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 you research 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 six (6) 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: dont 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. The Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street, unheard of five years ago, are now a major factors in American Politics. Write an essay in which you assess both the factors that explain the sudden rise of the Tea Party OR Occupy Wall Street in America and evaluate its impact on American Politics and public policy. Has the Tea Party OR Occupy Wall Street been good or bad for America? Why?
5. The high levels of partisanship in Congress in recent years have all but paralyzed the institution making it almost impossible to pass even the most routine legislation. Thirty years ago, Congress was much less partisan, and it was common for Democrats and Republicans to compromise to pass legislation on a bipartisan basis. What are the main factors that explain the increasing partisanship in Congress over the past 30 years? Identify the major explanations offered by political scientists and journalists and evaluate the arguments and evidence is support of each. What do you think? Which explanations are most persuasive to you? Why?
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
Womens Rights

PAPER / RESEARCH PROPOSAL (will be covered in more detail in class) • For this paper you will propose a research project to study some aspect of human – animal interactions taking a perspective from one of the following disciplines: sociology, economics, political science, psychology, criminal justice, social work, or communications (the study must involve humans – it cannot be strictly on animal behavior). • NOTE: You are only writing a proposal – you do not have to conduct the actual study! • Your paper will be 10-15 double spaced numbered pages, Times-Roman 12 point font, one inch margins, and stapled together (no clips, folders, or plastic covers • Your paper should include the following six sections with BOLDED section headings:  1 page: Overview o A research question that should be clearly stated (as a question!) and bolded. o A brief discussion on why you think this is an important question o What is the social science discipline you’re focusing on and why you think that is the best framework to consider your question  1-2 pages: Methods o A discussion of which research methodology you would use to collect your data o Why you think that would be the best way to collect data to answer your research question. o How you would recruit subjects. For example, if you were conducting a study on zoos (a topic you CANNOT use) you may say you would:  interview all of the directors of AZA accredited zoos in the U.S.  have the first 50 people, who were at least 13 years old, that were entering the Columbus Zoo on a given date complete your survey.  prepare an email letter, with a link to an online survey, that would be sent to all members of the Toledo Zoo  invite teachers K-12 to participate in focus groups on how they use the Cleveland Zoo, or resources from the zoo, in teaching their students  4-7 pages: Literature Review o Should include 7-10 sources with a minimum of 6 peer reviewed journal articles. Please note: one of the most consistent reasons for points being deducted is for doing an Annotated Bibliography instead of a Lit Review. There are guides to Lit Reviews, as well as a sample Lit Review (though you can skip the running head!), on Isidore.  1-2 pages: Challenges o What are potential problems or challenges you may run into if you were to conduct this research o You can include ethical issues, subject recruitment, etc.  1 page: Role of Theory o This will be a generic discussion of the role that theory plays in research (it will have nothing to do with your topic) o In addition to class discussions, the role of theory in research is covered in the pdf of powerpoints, and some of the readings, for exam #1 o You should think of this part of your proposal as addressing the 4th learning objectives on page one of the syllabus.  1-2 pages: Future Research o Pick two of the following four categories: Race, Gender, Social Class, and Location (where you live – for example, suburban, urban, rural) and in 1-2 paragraphs for each category address the following  Identify a research question that connects how the category may influence your topic in general (you should also bold the text of the research question). • For example, if the overall topic is exotic pets and the category is Location, you could ask: Are people who live in countries where tigers are native less likely to keep them as pets?  In a paragraph explain what you think the answer may be and why. •