ESSAY

Health of Democracy Essay Rubric Due Week 2 Friday at 12 p.m. (noon)

What is a democracy? Describe 2-3 qualities of a healthy democracy. And, assess the health of our democracy. In your essay, use your digital artifact, reference at least one of your peers' artifacts, and at least two readings from Weeks 1 and 2. Grading Criteria Grade

Organization, Use of Digital Artifact Post(s) and Course Readings

• Organized and well-structured essay with a beginning, a body, and a conclusion.

• Includes a thesis statement that presents the argument of your paper; thesis/main argument is defended throughout the paper.

• Claims/arguments are backed by evidence from reading(s).

• Transitions between paragraphs.

• Includes all of the following: own digital artifact post, at least one peer’s digital artifact post, and at least two course readings from Week 1-2.

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Define Democracy and Describe 2-3 Qualities of a Healthy Democracy

• Defines democracy: what you know from k-12 or undergraduate course experiences; and, the definition of democracy that is more compelling to you (from readings, your digital artifact post, or a peer’s post) and why.

• Describes 2-3 qualities of a healthy democracy (draw from readings, your digital artifact post’s definition of democracy, and/or peers’ posts).

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Assess the Health of our Democracy

• Describes and discusses the artifact selected to show how well our democracy is currently working and why our democracy is working that way.

• Discusses whether our democracy is comprised of the qualities described.

• Draws from peers’ posts and readings.

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Format – Grammar, Style, Spelling, and Mechanics

• Essay must be 2-3 pages, double-spaced, with 12-point font (Arial, Cambria, Calibri, or Times).

• Spelling (use spell check!).

• Grammar (commas, fragments, run-on sentences, etc.).

• Mechanics (1 inch margins, citations/references).

• Style (complete sentences, avoid absolutist terms, define terms/concepts and explain, try to rephrase long quotes).

• APA format for in-text citations and reference page.

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Overall Grade: ___ / 10