Assignment:
Lesson One
Instructions for Lesson Writing Assignments
The Lesson Writing Assignments. Students are expected to answer all of the questions for the selected writing prompt. Submissions that are more comprehensive and detailed will earn a higher point total. This exercise is to show that you have read the material and that you have thought about the issues. Your submissions should be several substantial paragraphs (minimum 300 words).
You should use New Courier or Times New Roman, 12 point font, double-spacing, and one inch margins on all four sides of the paper.
All writing assignments will be analyzed using SafeAssign. Essays that contain plagiarized material will receive a significant reduction in points or a zero. Students may receive a failing grade in the course for submitting plagiarized material. Do not cut and paste information from an online source or copy information directly from the textbook. You may need to include data from the chapter or a related article in your writing assignment and it is necessary to include citations for this information. The assignment is to be formatted according to the Modern Language Association (MLA) style which includes a works cited page but does NOT include a title page. For assistance with MLA style visit the Purdue Online Writing Lab.
Lesson 1 Writing Assignment
For this assignment, choose ONE of the writing prompts and write a minimum 300 word essay. For more detailed instructions, review the Instructions for Lesson Writing Assignments.
1) Why did the Articles of Confederation fail? What reasons might explain why someone would prefer the Articles of Confederation to the Constitution? What were the biggest benefits of the Constitution over the Articles of Confederation?
2) Many participants at the U.S. Constitutional Convention had something at stake in the formation of the Constitution. Focus specifically on the Three-Fifths Compromise. Which groups had things at stake in this compromise, what did they have at stake, and how did each try to get what they wanted?
Lesson 2 Writing Assignment
For this assignment, choose ONE of the writing prompts and write a minimum 300 word essay. For more detailed instructions, review the Instructions for Lesson Writing Assignments.
1) Read the discussion of "descriptive representation". Then, review how Congress has changed over time with respect to race and ethnicity, women and veterans in the Pew Research article "The changing face of Congress in 6 charts." Discuss the different trends in Congress and what do you think it means for the future? Does it matter if members of Congress look like most Americans? What are the advantages and disadvantages of descriptive representation?
2) Discusses many aspects of domestic and foreign policy in the United States. Review public attitudes towards both the size of government and government spending in the Pew Research article "Little Public Support for Reductions in Federal Spending." According to the survey data, where are people who identify as Republican or Lean Republican more interested in increasing spending? Where are people who identify as Democrats or Lean Democratic more interested in increasing spending? What does the Pew Research Center survey suggest concerning the public's interest in cutting government spending? Looking at the results of the surveys, what do you think are the prospects for reducing government spending? Why?
3) Both the president and Congress play a role in decisions regarding the use of military force. What are the president's powers in this area? What are the powers of Congress in this area? Read the article " New Legislation Offers Opportunity to Address 2001 Authorization for Use of Force, Amid Fears of War with Iran ." Why do you think members of Congress have been willing not to vote on the use of force and to allow modern presidents (such as Bush, Obama and Trump) to take the lead in this area? Do you think Congress should play a larger role in decisions regarding the use of military force?
Lesson 3 Writing Assignment
For this assignment, choose ONE of the writing prompts and write a minimum 300 word essay. For more detailed instructions, review the Instructions for Lesson Writing Assignments
1) Read the Pew Research article, "Americans feel the tensions between privacy and security concerns." How should the government balance the tensions between privacy and national security concerns? Is the Constitution clear about potential conflicts between privacy and national security? How much privacy should Americans expect in an age where information about people is so readily available?
2) Briefly discusses judicial interpretivists and strict constructionists. For more discussion on the issue read "How does the Supreme Court decide what the Constitution means?" How does a strict constructionist (originalist) interpret the Constitution compared to a judicial interpretivist (non-originalist)? Do you think the Constitution should be interpreted literally or is it an evolving document that needs to be interpreted differently over time? Why?
Lesson 4 Writing Assignment
For this assignment, choose ONE of the writing prompts and write a minimum 300 word essay. For more detailed instructions, review the Instructions for Lesson Writing Assignments.
1) Read the Gallup report on attitudes towards third parties. How do Americans view third parties? Why is it so difficult for third party candidates to win in the United States? How would having more than two competitive political parties change American politics?
2) Review the Pew Research articles "U.S. trails most developed countries in voter turnout" and "Weekday elections set the U.S. apart from many other advanced democracies." Specifically, how does voter turnout in the U.S. compare with voter turnout in other advanced democracies? What are some of the causes for the low voter turnout between the United States and other advanced democracies? What are the pros and cons of changing election day to a holiday or a weekend?
3) Look at Table of AmGov and read the Pew Research article "News Use Across Social Media Platforms 2018." Discuss where people get their news? What are some of the demographic differences that influence where people get their news? Where do you prefer to get your news (social media, print, television, radio) and why? Do you rely on only one news source? How do you judge the credibility of your news source(s)?