CURRENT EVENTS ~ ASSIGNMENT #4
Due Beginning of Class: November 10
Current events are a vital part of the study of American Government & Politics, not only
for their value of 'keeping current' but also for connecting course content to the world
around us.
Procedure:
Clip or copy a news article directly related to Chapters 11 & 12 - Congress and The
Presidency. For example, any news article concerning the powers of Congress or the
Presidency (Articles 1 & 2 of the Constitution), federal laws that are under
consideration or being passed, or activities of the President, Representatives, or
Senators would be a topic directly related to the information in these two chapters.
There are many other possibilities, however.
Read the article thoroughly (remember you will be the expert) and highlight important
passages (e.g. who, what, where, when, why and how). Decide your point of view.
How do you feel about the topic? What questions might still need to be answered? Do
you need to do some additional research on people or events mentioned in the article? In
other words, make sure you know the background for the topic/event as well as the
current situation.
Analyze current event: The word “analyze” means to break down, separate, or take apart.
You should think about the article in detail in order to discover essential features or
meaning of the topic/event.
Write your analysis:
 Attach article to a piece of paper, include the source name, date, section and page
number.
 Type a summary of the article in your own words.
 Type your analysis of the topic/event in the news article. Be sure to directly connect
the current event to the topic of Congress or the Presidency, and explain the
connection. In your analysis provide any background or additional information you
found, your interpretation of the issue, and your opinion. Justify your analysis with
specific examples.
 There is no minimum or maximum number of words for this assignment. You must
convince the instructor that you understand your article thoroughly, understand how
the topic/event is related to Congress or the Presidency, and that you have an
informed opinion based on evidence.
NOTE: Please use real news articles from legitimate sources. Some examples include:
The Sacramento Bee, San Francisco Chronicle, LA Times, San Jose Mercury News, The
Washington Post, etc. If you are not sure about a particular source or article, please obtain
teacher approval before writing up the assignment.
The following websites may prove helpful:
http://www.economist.com/, http://www.usnews.com/usnews/home.htm,
http://sacbee.com/, http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage,
http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/, http://www.latimes.com/,
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/
Marianne Loeser ~ Fall 2010 ~ POL 200