Writing Assignment #1
Identifying and Explaining Social Patterns: Political Ideology/Perspectives
in the U.S.
This is a required assignment and must be submitted in Canvas no later than
10am on Monday, September 13th. This paper should be double-spaced and
between 750 – 1,000 words – roughly three typed pages using 12-point font.
The purpose of this assignment is for you to illustrate your
understanding of how different “perspectives” – in this particular case
political beliefs and attitudes – are based on peoples’ different experiences,
which are, in turn, affected by their social positions (age, race, sex, age,
social class, educational background, geographical area).
This exercise will indicate where you fall in a political
ideology typology developed by the Pew Research Center and have you think about
the differences between the groups identified, the social factors that have
affected others and your political stance, and the potential consequences that
might follow when it comes to thinking about social problems.
Complete the Pew Research Center’s Political
Typology Quiz. (Links to an external site.) https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/quiz/political-typology/
After completing the
quiz you will be placed in one of 9 different groups, given a brief description
of the general beliefs and attitudes of those in your category and show how you
compare to the general public.
You are to answer the following four questions, each with
multiple parts. The first question, which is purely descriptive, is worth 10%
of your grade. The second question, which involves more analysis, is worth 30%
of your grade. The third question, by far the most important, is worth the
remaining 40% of your grade. The fourth and last question is worth the
remaining 20% of your grade. I suggest that you also refer to the “Tips
for Writing Assignments” in the START HERE module.
1. Describe the typology group you have been placed in. Who
did they support in the last presidential election? What are some of their
social background characteristics? What positions do they typically take on key
issues? Are your test results consistent with your self-identification? If not,
how do you account for the differences? (10% of grade)
2. Next, you will explore the differences between the views
of members of the various typology groups by clicking on “Dig Deeper and see How the Political Typology Groups Compare. (Links
to an external site.) https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/interactives/political-typology-comparison-2017/?issue=trump-approval
“First, click on “Demographics” which is located
near the bottom of the column on the left-hand side of the page. Examine the
data to explore how the various typological groups compare when it comes to
gender, age, race/ethnicity, education, income, and party. What three
statistical patterns seemed to fit well with your understanding of the
political differences between these different categories of people? What three
patterned differences surprised you – and tell me why? Next, choose two other
categories that are listed – Race, Religion and Social Issues, Foreign Policy,
Government, Views of U.S. & Economy, or Politics & Elections – and,
using the pull-down menus attached to your choice, as before, tell me what
three patterns seemed to fit well with your understanding of political
differences and what three patterned differences surprised you – and tell me
why? (30% of grade)
3. Third – and this is the most important part of your
response – explain HOW each of the following “social factors” –
parents, peers, social class, sex, age, race, education, geographical area –
have affected your ideological perspective? Be certain to address
each of these factors. (40% of grade)
[Please note that this third question doesn’t ask you
“if” these factors have affected your political perspective – it is
assumed that they do. The question is “how” has each made an impact
on your political attitude/ideology.]
4. Fourth and last, now that you have seen and considered
the “patterned” differences in the political ideology of citizens in the United
States – that these different “perspectives” are based on peoples’ different
experiences which are, in turn, affected by their social positions rather than
their personality characteristics or lack of innate intelligence, how might
this understanding lead to a more civil and fruitful political discussion of
the political issues that divide us today? (20%)
Since the purpose of this assignment is for you to
illustrate your understanding of how different “perspectives” are based
on peoples’ different experiences which are, in turn, affected by their social
positions I suggest that you include an introductory paragraph mentioning the
key points that you learned about perspectives in Units 1A and 1B: that
perspectives are, by their very nature incomplete, and thus partial, that they
both facilitate and constrain one’s attention, etc. Then, nail down the main
point of how one’s social backgrounds – and thus their experiences – affect
what they see when looking at the world. And, as I mentioned before, I suggest
that you also refer to the
“Tips for
Writing Assignments”
(1) Each assignment has multiple parts and
questions. The most common reason that students lose points on these
essays is that they do not fully answer each of the questions that are posed.
In some instances, they simply ignore one or more of the questions included in
the prompt. When I grade these assignments, I look for reasons to give
you points, but if you have left out one of the four questions included in
the prompt, you have just lost somewhere between 10% and 25% of the points for
the assignment (depending upon how much each question is worth).
In other instances, although each question is addressed, the
answers provided are much too brief. These questions are designed to need
between 750 – 1,000 words – at least three full pages, 12 point-font – to be
answered adequately. And to answer these questions adequately, you need to
refer to the class lecture notes as well as the relevant assigned readings,
videos and web pages
So, please follow directions.
(2) The purpose of these essays is to have you
illustrate your understanding of the sociological perspective –
the types of questions that we raise and the types of factors we examine in
order to better understand the world around us. To do so we rely on certain
“tools”: the theoretical approaches that you will learn about and, perhaps more
important, the concepts that focus our attention on certain aspects of the
social world. In these assignments, then, you will be expected to show that you
can “use” or “apply” these theories and concepts in a precise manner – that you
can “speak the language” of sociology. This, of course, means that you will be
asked to “define” each of the concepts that you use to guide your
analysis.
Think of it this way: in order to earn the grade of “A” in a
conversational language course – Spanish, German, French, Latin, Mandarin – you
would need to show that you can speak and understand the particular language
that you are studying. The same applies here in the case of sociology.
In addition, when grading these assignments, I typically ask
myself: “Could your friend – who has never taken a course in sociology – write
the same essay as you just did?” If the answer is yes, it is highly
unlikely that your essay will receive an “A.” Your friend – however
insightful he or she might be – might be able to apply their common
sense and use impressionistic or anecdotal accounts
to address the assigned questions, but let me remind you once more: Sociology
is a systematic way of looking at the world – it is not simply common
sense nor is it based on impressionistic or anecdotal accounts.
If your friend has never taken a sociology course, they are ill equipped to
provide a sociological analysis. They would typically not recognize – they
likely would never have heard of – the theoretical perspectives or concepts
that sociologists typically use to guide their analyses – the theoretical
perspectives and concepts that you need to convince me that you understand.
Also, please understand that not all sociologists agree with
one another when it comes to interpreting what goes on in the world. This means
that you and I might disagree about things. But if we do, it will not affect
your grade – what I am looking for is a well-organized, concise and logical
analysis and/or argument – relying upon sociological concepts – that you will
present to back-up your interpretation.
(3) Although there is no exact-grading-rubric for
each essay, you can assume that I am “looking for reasons to give you
points.” As just mentioned – and it is worth repeating – I am
looking for a well-organized, concise and logical analysis and/or argument that
relies upon sociological concepts that you will present to support your
analysis. Be certain, too, that you draw upon the relevant class readings
– both from the textbook and from the additional articles and web sites that I
provide to add weight to your answer. And be certain that you define the
appropriate concepts. Let me remind you: the purpose of these essays is
to have you show me that you understand the sociological perspective – how we
raise certain questions and examine social factors to deepen our understanding
of the world.
Remember, too, that each essay assignment has multiple
parts. Unless otherwise noted, you can expect each part of the set of questions
to carry equal weight.
(4) You will notice that on two occasions – for
Unit 3 on “Sociological Theory” and Unit 5 on “Socialization
& the Role of the Mass Media” – I have provided “sample
essays.” These are intended to give you some sense of how to
organize your essays – by being “simple and direct.”
(5) I strongly urge that you use the
“Spelling and Grammar” check tool that is a part of Microsoft
Word before you submit your paper. If you are not familiar with this
tool, look at the top band/line of the tabs above the actual document. You
should see, in order, File – Edit – View – Insert – Format – Tools – Table –
Window – Help. When you open the drop-down tab of “Tools,” the first thing that
you will see is “Spelling and Grammar.” This will indicate which – if any –
words are mis-spelled and offer solutions. It will also flag grammatical errors
and suggest changes.
Last Completed Projects
| topic title | academic level | Writer | delivered |
|---|