POLS 1100 -- US Government and Politics
Professor David Hubert
Spring 2012
This page includes assignments from my US Government and Politics Course:
-- A Worksheet Demonstrating Quantitative Literacy
-- Reflection on Quantitative Literacy
-- Persuasive Essay on the Importance of Closing The United States' Income Gap
-- A Reflection Based Upon Making Connections Between What Was Learned In This Course and What I've Learned In Other Courses
|
zakbastaquantitativeliteracyworksheet.pdf Size : 63.524 Kb Type : pdf |
Quantitative Literacy Reflection
In terms of general importance, I can't think of anything that qualifies more than mathematics. The connections your brain can make when solving equations are limitless, and the widening of such faculties results in the expansion of all mental capabilities we can possess. In terms of the importance to American citizens in understanding averages, percentages and chart data, one must only imagine -- or even turn on the news. Every day, we are shown poll statistics, unemployment rates, home-foreclosure data, etc. Now, if the issue isn't affecting you in any way possible, you can ignore it entirely, I suppose. But if you think it's not affecting you, you're either lying to yourself or simply unaware of such effects. I may not be losing my home to my bank so that they can sit on it for ten years without maintaining it's structural stability in any way and then projecting a future sale that's actually three times what history shows they'll sell it for, and in turn one third of the full price I'm still paying back to the same bank (phew!), but I can understand how it will affect me in the future.
More importantly, we need to understand these figures in order to defend ourselves against propaganda. People will use phony figures to support their claims every single day. Now, one with above-average intelligence can spot false figures, but another trick we need to be prepared to fight against is that where the figures are correct, but they are used to portray a different image than the numbers actually show. This is the one that much more commonly catches people. If I told you that A plus B plus C equals "job creation", but neglected to tell you that A equals layoffs in the auto industry, B equals layoffs in the pharmaceutical industry, and C equals higher taxation on the poor and lower taxation on the rich, then you would have to do research on my numbers to find out that "job creation" does not fit into the equation at all. But without an understanding of these basic mathematical concepts, it's too intimidating to even try to prove a senator wrong.
So that shows us why we need to understand these figures and tables that we see all over the place. But how does it apply the concepts we're talking about? Well, in learning to calculate mean and median, not only do you get averages or middle points in statistical data, but you also know the difference between the two -- and more importantly, just how different they are. You can then be wary when somebody tries to tell you the median number of something. You know that there could still be astronomical numbers above that median point. Percentages are important because it's useful to know just how many Americans are either with you or not in a certain situation. If I were the type of person that was tired of paying taxes on my massive amounts of wealth, I might not understand the plight of the "99%" of citizens if I didn't know percentages. Now it's just getting those people to care about our plight, I suppose. And understanding data in tables and charts? That's the biggie. Representatives, Senators, Lobbyists, etc. will try to use tables and charts all the time in order to make people think the way they want them to. The idea being that the dumber you are, the more you will follow a picture -- and in that more specific group, the dumber you are the more likely you'll believe what the picture tells you without actually trying to find out if it's phony or not (and without even reading anything that it says these days).
Persuasive Essay -- The United States' Income Gap
|
|
Persuasive Essay -- US income gap.pdf Size : 76.523 Kb Type : pdf |
This assignment allowed me to utilize the tools I feel are necessary for a modern, advanced culture. The most important of those tools being: understanding and knowledge. It is my sentiment that people today do not care to fully understand the things that dictate their whole lives. I think it is all too important that we become a nation that searches far and wide for knowledge on a subject and strives to fully understand the concepts presented to us so that we can make more educated choices in the future.
Final E-Portfolio Assignment/Reflection
Make connections between what you studied in this American National Politics course with what you’ve learned in other courses at SLCC or before. Make specific references to your work in this class and in the other courses. How did what you learn in the other courses enhance what you learned in here, and vice versa?
Throughout this course, I've studied campaign finance, political ad campaigns, civil rights, the foundations of The United States Constitution, and more. I've learned to relate as much previously learned information as I can with the subjects I am currently studying. Above is my Quantitative Literacy Reflection assignment where I detail the importance of mathematical abilities in understanding the various ins and outs of our nation. I'm currently in mathematics courses and I am constantly thinking about how important it truly is for our collective intelligence.
In my Physics and English courses, we were required to write end-of-term essays on a topic of our choosing. For both of the essays, I chose difficult topics that regard big issues in debate today. I feel that it was because of my Political Science course that I could feel comfortable enough to tackle such an issue. My Physics paper was about the Large Hadron Collider and its importance -- not only in the science world, but in the entire global stage. I emphasized the need for a common scientific mindset in order for our country and our world to continue to advance culturally, academically, etc. In my English paper, I examined logical thought processes in regards to spirituality and the effects it has on the world. This paper wasn't a persuasive essay, though. It was an exploration essay. Because of this, I needed to examine different points of view in order to complete it properly. I feel like my ability to do this can be attributed to my learning in this US Government course as it was a key factor in properly completing many of the assignments.
Just as I cannot emphasize enough the importance of scientific understanding for advancement and growth, I also cannot fully emphasize the importance of at least a basic understanding of our governmental systems and how they work. Without such knowledge of these concepts, one cannot make educated decisions. Of course, it is possible to inform yourself so that you are more able than the next person, but it's very important to make connections between your own point of view and those of others around you. Without that ability, it's impossible for our nation to forge a new path into the future.