted,
synthesizes the results, and indicates how these items build on (or differ from) one another.
The conclusion presents a clearly articulated answer to the research question and explains
which elements deserve further research or what alternative hypotheses should also be tested.
This paper will include a cover page as well as a references section and should be devoid of
grammatical errors. The final draft is due December 8th .
Suggestions: Here are a few research topic suggestions to get you started:
• How do people use their party identification to make political decisions? When will they
stray from these fundamentally held beliefs?
• How are political independents different from partisans? Do they approach politics in
fundamentally different ways?
• How has party competition changed over time? Why are so many state and local races
run uncontested? Does the Southern Strategy, for Republicans, or the 50-State Strategy,
for Democrats, still make sense?
• How well do modern parties represent the views of the public?
• What effect do campaign contributions have on public policy?
• How much influence do parties have over Congress?
• What lobbying strategies are most effective?
• How representative are interest groups of the American public?
• Why do some states have more lobbyists than others?
• How do PACs determine who to support (and when to support them)?
• What influence do parties have on the executive or judicial branches?
The study of parties and interest groups is one of the largest fields in political science, there are
a number of interesting questions you could examine. Be certain to stop by office hours early if
you have questions about this project or would like advice – I’m happy to help, but can’t be
very useful if you’re coming to see me late or failing to see me at all. Be certain to start this
assignment early and give yourself enough time to revise; this is a large portion of your final
grade.
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Participation Rubric
You will also participate in this class by attending and engaging in discussions. The following
rubric describes my expectations for each grade-level:
A = A student earning an ‘A’ comes to nearly all classes prepared and can demonstrate superior
comprehension of the material. They contribute to the class conversation, but don’t dominate it
– they make thoughtful contributions that advance conversation, showing interest in and respect
for others’ views. They are demonstrably engaged in course material and content.
B = A student earning a ‘B’ misses only a few classes, but attends having completed the readings
and is able to demonstrate comprehension of the readings, perhaps lacking fully integrated views
toward the material. They make thoughtful comments when called upon, show respect and
interest in other student’s views, and occasionally contribute without prompting. They are
making a good-faith effort to participate in class, but may not have the integration of ideas of
an “A” student or may not participate as often.
C = A student earning a ‘C’ misses several classes, but arrives having completed the readings
and able to discuss their most basic tenets. This student does not voluntarily contribute to class
and gives only minimal answers when called upon. They are putting forward some effort, but
appear to be uninterested in the material and do not participate much without prompting.
D = A student earning a ‘D’ misses close to half of the classes, and when present has difficulty
positively contributing. This student does not voluntarily contribute to class, and when prompted,
gives responses that may be off-topic and demonstrate a lack of knowledge or preparedness.
They are putting forth less than average effort in the course and may be having a negative
impact on others.
F = A student earning an ‘F’ misses over half of the classes, and when present, cannot demonstrate they have read the material or thought about the concepts. This student does not
voluntarily contribute to class and does not give answers related to the question being asked
when prompted. This student does not appear to be interested in the content of the class and is
putting forth a very minimal level of effort.
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