Write a clear, and thoughtful FOUR-page minimum essay that uses the two documents as the basis for writing about the changing social condition of Native Americans and African Americans across time in American history from the 1800s to today.
You must cite each documents TWO TIMES and FONER TWO TIMES for a total of four citations!
You should have an MLA-formatted Works Cited page as a page by itself. This counts as one of the four.
Use academic essay format! Introduction with 3-point thesis statement telling the reader where your essay is going, Point 1, 2 and 3. Always start your paragraphs with topic sentence and finally a short conclusion explaining where you have been.
You do not need to go look for additional resources but you must create proper Works Cited page. Our library has great resources to help you understand MLA format. Follow these instructions carefully as this is the last assignment and it weighs heavily on your grade.
Obviously this course has covered only to 1877 so you should focus on making the two documents attached come alive by using your own thinking about the world as well as the readings.
This essay covers the Course Learning Objectives (CLOs) that are listed on the bottom of the syllabus. Make sure you go back and read all three objectives carefully.
For the last module you used only one document but in this essay you are using TWO documents and you are writing about change among TWO different segments of society across the same span of time. As historians we look at documents to interpret the past. We can then use this knowledge to track changes in society among different groups of people. In this essay you are looking at how African American and NAtive American lives have changed over time. Change in society is not universal or else we would all be rich- or all be poor. Therefore, the documents that you are looking at should be used as a reference to the past supplemented by what you have learned in the entire readings.
The last part of the essay that deals with the contemporary status of these two groups is purely observational and subjective and open to interpretation. We all have different ideas about the status of African American and Native Americans so this last section will come from your personal experience and knowledge with and about these two groups.
Pay close attention to Essay Structure and Essay Content. This means you should mind how you write and what you write about. Take a look at your Midterm notes for areas that you need to improve.
Structure your essay into the following three sections:
Point 1 Native American history and what the Jackson document tells us about it
Point 2 African American history and what the Hansen document informs us about it
Point 3 the very last section is your opinion on how these two groups of people have advanced, or not, in society across time. Again, your personal opinion is not what is being graded on for the last section but how you use what was written in our textbook and in the documents to back up your opinion. The documents and the readings are your context for the last point.
Remember that History is like Law- you get evidence from documents to make an argument. Look at the documents closely for evidence and write out your interpretation based on the readings.
Focus on creating an essay that proves you understand the context (early history) of these two groups of people as well as proving you can write a narrative that uses evidence (documents).
Refer to the three CLOs on the syllabus.
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOME 1: Students will be able to assess a primary source document, contextualize it within its historical era, and explain the importance of such a document.
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOME 2: Students will be able to analyze the significance of change across time in history.
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOME 3: Students will be able to analyze the varied impact of historical issues on diverse groups within or between societies.
