Module 9

 

Week 9

 

It is the final week before a major election. This week, while I read midterms, please choose your own election-related focus relating to “parties, politics and campaigning.” Read articles, watch media, talk to other people… whatever furthers your chosen focus. Then write a blog entry describing your focus, your thoughts, and what you learned over the course of this final week of the presidential campaign.

 

Next week, to give you a heads-up, we will be watching DW Griffiths’ classic film depicting the birth of the KKK and, some would argue, the birth of post-slavery American racism, Birth of a Nation. Perhaps it provides insight into some of the white supremacist movements that have become emboldened over the past few years. This is a 3-hour film, mostly silent. The NDNU Library has ensured streaming access free of charge for students enrolled in the class, so you won’t need to pay for the film, but you should start looking for a time to watch it next week. Next week’s Module 10 will include study questions to respond to while watching the film, and we will be finding a time for a zoom meeting to discuss afterwards. 

Midterm

 Midterm: Parties, Politics & Campaigning

Andrews/Fall 2020

 

 

Please respond to 3 of the following topics. Your responses should be 2-3 paragraphs in length. Spend approximately 20 minutes on each response. These responses are worth 10 points each. You may use your books, blogs and notes.  Please send me your responses BY EMAIL no later than 11pm on Sunday, October 25.

 

 

1) Discuss anti-intellectualism in the context of American politics in general and/or the 2020 election cycle in particular. Are we in danger of becoming an “Idiocracy”?

 

 

2) What did the Founding Fathers have to say about factions? Were they right to dwell on this subject… are factions indeed potentially harmful to American democracy? Cite examples as part of your reply.




3)Discuss this year’s presidential and vice presidential debates. In what ways have they been good or poor examples of democracy in action?

 

4) What do Plato and Aristotle have to say about democracy? Are their ideas relevant for our experience in 2020?

 

 

5) Has our national response to the pandemic become politicized this election year? Discuss.

Module 8

Module 8

 

It’s midterm week… that can be stressful and since we have a flexible class format, we can be flexible about how you manage your time this week. Please feel free to give priority to your other midterms, which may have stricter deadlines. You can catch up on your modules for this class later in the week… deadline for all module work is now 11pm this coming Sunday, October 25. My priority is to make sure you have an opportunity to do your best work, not to have the work by an arbitrary deadline. 

 

What I DO need for you to do now is to spend some time looking through your notes and blog posts for this class so far and send me 3 short-answer style questions that you feel would be appropriate to ask on a midterm. Please send me these by email by this coming Tuesday, October 20 at 11pm. I will send/post your midterm exam on Wednesday, October 22, and your replies will be due at 11pm on Sunday, October 25. The format for the midterm will be all short-answer questions, in which you’ll give answers 1-3 paragraphs in length. An example would be: What did the Founding Fathers have to say about factions? Were they right to dwell on this subject… are factions indeed potentially harmful to American democracy? Cite examples as part of your reply.

 

So, recap of this week: You send me your 3 proposed midterm questions by email by Tuesday 11pm, I will email/post your midterm exam on Wednesday, your responses and any remaining Module work are all due by Sunday 11pm. Hopefully, that timeline allows you ample opportunities to plan your time and get your work done before, after, or during midterm break, according to your preference.

Module 7

Week 7

 

We are almost halfway through the semester, believe it or not. Next week is midterms week. We will be doing some midterm review starting Monday.

 

For this week, please focus on catching up with your Modules through Module 6.

 

In addition, please read the following very short article on the history of poll watching, yet another controversial topic that has come up in the context of the 2020 presidential election. Using the information in this and other sources you may choose to cite, please write a short (2-page… approximately 500 words) paper on the topic of poll watching: Is poll watching an allowable practice? Is it necessary? How and why did it arise? What are some possible impacts we might see if it takes place during the 2020 election cycle? Email your paper to me… you do not have to post a blog entry this week.

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-poll-watchers-facts-expl/challengers-observers-and-electioneering-the-history-and-rules-of-u-s-poll-watching-idUSKBN26S1IH

Module 6

Week 6

 

I’ve not seen any replies to Module 5 in your blogs this week. If for some reason you didn’t get Module 5 by email, please don’t forget that you’ll also find it posted to the class website. If you are having a hard time keeping up with the class, let me know and we can work on that together.

 

Or… maybe it’s just because I asked you to watch that very painful debate. I’m sorry I put you through that! But presidential debates are part of parties, politics and campaigning… even when they may not seem “presidential.”

 

This week, please watch the vice-presidential debate, which will air on Wednesday night. You can watch it live or afterwards via recording.In your blog post this week, discuss three topic areas debated by the vice-presidential candidates… choose the three topics of greatest interest or importance to you. Did you find the candidates’ statements about the topic satisfying? Why or why not? Did you find their statements in general credible? How do you think an undecided voter might assess the debate?

 

Poll workers are needed! If you are interested in being a poll worker this year, here is information about how to sign up for that. You will receive extra credit in the class for serving as a poll worker. If you are unable to serve as a poll worker but would like an alternative extra credit assignment, you can propose a different form of involvement which likewise furthers the goal of promoting democracy this election season. 

https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/poll-worker-information