Recent recorded grades — Fall 2025: 3.31 GPA, 64.2% A/AB (n=243 letter grades).
Fall 2026
Introduction to American Politics and Government
POLISCI 104 covers basic institutions and processes of American government, including constitutional structures, parties, interest groups, elections, and policy formation.
Summary
1 / 7
Historical reviews of John Coleman, Kenneth Mayer, Signe Janoska-Bedi: Students report significant reading requirements and exams that demand specific answers from lectures and textbooks. Some found tests difficult, while others noted that prior knowledge or attending office hours helped manage the workload.
Grade history
↗ average GPA
letter grades
letter grades
A
AB
B
BC
C
D
F
All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors
Prerequisites
Course mapNot open to students who have taken POLI SCI 184 or POLI SCI 404
“Used by” includes alternatives; linked courses may have other requirements. This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.
Prerequisite text tree
- Not eligible with
- Any of
- POLI SCI 184
- POLISCI 404
- Any of
Professors
Fall 2026No course-specific feedback yet.
No course-specific feedback yet.
No course-specific feedback yet.
No course-specific feedback yet.
No course-specific feedback yet.
Historical instructors & teaching patterns
Current instructor Ana Oaxaca Carrasco has no reviews. Historical reviews for Kenneth Mayer describe him as funny and good at lecturing, though one student found the class boring due to heavy reading. Another review notes his lectures can be long and tests require specific answers.
ANA OAXACA CARRASCO is recorded teaching in Fall 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
DAVID CANON is recorded teaching in Fall 2006, Fall 2008, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Fall 2014, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2022. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
JOHN COLEMAN is recorded teaching in Fall 2006, Spring 2008, Fall 2009, Spring 2011, Spring 2012, Spring 2014. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
KENNETH MAYER is recorded teaching in Spring 2007, Fall 2007, Fall 2008, Spring 2010, Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Fall 2020, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Calendar & sections
Fall 2026Schedule loads here as you scroll.
| Section | Mode | Enrolled / capacity | Waitlist |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | Classroom Instruction | 255 / 315 | 0 |
| DIS 306 | Classroom Instruction | 15 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 311 | Classroom Instruction | 17 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 312 | Classroom Instruction | 21 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 314 | Classroom Instruction | 17 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 302 | Classroom Instruction | 20 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 303 | Classroom Instruction | 21 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 305 | Classroom Instruction | 21 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 309 | Classroom Instruction | 18 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 313 | Classroom Instruction | 16 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 532 | Classroom Instruction | 3 / 0 | 0 |
| DIS 310 | Classroom Instruction | 20 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 304 | Classroom Instruction | 12 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 307 | Classroom Instruction | 20 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 308 | Classroom Instruction | 11 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 315 | Classroom Instruction | 9 / 21 | 0 |
| DIS 316 | Classroom Instruction | 14 / 21 | 0 |
Times are Central. Select a meeting for details; export includes recorded dates for the selected sections. Enrollment reflects scan time.
Meeting source records
Student experience
the class
Historical reviews praise instructors for making American politics engaging through humor, clear lectures, and unbiased discussion. Many students found the course enjoyable and well-taught, highlighting the instructors' enthusiasm and clarity.
Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.43 GPA, 67.4% A/AB (n=181 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.31 GPA, 64.2% A/AB (n=243 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.23 GPA, 58.5% A/AB (n=195 letter grades).
difficulty & workload
Historical reviews of John Coleman, Kenneth Mayer, Signe Janoska-Bedi: Students report significant reading requirements and exams that demand specific answers from lectures and textbooks. Some found tests difficult, while others noted that prior knowledge or attending office hours helped manage the workload.
Historical reviews of David Canon, John Coleman, Kenneth Mayer, Signe Janoska-Bedi: Lectures are often described as clear, humorous, and well-prepared, with some instructors recording sessions or using videos. Students valued responsive office hours and engaging teaching styles.
Topics
Grades
Fall 2026 · Projected
Before grades are released– average GPA
Approximate 80% prediction interval
About this estimate
The course’s semester-average GPA, not an individual student’s grade. The center uses 5 same-season terms, weighted toward recent results.
The range uses the finite-sample 80th-percentile rank of absolute errors from earlier same-season forecasts. Each forecast uses only records from earlier terms. At least four forecasts are required; bounds are rounded outward and limited to 0–4. This is an empirical estimate: changing instructors or grading policies can reduce its coverage.
8 earlier forecasts · 0.22 GPA average error.
Grades over time
Through Fall 2026
More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data
Where this course fits relative to
Latest available grades · Spring 2026 · all course levels
GPA
Higher than % of other courses in this group.
Course GPAs · red marks this course’s range
letter grades
More recorded grades than % of other courses in this group.
Typical course in this group: letter grades.
About this comparison
1283 courses over the same term, each with at least 30 recorded letter grades. Cross-listed courses count once. GPA is not a measure of difficulty or teaching quality. The typical course is the median by recorded grade count; tied values are not counted as lower. Grade counts describe course scale, not unique students or typical section size.
Descriptions compare GPA with this group’s average: at least 0.20 higher or lower; otherwise close to average. Section size uses median recorded enrollment: small up to 30, mid-sized 31–99, large 100+. Lectures and discussion/lab sections are described separately.
Sources & history
UW–Madison
Catalog & offerings
Descriptions, prerequisites, and recorded course offerings.
Catalog observation history
Observations at scan time; dates do not imply when a catalog change took effect.
Selected offering source records
Introduction to American Politics and Government
Recorded 2026-09-07Raw records
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{
"run_id": "20260907T155543-ce3781c4",
"semester": "1272",
"observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
"offering_id": "1272:778:015858",
"course_id": "POLISCI 104",
"course_uid": "course_46931ba805a3f9e7507d5db1",
"term_id": "1272",
"source_course_id": "015858",
"source_subject_id": "778",
"title": "Introduction to American Politics and Government",
"credits_min": 3,
"credits_max": 4,
"typically_offered": "Fall, Spring"
}
]Rate My Professors
Student reviews
Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.
Read original reviews
Madgrades
Grade history
Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.
Explore recorded gradesModel outputs & technical records
nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4
LLM outputs across runs
Full model traces
Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.
Model & dataset provenance
{
"model": "nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4",
"model_revision": "1355db6a052410cfd62085d94b58866fd0f2c3c5",
"task_version": "14",
"output_id": "c3c6ec36e67a456aec73d821173c18f7976ec67b1678dedd5714e05fc63ed23b",
"requirements_status": "needs_review",
"dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
"observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}