Federal
Government 2305--Web
DISCUSSION
We will have four discussion topics in this course. The discussions are not 'at will' but are considered an integral part of your learning. The selected topics will be posted online with specific instructions and due date. You will receive a grade for your discussion and responses to the other students' comments. You must participate in all four discussion topics.
INSTRUCTIONS
To enter into the discussion area you will go to Blackboard.
After reading the textbook readings and the Instructor's lecture notes, post your comment on what you have learned about that discussion topic and how your views may have changed. (A minimum of 10 sentences)
Respond to at least one other student's posted comments--do you agree or disagree or have anything to add to their comment(s)? (A minimum of at least 5 sentences)
At the end of the discussion period, you must post your final "Summary" of the discussion topic on Blackboard.
Click on the "Communication" button
Then click on the "Discussion Board"
Then click on "Send Files" to post all assignments. . Please follow the instructions as given.
IMPORTANT: To receive credit and a grade on your summary, your final summary must be posted in Blackboard's Digital Drop Box.
If you have any questions, please contact your instructor. Your grade will be based on the more detailed SUMMARY you will write on the discussion topic--elaborating on your initial comments and adding your views based on reading the posted comments of fellow students in the class. Think of your initial posted comment on the Blackboard's Discussion Board as your "rough draft" and the final summary as your "final draft." Thus, it should be longer and more complete, based on what you have learned not only from the textbook and lecture notes, but from other students' comments.
RULES FOR ONLINE DISCUSSIONS
No obscene language is permitted
No racist, sexist, or homophobic language is permitted
Show respect and do not ridicule the opinions of others
Violation of these rules will be grounds for removal from the discussion area, which would affect your grade in the course.
DISCUSSION ON BLACKBOARD:
The first discussion topic will have several starter questions. Each topic will be posted at the start of that unit on the appropriate Monday.
DISCUSSION ON BLACKBOARD:
The first discussion topic will have several starter questions. Each topic will be posted at the start of that unit on the appropriate Monday.
Follow the directions to sign on with Blackboard.
There will be four (4) topics posted for discussion during the semester.
Each topic will be online--usually--for one week only. (The final two topics will be posted for two weeks.)
Post your initial thoughts, comments, and reaction to the discussion topic (at least 10 sentences) and post your comments to the posted comments of at least one other student (at least 5 sentences).
Failure to post either comment will result in a deduction of a minimum of 5 points from your Summary grade. The reason for this policy is to encourage as much student interaction and comments as possible. Failure to post your initial comments and respond to the comments of another student reduces the class interaction and student learning and defeats the whole purpose of the Discussion Board and having discussion topics. They take the place of the in-class discussion that occurs in a traditional on-campus class.
Post a final summary (500 words minimum) at the end of the two (2) week period in Blackboard's Digital Drop Box. The summary should include your reactions to the topic and the comments of others based on readings and Internet surfing.
This summary will determine your discussion grade. REMEMBER: Your grade will be based on the more detailed SUMMARY you will write on the discussion topic--elaborating on your initial comments and adding your views based on reading the posted comments of fellow students in the class.
To receive credit for a Summary, you MUST post it in Blackboard's digital drop box.
The "Discussion Board" on Blackboard will take the place of regular classroom discussion. You will be expected to have read the relevant textbook readings concerning that topic and may also do some research on the web to browse news and information sources. This will challenge you to use your critical thinking skills, to search and read, and to analyze and evaluate what you find. You should determine such things as:
Who wrote this?
What company/organization posted this information online?
Are they trying to sell me something?
How credible is this source?
Does what they say make sense?
Does it reinforce or contradict what other sources state?
You will use a combination of your personal knowledge and opinions, your textbook, your online resources, other books, pamphlets, etc. to share information you have found, ask questions of your fellow students, and respond to their questions and comments. I will be a facilitator and jump in there from time to time, but I really want to see what you as a student group can do.
Your grade will be determined on both the quality and quantity of your postings and especially--the "Summary" you email in at the end of the discussion period, summarizing your thoughts and opinions on the topic--based on what you learned from the comments of other students and your textbook readings.
When you share something that you have found online, please remember the rule to cite the source. This means to share the URL, or web site address, where others can follow up if desired.
IMPORTANT
Make sure you include the following information in the text of your posted Summary:
Your name
Title of Assignment (ex.: Summary #1)
Date assignment posted
Course (ex.: Govt. 2305 Web)
Last 4 numbers of your social security number (ex.: 0138)
Failure to include the above information will lead to a loss of a full letter grade on the assignment.
-All late assignments will lose one letter grade.
-No assignments accepted 4 days after the due date.
RECOMMENDED
I STRONGLY recommend typing up all assignments in Microsoft Word and saving them to your disk and/or hard drive and printing out a hard copy BEFORE posting them. In the event an assignment gets "lost" or for some reason is not posted correctly, you will have a backup copy to email me as an attachment.
DISCUSSION TOPICS
DISCUSSION TOPIC 1-FROM UNIT 5
Interest groups have been both hailed as a wonderful mechanism to influence government in a democracy and they have been damned for their corrupting and negative influences on the system. Do you believe our nation and political system is BETTER OFF or WORSE OFF with interest groups? Whichever stand you take, GIVE REASONS TO SUPPORT YOUR ANSWER. Your answer should include a list of BOTH the advantages and disadvantages interest groups. Use your textbook readings as a resource.
DISCUSSION TOPIC 2-FROM UNIT 9
Based on your readings in Chapter 14, particularly pages 531-533 on the death penalty AND the instructor's Lecture Notes, consider and discuss the following:
a. the guidelines the U.S. Supreme Court has set for the use of the death penalty
b. arguments in favor of the death penalty
c. arguments used by the critics of the death penalty
d. YOUR conclusion on whether the death penalty should continue to be constitutional and used in the United States--DEFEND YOUR POSITION.
DISCUSSION TOPIC 3-FROM UNIT 11
College Speech Codes Versus Freedom of SpeechMany colleges and universities have enacted "speech codes" to prevent racist, sexist, homophobic, anti-Semitic, and other types of hate speech. The intent is to prevent student confrontations and possible violence and hate crimes, while maintaining a friendly and non-threatening classroom and campus environment conducive to learning. Critics of those speech codes argue they are a form of censorship violating any speech/ideas/thoughts that are not "politically correct." The "Odessa College Code of Student Behavior" includes the following:
"Good students respect the dignity of all people.
a. They do not compromise or demean the dignity of others by taunting, teasing, insulting, sexually harassing, or discriminating;
b. They respect the opinions of others in the class;
c. They encourage the equal rights and treatment of all students, regardless of age, gender, race, religion, ethnic heritage, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, and/or political ideology."A Minnesota speech code prohibited "speech and symbols (burning of crosses, display of Nazi swastikas) that insult and degrade others on the basis of race, religion, gender, color, creed, or sexual orientation" and that "arouse anger, alarm, or resentment in others on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, gender, or sexual orientation."
How do you reconcile these limits on what can be said in the classroom and on campus with freedom of speech guaranteed in the First Amendment? Should there be limits on your freedom of speech? If so, what should those limits be? (i.e. what types of speech or expression should NOT be protected under the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech?) Mention any relevant court decisions/cases.
DISCUSSION TOPIC 4-FROM UNIT 12
Equal Treatment, Opportunity, and Rights Versus Affirmative ActionRead Chapter 14, particularly pages 551-556 on affirmative action and the Bakke case. Include in your discussion the following 3 points:
a. Consider and discuss arguments both for and against affirmative action.
b. Does affirmative action lead us to a more discrimination-free society or does it amount to "reverse discrimination?" (Support your position.)
c. Assuming affirmative action continues to be used and may still be upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court as constitutional for the foreseeable future, consider the following: Since data projections indicate that white males will likely become a minority by the year 2040, should affirmative action apply to them at that time? Why or why not?
DISCUSSION TOPIC 5-FROM UNIT 13As a result of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Towers and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, the nation and our leaders have debated on how to best respond to this new and frightening terrorist threat. Touch on the following issues:
1) Should the U.S. engage in an increased fight against terrorism abroad, even beyond Iraq and Afghanistan?
2) Should that include sending U.S. combat troops?
3) Should we engage in "racial profiling" and put persons of an Islamic/Middle-Eastern-Arabic background under increased scrutiny--even if that amounts to racial discrimination (remember the Japanese-American internment during World War II) and a violation of their civil liberties guaranteed in the Bill of Rights?
In light of that, respond to the following statement:"Resolved: That, as a result of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the United States government should use all means it believes are necessary to protect the United States, both home and abroad, from any existing and future terrorist attacks, even if that may involve the violation of the civil rights and civil liberties of potential suspects and even if that gives the president of the United States expanded powers as commander and chief to send combat troops abroad with limited congressional oversight."
Based on your textbook readings in Chapter 16 and Chapter 4 & 5, suggest what the U.S. policy against terrorism should be. (What should and should we NOT do??)
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