Pol 201 final paper

Running head: PAPER TITLE HERE 1

PAPER TITLE HERE 2

Paper Title Here

Your Name

POL 201 – American National Government

Ashford University

Instructor's Name

Month Day, Year

Paper Title Here

This is where the introduction for your paper should begin. You should indent the first paragraph and include a hook to draw your reader in and make the topic interesting. Your introduction should also include an overview of the main points you will discuss in your paper and conclude with a concise thesis statement of 25 words or less that clearly summarizes what your paper is about. Please be sure to not refer to the paper in your paper. For example, “In this paper, I will discuss…” is not appropriate for formal writing. Also, your paper should not use words such as I, we, or you. For more suggestions, please read about thesis statements on our Ashford Writing Center website: Thesis Statements. Your introduction should be at least ½ a page in length.

Historical and Constitutional Background

Your paper should include the four main headings as outlined in this template. It is vital, in order to fully meet the expectations for this paper, that you support your arguments utilizing scholarly sources. Be sure to summarize, paraphrase, and include in-text citations. You must properly cite all additional resources with in-text APA formatted citations and an APA reference list in order to avoid plagiarism. No more than 10% of your paper should be direct quotations. Each heading/topic should be a a minimum of 1 to 1.5 pages in length. It is important to include transitions and more deeply reflect and expand on the material from each week. Be sure to review the WayPoint feedback provided by your instructor from your Week 2 and Week 3 Assignments and the feedback from the Ashford Writing Center from your Week 4 assignment. Integrate the feedback into your revisions as you expand your analysis of each section for your final paper.

Checks and Balances

Your second section should focus on the checks and balances that are involved within the policy you have selected.

Public Policy, Elections, and Media

The third section of your final paper should focus on how the policy relates to public policy, elections, and is portrayed by the media. Each paragraph of your assignment should be clear and easy to follow. Ashford has several valuable resources to help you write a strong paragraph, such as How to Write a Good Paragraph page and the Integrating Research tutorial.

Voting and the Election Process

The fourth section of your paper should focus on how the policy is impacted by voting and the election process. In addition to being well-written, each paragraph should include an in-text citation for all information summarized, paraphrased, or quoted from outside sources. The Ashford Writing Center provides many resources to help you follow correct citation style (primarily APA) and gives lessons and examples of how to paraphrase and cite sources. The Introduction to APA page is a good place to start.

Conclusion

Your paper should conclude with a review of your main points and a review of your thesis. The conclusion should not introduce any points that have not already been addressed in the main body of the paper. This is an opportunity to solidify your ideas for the reader and leave a lasting impression.

Remember to start your references on a new page. Space down until References is as the top of the final page of your paper. References

References

Your paper must utilize at least eight scholarly resources in addition to the textbook. A minimum of six of the resources must be peer-reviewed scholarly sources from the Ashford University Library. The following are commonly used references. Please fill in the required information, and if you need more help, see the Formatting Your References List page. References are listed in alphabetical order.

Ashford Textbook (Online edition): *

Author, A. (Year published). Title of book: Subtitle of book (edition, if other than the first) [Electronic version]. Retrieved from from URL

Example:

Witt, G. A., & Mossler, R. A. (2010). Adult development and life assessment [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books/4

Online Journal Article (such as from the Ashford Library):**

Author, A. (Year Published). Article title. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), page range. doi:# or Retrieved from journal’s homepage URL

**When including a URL for an online journal, you must search for the journal’s home page and include this in your reference entry. You may not include the URL found through your university library as readers will not have access to this library.

Examples:

Churchill, S. D., & Mruk, C. J. (2014). Practicing what we preach in humanistic and positive psychology. American Psychologist, 69(1), 90-92. doi:10.1037/a0034868

Santovec, M. (2008). Easing the transition improves grad retention at Trinity U. Women in Higher Education, 17(10), 32. Retrieved from http://www.trinitydc.edu/education/files/2010/09/Women_in_higher_ Ed_Trinity_Transistions_10_08.pdf

Online Magazine:*

Author, A. (Year, Month Date Published). Article title. Magazine Title. Retrieved from URL

Example:

Walk, V. (2013, April 29). Can this woman fix Europe? Time. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,213969.html

YouTube Video:*

Author, A. [Screen name]. (Year, Month, Day). Title of video [Video file]. Retrieved from URL

Example:

Apsolon, M. [markapsolon]. (2011, September 9). Real ghost girl caught on video tape 14

[Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nyGCbxD848

Web Page:*

Author, A. (Year, Month, Date Published). Article title. Retrieved from URL

Example—Corporate web page:

U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2008). Police and detectives. Retrieved from http://bls.gov/oco/pdf/ocos160.pdf

Example—Article or section within web page with no author:

Presentation tools. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://web2014.discoveryeducation.com/web20tools-presentation.cfm

*Please delete the notes in this document before submitting your assignment.