Test and Project

hello all-
I'm moving the ECON test to Thursday and Friday.  I think we need a little more time.  We'll review tomorrow and Wednesday.

Also, I'm giving you an extension on your group project (THE MARKET) until March 29 and March 30.  If you're already done, let me know and I will give you some bonus.

Mr. Knight

Instructions for Stock Game

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žGo to smartstocks.com

žClick “Play Now” (on the right)

žClick “Don’t have an account” and create one

žLogout and go back to “Play Now”

žClick “Join Group” on group menu (on left). Find the group (below). The name is “FDHS ECON 2012”. Password is “FDHS.”  Now start trading stocks!

žThis is for a grade and you must make at least two trades per week until March 26 to pass the assignment.  Winners get free lunch.

ee lunch.

HW

—  Drawing on what you’ve learned today (about the President) and recently (about Congress) which of the two branches are more powerful?  Or are they equally powerful in different ways?  Explain using evidence from your notes about the President and Congress.

—  I would say you can do this effectively in 2-3 paragraphs (please make a claim and clarify your claim)

Extra Credit Due 1/24 and 1/25

Task: Create a primer (i.e. fancy word for guide) to the 2012 United States Election, focusing on the Presidential portion of the election.  The primer should be in the form of a magazine or a brochure and should preferably be created using Microsoft Word, Microsoft Publisher, or some other comparable type of software. The primer should be written in an accessible, entertaining and non-academic way that would appeal to the average American reader, not just the average American college professor.

Components: The primer must include a number of required sections, and may include any additional sections you choose to add on your own.  The list below represents the required sections.

1. Guide to the Candidates-For each of the required candidates, give a brief biographical sketch of their political or professional history, and then discuss their specific ideas and beliefs on major issues.  Include at least one picture of the candidate with the description.  Required candidates: Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman, Ron Paul, Michelle Bachman, Rick Perry, and three non-Republicans and Democrats of your choice.
This website is a good starting point for research: http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2012/campaign-issues.html
The following website will help you greatly: http://elections.nytimes.com/2012/primaries/candidates
This one will as well: http://uselectionnews.org/category/candidate-spotlight/
In addition, I would recommend going to all of the candidates official websites for any additional information.

2. Guide to the Issues-What will the major issues of the 2012 Presidential Campaign be?  Which of these issues will be most important.  Research these questions and present what you find in the second part of your primer.
Again, the CNN Election page is pretty useful on this topic: http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2012/campaign-issues.html

3. Guide to Money!: Which candidates have raised the most money (pick the top five)?  What major sources (i.e.States) has their money come from?  How do the fundraising accomplishments of these candidates compare with past Presidential candidates?
This site is key completing this: http://elections.nytimes.com/2012/campaign-finance?hp&ref=politics#canda=barack-obama&candb=rick-perry

4. Your Endorsement: What candidate do you most support?  Why?  What is it about this candidate that you think will make them the best pick to lead our country?

5. Your Prediction: Who do think will actually win, and why?

Primer should be accessible, informative, textually-rich, and graphically-rich.  Please provide a list of all resources used on the last page of your primer.

All Retake Questions So Far

Retake Questions for Test 1

1. Define and explain (i.e. give specific and realistic examples that relate to specific parts of our government) of each of the following: separation of powers, checks and balances and federalism.
2. What rights are guaranteed by the Bill of Rights?  Explain the main points of each of the first ten amendments.

Retake Questions for Test 2

1. Identify and full explain the effect of 5 factors that influence how a person is politically socialized.
2. Originally, the Constitution left most of the decisions over elections and how they should be handled to the states.  Gradually, voting rights and the conduct of elections were taken over to a greater extent by the federal government.  Explain in detail how the composition of the American electorate has expanded by fully explaining, in order, each of the following: the 15th amendment, the 17th amendment, the outlawing of the grandfather clause, the 19th amendment, the outlawing of white primaries, the 23rd amendment, the 24th amendment, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the 26th amendment.
3. Differentiate between liberals and conservatives by referring to and explaining their respective beliefs on 5 different issues such as abortion, gay marriage and the economy.

Retake Questions for Test 3

1. Interest Groups and Political Parties are both important in their role of influencing and connecting citizens to government, but are different in many ways.  Explain the major differences between Interest Groups and Political Parties by identifying and explaining their main purpose, as well as the many methods they use to achieve those purposes.
2. Describe the importance of each of the following steps of an election: Primaries, Nominating Conventions (aka Party Conventions), General Election (Election Day), and Electoral College.
3. Discuss the the way in which corporate control of media and the fact that media outlets (newspapers and television) have to make profits to stay in business affects the ways in which political news is presented by the media.
   

I'm Just a Bill Holiday Project

Assignment: 

Write your own bill to be submitted in our Congress.  Must be typed in the following format.  Due the day we return from break.  We will use the bills in a mock Congress that will count for the equivalent of a test grade. (Make sure to email Mr. Knight to find out if you are a Democrat or a Republican.

Format it must follow:

Title: Ex: The Soda-Regulation Act

Introduction/Rationale (4-6 sentences): Explains your reasons for writing this bill and explains the positive effects you feel it will have on our country.

Ex: Sugary sodas consumed by American citizens are one of the chief contributors to many health problems in America.  Sodas are consumed at an alarming rate in America.  One can only imagine the medical bills that would not exist if sodas were regulated in a better way.  My bill will lead to a more physically and economically fit America.  My bill will encourage healthy diets and save the government huge amounts of money that might otherwise be spent on health care.

Section 1 (one sentence): Explains what exactly your bill will do.

Ex: Hereby, all soda consumption in the United States of America, will be subject to a 20% tax.  Specifically, consumers will be 20% tax each time they purchase soda.

Section 2 (one sentence): Gives further information about what your bill will do.

Ex: Soda beverages are defined as any drink with a 20% carbonation count that provides at least 16g of sugar in a serving.

Section 3 (one sentence): Gives further information about what your bill will do.

Ex:  Revenue from the taxing of soda beverages will be directed and given to the US Department of Health for use at their discretion.

Section 4 (one sentence): Adds “pork” to your bill.

Ex: $50,000 in funds to research the effects on literacy levels of watching rodeos will be directed the state of Tennessee.

Political Parties

—Create a blueprint for a new political party created by YOU.  Include the following: a symbol, 10 key principles (in sentence form) your party is based on (Ex: Small government), and a party platform (where you describe, in at least two paragraphs, your plan for how your party will improve America).

—HW: Research ONE of the following FIVE parties and find and write about 5 key principles (Ex: Pro-Life) they stand for: Republican Party, Democrat Party, Green Party, Reform Party, Tea Party

EQs so far...

1.       What is a “good” government and why?

2.       What are the main types of government and what are their strengths and weaknesses?

3.       What were the major contributions to political thought of the following political thinkers: Plato, Aristotle, Locke, Hobbes, and Machiavelli?

4.       What weaknesses existed in the Articles of Confederation and in what ways did the Constitution correct those weaknesses?

5.       How would you explain the essential components of the Constitution (separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism) and how do these components help create a more balanced government that protects the people?

6.       What are the major powers of the Federal and State governments (including their shared powers)?

7.       What major powers are given to each branch of government and how can these powers be stretched?

8.       What major rights are given in the Bill of Rights?

9.       How have the rights contained in the Bill of Rights been limited?

10.    What is public opinion and how is it measured?

11.    In what ways have you been politically socialized?

12.    What is political ideology and what is my political ideology?

13.    What are the major ways we participate in politics and what factors influence the degree to which we participate?

14.    What factors have led the federal government to expand the electorate and why do vote at the rates we vote?

Study Guide for Monday and Tuesday Test

Study Guide for Monday/Tuesday Test

1.       What is public opinion and how is it measured?

2.       What is political ideology, what are the major political ideologies, and what factors, through political socialization, lead to its development?

3.       What are the ways people participate in politics and what factors influence the degree to which they participate?

There will be between 30-40 regular questions on the test, and one short essay.

Benchmark I Retake (Thursday November 3) Retake Questions

The following are the questions for your retake Thursday.  Each should be answered in a full essay in order to get full credit.

1. Define and explain (i.e. give specific and realistic examples that relate to specific parts of our government) of each of the following: separation of powers, checks and balances and federalism.
2. What rights are guaranteed by the Bill of Rights?  Explain the main points of each of the first ten amendments.

Test Next Week and Notebook Check

Folks:
Good day.  Our test will be next Monday and Tuesday.  The test will cover the material on Political Culture, Public Opinion, Political Ideology, Political Socialization and Political Participation from the notes.
Test format:
Multiple Choice, Matching, True/False, One Toulmin

I will also be checking your notebooks for the first time ever.  Below is the description of how it should be set up:


Notebook:  All students are required to maintain a course notebook.  The notebook must stay current and organized.  There will be periodic, unannounced, notebook checks and the notebook will be turned in at the end of both semesters.  This is designed to keep the students organized and can serve as a needed grade boost for the student.  The notebook MUST be organized as follows:  The first section includes your daily EQ log, to be updated on a daily basis.  The second section contains all vocabulary related work for each unit.  The third section contains all notes taken throughout the year, separated by unit. The fourth section lists all of the Supreme Court cases we have covered in class.  There could be a quiz on these cases at any point during the school year.  The fifth section should include any visual materials you are given or you produce (charts, graphs, brochures etc).  The sixth section should include all quizzes and tests.  The seventh section will include written responses to class discussions, debates and Socratic seminars.  The eighth section is the unit essay section.  In that section the student will store all unit essay practices, information, and responses.

Polling Assignment-DUE Nov 15 and 16

Polling Assignment (100 pts) (Project Grade)

Create your own poll about your own topic (must relate to something we might discuss in class and must be approved by me), conduct the poll, and submit a report based on your results.

Components

1.       Poll (3 questions with 4 possible answers each) that focuses on a specific topic (health care, President, abortion, Constitution, immigration)

Examples:

How would you rate Barack Obama’s accomplishments as President so far?

A.      Very successful

B.      Moderately successful

C.      Not very successful

D.      Failure

How do you feel about nationalized health insurance?

A.      The government should provide health insurance to all legal and illegal residents of our country

B.      The government should provide health insurance to citizens of our country

C.      The government should provide health insurance to a very limited selection of our population

D.      The government should not provide health insurance to anyone

2.       Poll Report (Summary and analysis of your poll results)

In this section, you will provide written as well as graphic illustrations of your poll results.  You should summarize your poll results in paragraph form, as well as through graphs created on Graph Creator, and provide an analysis of your poll results (i.e. attempt to explain why your classmates might have felt the way they did based on their social, economic, religious and political influences).  One to two pages of text and three pages of graphs (one for each question) should suffice.  Make sure to also include a copy of your three questions.  (Order: (1) title page, (2) questions page, (3) results summary, (4) graph 1, (5) graph 2, (6) graph 3)

Specifications:

·         Must poll at least 30 students (can only poll Seniors and they must be randomly selected.  We will discuss how to do this in class.) 

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·         Must turn in by

·         Must be typed in Times New Roman, 12 pt font, with 1 inch margins

Sample Topics:

·         Abortion

·         Defense Spending

·         Entitlement Programs (Social Security, Welfare etc.)

HW

Take the following online quiz and be prepared to share your results (i.e. what ideology it said you have) in class Monday and/or Wednesday and Tuesday and/or Thursday.
Quiz location:
http://www.theadvocates.org/quiz

For Monday the 17th and Tuesday the 18th

Read the following article and complete a TIPPSummary and a QPR on it.
Article One: The status of the unborn: A person already?
Think about (and be prepared to discuss) the following questions:

• Why is Mississippi attempting to define legally when life begins?
• What potential impact could this have on the right to have an abortion?
• What other questions might this raise?

Welcome...week's events

Welcome students and parents.  Please use this blog to keep up with past and upcoming events in the class.

As far as this (and next week) goes:
This week...
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday: Finish mock trials
Friday: Guest speaker!

Next week...
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday: Constitution and Bill of Rights Test
Thursday, Friday: Begin Political Culture and Public Opinion