Final Exam Review Blog

Ahhh... the last blog of the semester. This is simply an opportunity for you to ask and answer each other's questions and discuss anything that you think will be helpful in preparation for the final. I would suggest looking at your class notes, handouts from class, and your reading assignments along with your review sheet. This is primarily an open forum for you so check back often during the week and comment/question/ponder/review as much as you would like. 

One request: please take just a couple of minutes to complete your course evaluation if you have not done so already. I would really appreciate it. Just follow this link to go to Campus Connect.


Good luck with all of your studying!

Also you can find a digital version of the final review sheet here: http://americanpoliticalculture.wordpress.com/course-documents/

For Class on 6/5: Looking Forward...

We have addressed American political culture from many perspectives this quarter. We have discussed the evolution of American political culture and several of the important elements that continue to shape it including, immigration, race, ethnicity, religion, education, elections and representation, etc. Although we often find it challenging to view things outside of the modern day perspective, much has changed over time. Consider the following:

2 months ago: you started this class
2 year ago: Protestants no longer make up majority of American population
6 year ago: the first nonwhite president was elected
7 years ago: Unemployment 4.5%, DOW at 14,000 (Today Unemployment 6.3% overall, 12.1% for African Americans, 9.1% for Hispanics, 4.8% for Asian Americans, DOW 16,700 )
8 years ago: very few of us had ever heard of Barack Obama
11 years ago: The supreme court ruled that colleges still had legitimate reasons to use race and ethnicity as factors in college admissions
13 years ago: 9/11
23 years ago: the Rodney King Case and racially charged rioting
36 years ago: Regents of University of CA vs. Bakke
41 years ago: Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion nationwide
46 years ago: modern civil rights movement ends (according to most historians), Martin Luther King killed, major riots, peak of troops in Vietnam
47 years ago: third year in a row of major racially charged riots throughout American cities
49 years ago: Voting Rights Act of 1965, new immigration laws dramatically increase immigration (especially from Asia and Latin America), Black Power movement, Malcolm X killed
50 years ago: Civil Rights Act of 1964
51 years ago: March on Washington, Birmingham protests
59 years ago: Montgomery Bus Boycott
60 years ago: Brown vs. Board of Education
69 years ago: end of WWII
70 years ago: Interment of 110,000 Japanese Americans
94 years ago: Women gain the right to vote
107 years ago: peak of immigration at turn of century
118 years ago: Plessy vs. Ferguson - separate but equal is constitutional
120 years ago: widespread lynching and intimidation
126 years ago: Chinese Exclusion Act
137 years ago: end of reconstruction, early Jim Crow Era (which lasts nearly 100 years)
144 years ago: 15th amendment - black men given right to vote
146 years ago: 14th amendment
148 years ago: 13th amendment - end of slavery
149 years ago: end of Civil War, Start of reconstruction, black codes
153 years ago: start of Civil War
205 years ago: end of slave trade
227 years ago: Constitution written including 3/5 compromise and slavery
238 years ago: Declaration of Independence
395 years ago: first slaves from Africa brought to colonies
407 years ago: first British Colony established
several thousand years earlier: Native Americans living here.

The point: much has changed, and often in a short period of time. Looking forward what do you predict will be the state of American political culture 10, 20, or even 50 years from now? What can and should be done politically to help?

One request: please take just a couple of minutes to complete your course evaluation if you have not done so already. I would really appreciate it. Just follow this link to go to Campus Connect.

For Class on 5/29: Religion in America

This week we explore the role of religion in America and there are many directions we can go. However, it seems only fair that as students at the largest Catholic University in America we spend our blog discussion on the role of religion on campus. We have already discussed the role of various socializing factors in our political values and ideology. Outside of our parents it is hard to argue that anything has much more of an impact on our political outlook that our education and our religion (including those of us who are nonreligious). And for much of us those two elements have been linked through parochial schooling at various levels. Obviously we all have various religious affiliations and range in our religious observance from extremely observant to completely nonreligious.

I would like you to address the role the religion plays in your views about society, and by extension about political issues. Have these beliefs been affected by your schooling, whether parochial or public? Please share any thoughts about the nature of religion and politics at DePaul. We are clearly a Catholic institution that leans fairly heavily toward more liberal social politics (generally speaking). What have you discovered about the religious life on campus that is is either surprising or particularly notable in terms of our school culture or politics? This should be a general discussion and you can feel free to expand or elaborate on any aspect of the prompts above or any comments of your classmates.

For Class on 5/22: Inequality in America

Last week we saw a video detailing the incredible inequality of wealth in America. This video described the differences between what most Americans think should be the distribution, what they think it actually is, and the real income inequality. The results were startling and need to be discussed further. However, there are some important things that the video leaves out, most notably the concept of income mobility (just skim the main ideas), which we also discussed briefly last week.

When thinking about class it is important to look at issues from multiple perspectives as much as possible, which is not always easy to do. Take a few minutes to play this web "game" spent, which places you in a position of one of the millions of Americans who are unemployed and are down to their last bit of savings. The goal is simple: survive one month. Good luck: http://playspent.org/playspent.html. Feel free to share your experiences in your comments below.

One of our readings for the week is about inequality in America and it's potential threat to democracy and as something that may contradict the American political ideal of equality of opportunity. I would like you to address the issue of inequality using any of the following questions as a starting point. Please start a discussion with one another and refer to each other's comments when possible.

Is income inequality and/or wealth inequality a problem for America politically or socially? Does it contradict fundamental American political ideals, or does it reinforce the American Dream by supporting a meritocracy where one can succeed if they work hard? Finally, what should the role of government be in terms of providing assistance to the poor or helping to reduce the income or wealth inequality in America (or should the government stay out of issues such as these)?

For Class on 5/15: Check Your Privilege

Over the past two weeks we have been reading and discussing many ideas about privilege. Most notably we read Peggy McIntosh's "Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack," which described White privilege and gave a number of examples that we discussed in class last week. The concept of privilege clearly can be applied to many areas beyond race, including gender, geography, and class, the main topic that we will start to address this week. Recently the topic of privilege has made the news based on the increasingly common use of the phrase: "Check your privilege." The use of this phrase and various reactions to it have spun into many different dialogues weaving their way through the blogosphere, social media, and cable television. For this week's blog I would like you to focus on the debate emanating from Princeton University centered on this phrase. First read the post that started much of the recent uproar written by a Princeton freshman here. Next read the public response to the first argument written by another Princeton student and printed in TIME Magazine here (you may also want to check out the I Too Am Princeton Tumblr here).

Much of the debate centers on whether there is, in fact privilege and whether this supports or disproves meritocracy. We started this discussion last week but I would like to hear your thoughts now after reading these arguments. Does meritocracy exist in America? Is it affected by race or class? What do you think about the use of the phrase "check your privilege," and other attempts by some to make privilege more visible?

For Class on 5/8: Growing American Diversity

What happens in the past shapes, in part, our perspectives and choices in the present. Over the course of the past two centuries the United states has become the most diverse nations on earth and Chicago, one of its most diverse (and segregated) cities. These trends are continuing as immigration and demographic data show that the white population in America is not growing at near the rate of other racial groups. After looking at the data from our readings over the past two weeks, what do you think this growing diversity means for the U.S.? What does it mean for particular areas like Chicago? What are the strengths and/or weaknesses and what does it mean in terms of American political identity?

For Class on 5/1: The Media and Important Political Issues

The President and Congress have many issues that they are dealing with along with the never-ending look toward the next elections. Local and State officials have their hands full with countless issues as well.  The media also has their own agenda regarding what to cover and what not to cover. I am interested to find out what you think is important to address and, by extension, how you think the media is doing in terms of their coverage of these issues.

Start by taking a survey similar to those conducted by polling companies and news organizations regarding what issues are most important to you. you can find the survey here.

Next take a look at how your responses and the responses of your classmates compare to national polls here (If you'd like, you you can test your knowledge of recent news based on news quizzes from The New York Times.

Now peruse some of the leading local and national news agencies to browse what they are or are not covering. 
Local: The Chicago Tribune, ABC Chicago, WGN, NBC Chicago 

National: The New York Times, The Washington Post, NBCNews, ABCNews, CBS News, Politico

Finally please post a comment describing your reactions and reactions to your classmates comments. You can use any or all of the following prompts as a starting point if you wish.

1. How does the American media shape the political culture of American citizens today?
2. Are the issues that seem to be the most important to you (or to the rest of America) being covered by the media?
3. What conclusions can we draw from the way that the issues that dominate the polls and media coverage are similar or different?

For Class on 4/24: Education in America

Outside of our families there is arguably no greater source of our political socialization than schools. And the reality of schools in America is mixed and largely troubling. Many have focused on the falling ranking of American K-12 education with respect to the rest of the world. We will discuss some of this in class. For now, however, I would like you to focus on higher education. There is no doubt that we have a huge number of high paying jobs in America that do not have enough sufficiently trained applicants to fill available jobs. Take a look at this issue guide from Public Agenda on higher education. You may also want to take a look at the Obama Administration recently released college scorecard here. You can start the discussion by answer any or all of the prompts below:

• What are the most important challenges pertaining to higher education in America today?
• Which of the four leading positions (showing on the middle of the guide) do you favor the most and why? 
• What other choices or options regarding higher education could help train more people, improve American competitiveness, and our economy?

For 4/17: Observing socially constructed identities (required blog post)

This week we are concluding our discussion of social and historical construction of identities. Last week's blog involved you taking an IAT test that provided a good starting point to discuss the process of social construction and how we have been affected by various socializing agents. This week I would like you to participate in one of two different observation exercises looking at the construction of various identities existing in real world contexts. You will write up your findings in a 2 page paper and turn it in to class on Thursday 4/17. You SHOULD NOT post this blog post online.

Option 1: Spend at least 30 minutes in a public place (student center, public park, mall, etc...) observing the people around you and taking notes. Pay particular attention to how you identify the others around you. Do you think if they were observing you they would accurately identify you (the same way you identify yourself)? What did you observe about the social dynamics of the people you observed? What did you notice about the homogeneity/diversity of the people you witnessed? Did you hear anything that was notable about the diversity/identities of the people you observed? How did the setting matter?

Option 2: Immediately after spending at least 60 minutes with a group of your choosing (Friends, family, etc.) take some time to write down all that you remember about the interactions that you just had. You should not inform the others that this is part of a project (at least until after writing it) and you should not use any real names in your reporting. Why do you feel more comfortable with these people relative to others? Does it have anything to do with any identities or personal characteristics? What topics were discussed? How were they discussed? Were any topics discussed that were would likely have been talked about differently in different contexts? In what ways? Are these relationships similar or different to others that you have? Why do you think this is the case? How did the setting matter?

Please write up a 2 page double spaced proofread reflection following either option 1 or 2 and bring it to class on Thursday April 17. We will discuss our experiences and you will turn in your required paper for blog credit then.

For Class on 4/10: Internalizing social and historical constructions

This week we are starting to explore how identities have been socially constructed. There is a very human and very social process that is involved in the creation of categories of difference and the values that we place on those categories. We are all influenced by our surroundings and are socialized in many different ways. This week we are going to examine the effect of social construction through a unique lens: The Implicit Association Test (IAT). I would like you to take at least one IAT which will serve as a tool as to how we have or have not internalized socially constructed values about race, ethnicity, religion, etc. Ultimately we will connect this to our ongoing discussion of the American identity and what it might mean in an increasingly diverse nation.

The IAT tests have been designed by Project Implicit which, according to the project website, "represents a collaborative research effort between researchers at Harvard University, the University of Virginia, and University of Washington. While the particular purposes of each study vary considerably, most studies available at Project Implicit examine thoughts and feelings that exist either outside of conscious awareness or outside of conscious control. The primary goals of Project Implicit are to provide a safe, secure, and well-designed virtual environment to investigate psychological issues and, at the same time, provide visitors and participants with an experience that is both educational and engaging."

You can find the tests by clicking on "I Wish to Proceed" at the bottom of this screen after reading the disclaimer. On the next screen I would like you to select the Skin Tone IAT which should take no more than 15 minutes to complete. Afterward, if you would like, feel free to take other IAT tests including a Race (Black-white) IAT, Native (Native-White American) IAT, Asian (Asian-European American IAT), and Arab-Muslim (Arab Muslim - Other) IAT.

I would like you to comment on your experience taking the test and your results. I want to be clear: this is not a test suggesting that you are or are not racist. It is designed to indicate internalized preferences regarding issues that are both sensitive and influenced greatly by social, cultural, historical, and institutional influences. Please attempt to draw conclusions about the construction of an "American Identity" from your experience taking these tests. I look forward to a thoughtful discussion about your experiences on Thursday.

For Class on 4/3: My Political Culture Story

This week we are beginning to look at how political culture is socially and historically constructed. In order to gain the most value from this course we also must examine ourselves in terms of how we conceptualize major cultural concepts and how these ideas and values have been constructed in each of our individual lives. That is your challenging task this week. As you read the assigned readings for this week think about your personal ideas regarding big questions like: what does it mean to be "American" and what an American political identity might be (or think generally about your political views and priorities). Most important reflect on why you have these beliefs. Those ideas have been constructed throughout your life. Think critically about how you have personally constructed your political culture lens by answering some or all of the following questions:

1. How do you identify yourself politically (or what group(s) do you personally identify with)?
2. How has this affected your conception of the role of government or your relationship with the government?
3. Who or what has affected your personal views about politics specifically or social or moral issues in general (people, institutions, media, personal experiences, etc...)?
4. Why do you do feel the way you do about various political groups (both similar and different from you)?
5. How does the time and place in which you live impact your political ideology?

Gaining a more critical understanding of what you feel and how you have developed these views will help us as we look at the social and historical construction of American political culture in general.

Remember: Your responses should be approximately one long or two short paragraphs and no more (around 150 words). No research is necessary but think carefully about what you want to write and respond to the ideas presented on the blog, not the people. The goal is to use these prompts to start a dialogue that can evolve through the week. You should post your comment(s) by 8pm on Wednesday. Everyone should skim the discussion before class on Thursday.

Welcome

Welcome to your American political culture poliblog experience! Each week you will be required to read the post for that week (which may include a news article, question, comment, multimedia clip, controversial issue, etc.) and respond with your comments. Each of your comments should be no more than 1/2 page (approx. 1 long paragraph or two short paragraphs) and must be posted by 8:00 Wednesday night. You do not need to do any outside research in order to respond, just reflect on the topic of that week, the other comments posted on the blog and make an argument presenting your views. The goal is to create an online dialogue that we can then bring into class. You must post at least one comment on 8 different weeks (NOTE: you do not need to write a comment every week). But you MUST read the post and all comments either Wednesday night or Thursday before class each week. Enjoy!