Topical Discussions include prompts that ask you to offer an informed argument o
Topical Discussions include prompts that ask you to offer an informed argument or point of view on a given topic and reply/respond to three (3) of your classmates’ posts (three different posts). Each prompt includes formatting guidelines and expectations for initial posts and replies.
Initial Posts Due 2/27; Three Replies Due 3/1
Each discussion has three steps:
Choose one of the questions below and make an initial post in this discussion forum that follows the instructions by the deadline.
Create a document file that contains your initial post and make sure it’s compatible with Turnitin.com (Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, WordPerfect, PostScript, PDF, HTML, RTF, OpenOffice (ODT), Hangul (HWP), Plain text files). You will upload this document to the corresponding folder under the Assignments tab in the “Activities” drop down above. This step will allow me to check for both plagiarism and for AI-generated text. (You can also access these folders using the module titled “Discussion Check” on the left side of the screen.)
Reply to at least three of your peers’ posts according to the instructions by the second deadline.
Remember that your initial post must cite (mention in the post) and discuss the primary sources in the question you picked.
Choose one of the questions below and respond (for this discussion, each question can have a maximum of 5 posts). Put the question you’re responding to in the title of the post. When you post your 3 replies later, make sure that at least 2 of them respond to posts about questions you did not pick.
1. Discuss the crisis of identity that Native American leaders like Pontiac and Scarouyady profess in the Voices of Freedom (Primary Source document feature in Chapter 4 of the textbook). Compare how the two leaders fomented strategies to deal with the English before and after the Seven Years’ War.
2. Analyze the documents about Pontiac’s Rebellion and Choctaw reflections on the British and French (week 4 “Read” folder). What did the French and Indian War and its ending mean for American Indians as the colonies lurched toward their war for Independence? What do these documents tell us about life for American Indians in this period?
3. What did Abigail Adams mean when she wrote to her husband, “Remember the Ladies” (Week 6 “Read” folder)? Did she believe in the modern notion of equality of the sexes?
4. Discuss how the struggle for American liberty emboldened various groups of colonists to demand more liberty for themselves. (Use the primary sources available in the week 6 read folder and chapter 6 in the textbook.)
5. How did Black Americans and Indians fit into the new political order created by the Constitution of 1787? What liberties were extended or denied them? (Use chapter 6 of the textbook and the Constitution located in Appendix A at the back of your textbook.)
Instructions:
When making your choice, remember that for this discussion each question can have a maximum of 5 threads (meaning that no more than 5 people can post about the same question). This setup favors those who get their work done early, so if you’re picky, don’t wait until the last minute.
Your initial posts should be more than 250 words. Your answer should do the following:
begin with a concise thesis as a direct answer to the question,
analyze the main ideas presented in the readings and videos,
and cite specific supporting details from the reading (I mean that you need to bring in specific examples from the textbook, other books, and primary source documents).
Posts should be original (can’t be something you copied and can’t be something that someone else has already said), detailed, and include specific examples to back up your points and/or quotations from the primary source readings (which must be accompanied by your analysis of that quotation).
Replies should be more than 100 words, and they must advance the conversation by replying with additional details and information from the assigned materials (evidence). In other words, you need to say something that they haven’t said yet. Think of them as a mini initial post.
As a guide, I expect that you follow a framework called “3C+Q.” You must include a Compliment (this is where you identify something specific in the original post and explain what stood out), a Comment (this is where you specifically engage the post by saying something like, “I agree/disagree that … because … ), a Connection (this is where you really move things forward. You could write something like “I also read/thought/heard/saw … and noticed this …”), and a Question (I wonder how/who/why/what/where …).
Please note that I am NOT asking you to critique the grammar, clarity, spelling, etc. of your classmates’ posts (it’s pedantic in regular conversations, and it kills any kind of good faith dialogue).
Generally, original posts receive a grade out of 16 points, and each response (3) receives a
grade out of 3 points, for a total possible score of 25 points for each discussion assignment.