• • POL201 • Assignments • Week 4 – Learning Activity
LEARNING ACTIVITY WORKSHEET –
Week Four Please review the full assignment prompt and the Week 5 Final Paper instructions located within the classroom and in the POL 201 Course Guide before beginning this assignment. Utilizing the worksheet below, develop detailed paragraphs that focus on the first main point for your final paper. For each section, a minimum of one fully-developed paragraph is required. A fully developed paragraph should be a minimum of 5-7 sentences in length. Each paragraph should include at least one in-text APA citation that provides support for the topic. At least two scholarly sources from the Ashford University library (not including your textbook) with in-text citations utilized within your paragraphs are required. Two new sources should be utilized each week to meet the minimum of eight required sources for the final paper. By finding and supporting your material with these sources each week, you will have the research necessary to construct a strong final paper. For help with writing and citations, please review the handouts and tutorials provided by the Ashford Writing Center.
1. Political Parties, Interest Groups, and Elections: (Select One)
A. One strength of one of the following: political parties, interest groups, or elections. (Use the space below to complete this section.)
B. One weakness of one of the following: political parties, interest groups, or elections. (Use the space below to complete this section.)
C. One option to accentuate the positive impact of the strength discussed above. (Use the space below to complete this section.)
D. One option to lessen the negative impact of the weakness discussed above. (Use the space below to complete this section.)
2. Thesis Statement Provide a thesis statement for the final paper. It is very important that the statement focuses on the final paper and not only on the topic discussed above. The thesis statement should be a concise statement of 25 words or less that clearly identifies the main argument, theme, and purpose for the final paper.
3. Reference List (utilizing full APA citations) (Use the space below to complete this section.)
POL201 Final Paper Guide
America’s Democracy
Your Name
POL 201 – American National Government
Ashford University
Instructor’s Name
Month Day, Year
America’s Democracy
This is where the introduction for your paper should begin. You should indent the first paragraph and include a hook to draw your reader in and make the topic interesting. Your introduction should also include an overview of the main points you will discuss in your paper and conclude with a clear and concise thesis statement of 25 words or less that clearly summarizes what your paper is about. Please be sure to not refer to the paper in your paper. For example, “In this paper, I will discuss…” is not appropriate for formal writing. Also, your paper should not use words such as I, we, or you. Start the first paragraph here. It should introduce your reader to the subject you are writing about, as well as your particular position or claim. Be sure that your thesis reflects on all four of the topics you will discuss in a concise manner of 25 words or less. For more suggestions, please read about thesis statements on our Ashford Writing Center website: Thesis Statements. Other helpful tools on our website are the Thesis Generator and Moving from Prompt to Thesis. Your introduction should be at least ½ a page in length.
US Constitution
Your paper should include the four main headings, as outlined in this template. It is vital, in order to fully meet the expectations for this paper that you support your arguments utilizing scholarly sources. You must is properly cited with in-text APA formatted citations and an APA reference list in order to avoid plagiarism. No more than 10% of your paper should be direct quotations. Be sure to summarize, paraphrase, and include in-text citations. Each heading should focus on the topics you discussed in your Week 1, 2, 3, and 4 Learning Activities. Each heading/topic should be a a minimum of 1 to 1.5 pages in length. Please do not just cut and paste the paragraphs from your Learning Activities. It is important to include transitions and to more deeply reflect and expand on the material from each week. Be sure to review the WayPoint feedback provided by your instructor each week and integrate the feedback into your revisions as you expand your analysis of each topic for your final paper.
Federalism
Your section heading should focus on Federalism. Utilize your Learning Activities as a guide to construct each section of your paper or create an outline or list to help you organize the evidence you plan to present. Be sure to include the appropriate transitions, review your instructors comments from your Week Two Learning Activity, and expand on the material regarding Federalism.
Branches of Government
The third section of your final paper should focus on one of the branches of government, as you discussed in your Learning Activity. Be sure to include the appropriate transitions, review your instructors comments from your Week Three Learning Activity, and expand on the material regarding the branch of government you have selected. Each paragraph of your assignment should be clear and easy to follow. Ashford has several good resources to help you write a strong paragraph, such as How to Write a Good Paragraph and the P.I.E. Paragraph Structure.
Political Parties, Interest Groups, or Elections
The 4th section of your paper should focus on Political Parties, Interest Groups, or Elections as researched in your Week 4 Learning Activity. Once again, Be sure to include the appropriate transitions, review your instructors comments from your Week Three Learning Activity, and expand on the material regarding the topic you have selected. In addition to being well-written, each paragraph throughout your paper should include an in-text citation to all ideas, references, or quotations that are from outside sources and research. The Ashford Writing Center provides many resources to help you follow correct citation style (primarily APA) and gives lessons and examples of how to paraphrase and cite sources. The APA Key Elements page is a good place to start.
Conclusion
Your paper should conclude with a review of your main points and a review of your thesis. Remember to start your references on a new page. Space down until References is as the top of the final page of your paper.
References
Your paper must utilize at least eight scholarly resources (in addition to the textbook). A minimum of six of the resources must be from the peer-reviewed scholarly sources from the Ashford University Library. The following are commonly used references. Please fill in the required information, and if you need more help, see the AWC References page. References are listed in alphabetical order. Please be sure to format your references correctly according to APA 6th edition guidelines and utilize hanging indents.
Ashford Textbook (Online edition):*
Author, A. (Year published). Title of book: Subtitle of book (edition, if other than the first) [Electronic version]. Retrieved from from URL Example: Witt, G. A., & Mossler, R. A. (2010 – Essay Writing Service: Write My Essay by Top-Notch Writer). Adult development and life assessment [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books/4 Online Journal Article (such as from the Ashford Library):** Author, A. (Year Published). Article title. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), page range. doi:# or Retrieved from journal’s homepage URL **When including a URL for an online journal, you must search for the journal’s home page and include this in your reference entry. You may not include the URL found through your university library, as readers will not have access to this library.
Examples:
Churchill, S. D., & Mruk, C. J. (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay). Practicing what we preach in humanistic and positive psychology. American Psychologist, 69(1), 90-92. doi:10.1037/a0034868 Santovec, M. (2008 – Affordable Custom Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay from Pro Writers). Easing the transition improves grad retention at Trinity U. Women in Higher Education, 17(10), 32. Retrieved from http://www.trinitydc.edu/education/files/2010 – Essay Writing Service: Write My Essay by Top-Notch Writer/09/Women_in_higher_ Ed_Trinity_Transistions_10_08.pdf Online Magazine:* Author, A. (Year, Month Date Published). Article title. Magazine Title. Retrieved from URL Example: Walk, V. (2013, April 29). Can this woman fix Europe? Time. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,213969.html YouTube Video:* Author, A. [Screen name]. (Year, Month, Day). Title of video [Video file]. Retrieved from URL Example: Apsolon, M. [markapsolon]. (2011, September 9). Real ghost girl caught on video tape 14 [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nyGCbxD848 Web Page:* Author, A. (Year, Month, Date Published). Article title. Retrieved from URL Example—Corporate web page: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2008 – Affordable Custom Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay from Pro Writers). Police and detectives. Retrieved from http://bls.gov/oco/pdf/ocos160.pdf Example—Article or section within web page with no author: Presentation tools. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://web2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay.discoveryeducation.com/web20tools-presentation.cfm *Please delete the notes in this document before submitting your assignment. Political Parties, Interest Groups, and Elections As you continue to build on your final paper, it is recommended that you review the Learning Activity assignments and review the Final Paper prompt before beginning this assignment. Please be sure to review the feedback provided by your instructor on your Week One, Week Two, and Week Three Learning Activities as well. A model POL201 Final Paper Guide is provided for you to download and utilize when completing your Final Paper. The various political actors involved in the processes, activities, and policies of the U.S. government each have evolving goals and objectives. In addition, these actors have produced differential effects, both positive and negative, on the processes, activities, and policies of the federal government. In this last weekly worksheet, you will assess the positive and negative impacts of political parties, interest groups, or federal elections on the national government. In addition, you will recommend one option to enhance the positive impact and one to diminish the negative impact. This final effort will conclude the process of critically analyzing key features of our national government and prepare you for completion of your Final Paper in Week Five. To complete the assignment, save the Week Four Learning Activity Worksheet to your computer, fill it out, and submit it, via WayPoint. Develop several detailed paragraphs regarding your fourth main point using the Week Four Learning Activity Worksheet. Political Parties, Interest Groups, and Elections Select one of the following: political parties, interest groups, or elections. Focusing on the topic you have selected, develop four paragraphs that explain one strength and one weakness of the topic, as well as options to accentuate the positive impact and lessen the negative impact of the strength and weakness discussed. Scholarly Support For assistance with your research, the Ashford University’s Library provides tutorials and recorded webinars on a variety of topics. To access these helpful resources look for the links located under the [email protected] search box on the library home page. For help with writing (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. and citations (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., please review the handouts and tutorials provided by the Ashford Writing Center (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. A reference list of at least two scholarly resources from the Ashford University library with full APA citations is required. While your textbook can be utilized as a source, it does not count towards your two sources for this assignment. Two new sources should be utilized each week to meet the minimum of eight required sources for the final. By finding and supporting your material with these sources each week, you will have the research necessary to construct a strong Final Paper. The Scholarly, Peer Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a particular assignment. Be sure that the sources you are utilizing to support your ideas are valid, reliable, and not overly bias. View the POL201 Research Guide (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. for help on how to find and evaluate sources for assignments in this course.
