Dual Enrollment: Creating and Curating Resources for Teaching Faculty
Research Group, 2026 APSA Virtual Research Meeting
On April 15th and 16th, 2026, 10 political science educators representing high school, 2-year, and 4-year institutions convened for eight 90-minute virtual sessions to share their dual enrollment experiences and questions, examine challenges in dual enrollment education, and collaboratively develop practical resources to support students, teachers, and administrators.
Please browse this collection of resources to learn about dual enrollment in political science and access instructor materials ready for your classroom.
Published: August 2026
Dual Enrollment in Political Science
Dual enrollment (DE) programs allow high school students to take college courses for both high school and college credit. In political science, these are introductory American government courses.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, 2.8 million high school students were enrolled in DE courses in the 2023-2024 academic year, a 12.7% increase over the previous academic year, and a 50% increase from 2016.
The National Center for Education Statistics found that in 2019, 31% of high school graduates took a dual-enrollment course in the social sciences.
The rapid expansion of these programs impacts not only high school instructors and political science educators who teach DE courses, but also departmental undergraduate recruitment, enrollment, and curriculum, as well as the ongoing debates on civic learning and education in the United States.
Comparative Snapshots
Brief reports spotlighting the history and trends of dual enrollment in select states.