critical thinking assignment

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Critical Thinking Assignment (100 points) Assignment Requirements

Critical thinking assignments ask you to write short essay questions. You are required to answer the questions presented using class readings and other sources to support your answer. You will be graded based on your ability to develop and support a coherent response. Proper grammar and spelling will be expected. Please note the following:

1. Critical Thinking Assignment must be completed in your own words and must be your own work. You may not use other students’ work as your own, nor can you simply copy-and-paste answers from reading material or web sites.

2. You must cite the sources you use in your CTA. Failure to reference the source of

your information is a form of plagiarism. For this assignment, proper citations will include a work’s title, author, date, who published the work, and page number.

3. ECU’s Academic Dishonesty rules apply. You should not copy and paste. The full

policy can be found here: ECU Academic Integrity Policy

4. You will be graded on content, word count (where indicated), organization, grammar, spelling and the inclusion of appropriate citations.

Assignment Instructions

Choose one of the four questions listed below and follow the above guidelines in answering the question you have selected. The CTA should be about 500 words long and must have citations and clear referencing (no Wikipedia) or copying and pasting from the internet.

1. While the Constitution has been amended only 27 times since it was drafted in 1787, there have been thousands of proposed amendments. In recent years, one of the proposed amendment has been a School Prayer Amendment which was proposed on April 9, 2003, to establish that “The people retain the right to pray and to recognize their religious beliefs, heritage, and traditions on public property, including schools.” Research the pros and cons of this amendment and make a recommendation regarding whether it should be adopted.

2. Discuss how lobbies (interest groups) and lobbyists affect the legislative process?

What changes would you make and why?

3. Discuss the relationship between the president and the media. How well does this relationship serve the public interest?

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4. Discuss some of the key ideas and policies of various strains of conservatism. What do you expect of conservatism in the future and why?

Grading Rubric The critical thinking assignment should be about 500 words and must have citations and clear referencing (no Wikipedia) or copying and pasting from the internet. In CTA you are expected to engage in a critical thinking and analysis process, assessing the facts and arguments presented both in the readings, class discussions and in your own individual research.

Criterion Poor (5/25) Fair (10/25) Excellent (25/25)

Content & Development

• Content is incomplete i.e. major points are not clear and/or persuasive

• Content is not comprehensive and or persuasive

• Major points are addressed but not well supported by examples

• Research is inadequate or does to strive to answer the question

• Content is inconsistent with regard to purpose and clarity of thought

• Content is comprehensive, accurate and persuasive

• Major points are stated clearly and are well supported by use of examples

• Research is adequate, timely and fully answers the question

• Content is consistent with regard to purpose and clarity of thought

Organization & Structure

• Organization and structure is incoherent

• Paragraphs are disjointed and lack transition thoughts

• Paragraph structure is not easy to follow

• Paragraph transition nee improvement

• Structure of the paragraph is clear and easy to follow

Format • Paragraphs are inadequate and or excessive in length

• Paper is way over or under the required word count (800 words

• Paper is appropriate in length described for the assignment

Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling

• Paper contains numerous grammatical errors i.e. punctuation and spelling errors

• Paper contain few grammatical, punctuation and spelling errors.

• Language lacks clarity • Paper include the use

of some jargon or conversational tone

• Rules of grammar usage and punctuation are followed and use of correct spelling is adhered to throughout the paper.

• Language is clear and precise

• Sentences display is consistently strong