1: One major objective of this class is to help you identify the major developments and trends in American life since the end of World War II. In this assignment, you will work in an assigned group and write a brief article about one of the following topics. Highlighted topics have been claimed.
Containment - Truman Doctrine
Taft Hartley Act of 1947
HUAC - McCarthy
Levittown
Brown v. Board of Education - Little Rock 9
Brinksmanship - Domino Theory
Cuba - Missile Crisis and Bay of Pigs
U2 Incident
Johnson's Great Society
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Tet
Rock and Roll
Freedom Rides
AIM
New Feminism/ERA
New Left
Space Race
The Warren Court
Pentagon Papers
Me Lai
Watergate
Your group must decide what you want to write about and email me with the topic. Once a group chooses a topic, it will become unavailable for other groups. You will write the article on a wiki to facilitate the group work and so I can track the participation of every group member.
Your article must be at least 500 words long, and exhibit good grammar and organization. You must also cite a minimum of three sources. An example of a very good entry that is 556 words long.
While it is not required, please consider including maps, images, or videos to make your submission more interesting. You CAN NOT simply rehash the Wikipedia article, but must show that you understand what the topic is about. You must cite at least three sources, one of which can be your textbook. Cite in Chicago style footnotes.
While you CAN NOT use Wikipedia as a source, I recommend looking at the sources they use for the topic. If you are having any trouble getting started or figuring out what you should do, I highly recommend you email and ask me.
2. This class has covered many topics, and attempts to help you see how the past has created the world that we live in today. Think of all the events you have learned about over the semester.
What event or series of events has impacted you and your life the most? Why? How might your life be different if this event or events never happened?
For this discussion, you will write a MINIMUM of 5 sentences answering all the elements listed: event, why you chose it, how it impacts you, how life would be different without it. You must write your own post to see the posts of others. You will then respond to at least three postings by other students, by explaining how the same event or events they mention have also impacted your life. Your response should be a MINIMUM of 3 sentences.
An example of events could be how 9/11 impacts your everyday life, the student protests of the 1960's influences the music you listen to, or how the changes in advertising in the 1920's impact how you shop. You could discuss something as broad as the entire civil rights movement or as specific as the flight of the Wright Brothers at Kittyhawk.