American Politics Research Paper
American Politics Research Paper
Objective:All students are required to write a paper on one of the topics listed below or on a topic of your choice. The essay requires that youresearch and analyze a question of importance to contemporary American Politics. Your paper should be balanced reviewing both sides of the question and considering the arguments and evidence raised by supporters of both sides. Evaluate the arguments and evidence; then, form you own conclusions and defend them with logical arguments and evidence.
The paper must be at least five (5) pages in length but not greater than ten (10) pages. It must be typed, double spaced and 12 size font.
Papers will be evaluated both on the quality of ideas, arguments, evidence presented, and organization of the paper.
Students have the option of writing a draft of the paper, receiving feedback and then rewriting the paper.
Papers must be your own work. Anyone caught plagiarizing or cheating in any way will receive an F for the paper, and possibly for the course. (Hint: don’t cheat!)
APPROVED TOPICS TO WRITE ABOUT:
1. Should the Constitution be amended to abolish the Electoral College and provide for the direct election of the President? Discuss the arguments made for and against the Electoral College. Where do you come down in this debate?
2. Some people argue that “there is a religious war going on in the United States, a cultural war . . . for the soul of America.” The ‘culture war’ presumably centers on issues such as abortion, school prayer, and gay rights. Other disagree and argue that most Americans are pretty much middle-of-the-road on most issues with only small differences between Democrats and Republicans. What do you think? How polarized is the American public today on hot-button moral, religious and cultural issues? Write an essay in which you review and evaluate the evidence on American public opinion today.
3. Immigration policy has become a hot button issue in the US in recent years. Debate focuses on who should be admitted to the US, how many, and what to do with the millions of immigrants who are here without proper documents, some of whom have children who were born here and thus are US citizens. Write a BALANCED paper in which you summarize the major issues in this debate and review the arguments and evidence on both sides. Where do you come down in this debate? If you were President, what would your immigration policy be?
4. Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders have changed the American political structure for either the better or the worse. Each candidate has appealed to a new generation of voters that would otherwise not be involved in American politics. Please focus on ONE of the candidates and see how they have changed the American political discussion (new voters, discussion of issues, changes in media coverage, etc.) Has the candidate your chose improve or made worse the political discussion in America?
If none of these paper topics is of interest to you, you are welcome to suggest a different one. Please let me know what question you would like to explore and we can discuss further the possibilities. Here is a suggestive list of topics in American politics you may want to explore writing about.
Abortion
Affirmative Action
Budget and Taxes
Campaign and Political Reform
Crime, Death Penalty, and Drugs
Education
Environment
Euthanasia (“Right to Die”)
Foreign Policy
Gay Rights
Gun Control and the 2nd Amendment
Healthcare
International Trade
Labor Unions, Jobs, and Business
Military, War and Veterans
Marijuana Legalization and Decriminalization
Social Security
Women’s Rights
References: Please, refer to me if you have any questions about any references that you may consider while you research your topic question. Please, consider the following website for a wide array of choices to see for your issue research: L.A. Mission College Library of Databases:
Also, consider using this site: The purpose of this site is to provide resources for critical thinking and to educate on controversial issues without bias. ProCon.org research issues that are controversial and important, and they present them in a balanced, comprehensive, straightforward, transparent, and primarily pro-con format.
You are not allowed to use Wikipedia at all. Wikipedia is not a professional research source and can be easily manipulated by editors seeking to push a political or social agenda.
Research Paper Guides: The L.A. Mission College library provides a variety research paper guides that can help you with your research paper writing and research. Here is the link:
You may also talk to me or contact me about any questions or concerns that you may have while doing your research and writing your paper.
Bibliography and Citations: Any information that you use that is not original and comes from a research resource; you must cite using either footnotes or endnotes. If you need help citing your sources, please come see me during my office hours or send me an e-mail I will be more than happy to help you. A website that can help you with citations and building together your bibliography is the following website: BibMe is a website that is dedicated to helping students and professionals put together professional bibliographies and citations. This is a wonderful website that takes out just about all of the tedious work of building a bibliography and citations. Believe me, I used this site many times during graduate school.