Liberal Arts short essay 750 words and PPT

WEEK 4 SIGNATURE ASSIGNMENT - INDIVIDUAL IN SOCIETY (with PowerPoint Screencast)

Instructions:

We live in a world full of challenges. In many places, people are experiencing rising unemployment,

political violence, poverty, and looming ecological disasters, most of these problems created by or

related to human activity. As individuals living in a free society, we are also free to pursue our private

satisfactions independently of others. Yet we are embedded in a broader societal context that includes

our family, our communities, and our nation - not to mention that it is common today to speak of an

even wider global community. In addition to these challenges, consider how social media, new media

technology and even automation are changing and shaping the world.

**Please read carefully**

This assignment includes two parts:

Part 1) A 750 word written response [short essay] to the questions below and

Part 2) A screencast presentation of this written assignment based on your written response.

Your presentation will discuss – using fluent, academic arguments (meaning ideas argued from academic

sources with a creative, compelling, logical and an imaginative use of language) – the following

questions:

 In your opinion, what is the role of the individual in helping to solve some of the problems

mentioned in the paragraph above?

 Are we more likely to solve the problems if we embrace a sense of common purpose and public

spirit focused on the collective good? Or,

 Should we focus on our private pursuits and a market mentality that says our consumption is

what makes the world go round? Does your argument account for a differing points of view?

Explain.

 Is there a balance between what the individual is responsible for and what our role should be in

the public sphere?

 To place the topic of this week’s assignment into broader historical, political, and/or social

context, search for three academic sources (e.g. books, peer-reviewed journal articles) and

reference those sources in your analysis of the individual’s role in society.

 Your presentation should be organized in a manner that allows the reader to follow the logical

progression of your arguments, your ideas are well developed, and they follow a coherent

pattern from introduction (thesis), through the body of the presentation, to the conclusion.

Part I – Essay portion of the Week 4 Signature Assignment:

1. Submit the written or essay portion of this presentation in the assignment folder labeled

*SA_WK_4_INDIVIDUAL_IN_SOCIETY. Your essay must be in proper APA or MLA format and will include

references. You should include a minimum of 3 sources, and your sources will be credible academic

sources (no Wikipedia, Ezine articles, Cliff Notes, or random stuff from the Web). In other words, you

will have to either visit a brick and mortar public/university library or use Brandman’s Leatherby

Libraries’ website to find relevant articles that address the role of the individual in society and provide

details regarding whether or not the assignment question presents a valid picture of our world by

asserting or disputing that, in many places people are experiencing rising unemployment, political

violence, poverty, and looming ecological disasters related to all the other issues mentioned on this short

list of problems.

Save your essay as a doc or rtf with your name and the assignment name in the file, using Last

Name_Assignment. So, if your name were Alicia Jackson, and this is the Individual in Society Essay, you

would title it Jackson_Individual in Society. Upload your essay by clicking on the signature assignment

folder *SA_WK_4_INDIVIDUAL_IN_SOCIETY

Part 2 – Presentation

Create a well-prepared 5 to 7 minute PowerPoint screencast presentation highlighting the key points of

your written assignment. There are tools built into PowerPoint 2010 and 2013 that allow you to record

your presentation. You may also use Screencast-o-matic, Jing, Camtasia, PowToon among other tools, to

help create your presentation. This is a presentation based on the information in your written

assignment. Please try to stay within the allotted 5 to 7 minutes. Bear in mind that writing and speaking

are two different things, and you will have to adjust your written reflection to better fit the screencast

presentation. In other words, writing for a reading audience differs from writing that will be presented

to a listening/viewing audience. Your presentation will consist mostly of images that reinforce and clarify

the written text. The images should be compelling; they can include interesting graphs or charts, and

they must somehow complement the written text (not replace it). Your narration should be clear and

intelligible, as if you were presenting in person to an actual audience. Do not weigh down your slides

with text. Make this a visually interesting presentation about an interesting subject.

The screencast of your presentation will be uploaded to Blackboard in the folder labeled Week 4

Discussion – Upload Presentation Here. This will allow you to see the wonderful presentations created

by your fellow students.

Save your screencast presentation with your name and the assignment name in the file, using Last

Name_Assignment. So, if your name were Alicia Jackson, and this is the Individual in Society Essay, you

would title it Jackson_Individual in Society_Presentation. Upload your presentation to the Week 4

Discussion 3 – Upload Presentation Here.