Analyze a policy topic, using insights from class

You will do the Issue Analysis paper – I’ll provide the big idea on the

other pdf

Analyze a policy topic, using insights from class, in a well-structured

essay of approximately 500-700 words. You should follow one of these two

formats: Big Ideas Choose a hot policy issue. Analyze it through the lens of

the one of the “big ideas” from lecture. A running list of big ideas will be

kept on D2L. For example, you could use the idea that group identity is

central to public opinion to craft a thesis such as: “I argue that public

opinion regarding COVID policy is explained by identity-driven differences

rather than by well-informed preferences over policy outcomes.”

BIG IDEA PROMPT: Most citizens do not have well-formed ideologies or

issue positions.

LETTCURE SLIDES ARE IN THE OTHER PDF

You can find information about most citizens do not have well-formed

ideologies or issue positions. In slide 22

GUIDELINES FOR ESSAYS

-Approximately 500-700 words; less if you’re concise, more if you

have something to say. The important thing is that you write a paper

that adequately makes your argument. Don’t fill space or cut just to

meet a word-count requirement.

-All essays require course material, and some require – or at least

would benefit from – outside sources. There are no minimum numbers

for outside sources, so use as many as you need to make your

argument convincingly. For example, a Big Ideas Issue Analysis will

need several high-quality outside sources, whereas a Friday Cool-

Down Issue Analysis may only need the required commentary.

-Navigate the Internet with care. Part of your grade is determined by

the quality of your sources. See below for further guidelines.

-If a fact or idea did not come from your brain or my mouth, you must

cite its source. This is a two-step process: 1) identify the cited

passage within the text (parenthetical or footnote #), and then give

sufficient information so that I can find the source if desired (in a

footnote or works

cited page). I have no preference for particular styles (MLA, APA,

Chicago, etc.) – just be consistent.

-The best essays will be tightly organized around a concise thesis,

with every subsequent paragraph flowing from it. Following directions

and using course concepts accurately are paramount in the grading

rubric, along with flawless spelling/grammar and clear organization.

-Make an argument in your thesis. That doesn’t mean a mere

unsubstantiated opinion; it means making an original observation

about your topic and developing and defending it with logic and

evidence.

TIPS FOR USING OUTSIDE SOURCES (for any activity)

There is a lot of garbage on the Internet, so it is vital to be a careful

consumer of information. News reports are likely to be your most

common sources. Most major news outlets can be

trusted – but you need to know the difference between straight

(neutral) news and opinion/commentary. Analyzing commentary is

required for the Friday Cool-Down variety of Issue Analysis. For other

types of papers, though, it is ok to use commentary as an example of

liberal or conservative opinion on an issue, but not as the source of

factual assertions. The Media Bias Chart is a good place to check the

credibility of your sources (zoom in to see the individual names, and

use the search function if you don’t see your source’s icon). For

straight news, you should stay within the green box. Be aware,

though, that most of those outlets have commentary as well, so try to

figure out whether what you’re reading is someone’s opinion or a

neutral telling of a factual story. If you’re quoting something because

it’s opinion, then you may stray outside the green box – but try to

avoid the junk outlets in the lower-left and lower-right corners. Some

of the best analysis comes from political scientists or scientifically

literate data journalists.

I would recommend the following sites:

-The Monkey Cage (poli sci, all topics)

-Mischiefs of Faction (poli sci, mostly about parties and elections)

-FiveThirtyEight (high-quality data journalism)

-Vox (mixed quality – but their articles about political science research

are excellent)

For the best analysis of public opinion, I would recommend searching

the Pew Research site. For academic research, you should use TCU

library databases (I recommend “Political Science Complete”) or

Google Scholar to find published articles in scholarly journals. They

tend to be dense, but even one or two citations of them can make a

good paper excellent. You’ll also find many links to them in Monkey

Cage, FiveThirtyEight, and Vox articles.