Description
Students will write an essay, 600-750 words in length, on a topic selected from the list below. The purpose of the project is to give students an opportunity to discuss a key political science concept, and to show a basic understanding of academic research and reporting skills. The project consists of producing a 600-750 word essay on one of the provided topics (see below), as well as a works cited page for sources containing information used in the essay. The assignment is to be formatted according to the Modern Language Association (MLA) style. Students should research this style in order to properly format the assignment.
Students should use 12 point as the paper’s font size, double space the text, and create one inch margins on all four sides of the page. In addition, the writing assignment does not need to have a separate title page.
All writing assignment submissions will be processed through the SafeAssign program. Do not cut and paste from online sources or simply use information from the textbook word for word. The assignment needs to be your own work and if it is not, the submission will receive a failing grade or a zero. Students may not submit a writing assignment for this class that has been previously submitted for another course.
Please choose from ONE of the following topics for your writing assignment:
1) According to Chapter 8 in the textbook, what is the definition of a democracy?
Looking at the four factors that make up the definition of a democracy, compare those to the characteristics of an authoritarian regime.
What are the similarities and differences between the two systems?
Identify an authoritarian state and discuss in detail how the characteristics of an authoritarian state applies to that country. (Note: You should be able to find much of the information about democracy in the chapter. You will need to do some outside research on authoritarian systems and on a specific authoritarian country.)