Political Science-Roles of the President CSPAN: Jan 30, 2014

Given the six roles of the President you learned about yesterday.  Your task is to unearth clips of the President in action fulfilling each of the following roles:
1) Party Leader
2) Commander-in-Chief
3) Chief Executive
4) Chief of State
5) Chief Diplomat
6) Chief Legislator
Use the examples and guiding questions on the sheet provided to help you determine which clip best fits:
Below is the link to CSPAN clips for president Obama.  If you prefer to look for clips of a different president, all you need to do is type the former President's name in the search engine.
Happy hunting!!

http://www.c-span.org/person/?55625

Econ-Wall Street Survivor Sign Up: Jan 24, 2014

Finally its here...

Today we have to get you signed up for Wall Street Survivor.

1) Click on the following link to get to the page to get started:

http://www.wallstreetsurvivor.com/league/ArneEconAHSW2014

2) Next you are going to need to set up an account.  Right below the "Sign in with Facebook"
is a link that reads Create an account on WSS.  Click on that and proceed with the steps to set up your account.  Make sure to uncheck the boxes for e-newsletters and promotions unless you like getting extra email.

3) After setting up your account you should see a screen that looks like this:

4) Now you need to join the league for our classes.  On the gray bar that has the Wall Street Survivor Logo, there is a button for leagues.  Click on that and then search for "Arne Econ AHS W2014".  You should be able to join the league and then get the password from me in class.


5) Always make sure to check the black bar to see which game you are in.  To the right of your dollar amount is a drop window that says "Practice Portf...".  This is for you to get used to the game before actually starting our contest.  To change to our contest, you need to click on the Window that says "Practice Portf..." and select the "Arne Econ AHS W2014" option like the picture below.

6) You can access this game 24 hours a day from any location so you don't have to be in class to make changes.  Just keep in mind if you sell a stock after the market closes (3PM CST) it will sell for the opening price the next day (8:30AM).

7) Good luck and enjoy the experience.

Political Science-Special Interest Groups Jan 21, 2014

Today you will choose a special interest group to research and create a report.  To find a list of interest groups, use the following link:
http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/kfountain

Political Science-MN Election Maps Jan. 17, 2014

Use the information from the 2012 election maps provided by the Mn Secretary of State, Mark Ritchie, to help you identify the dominant political parties in the 8 congressional districts in Minnesota as well as how each county in MN voted for the Governor's office in 2010.  The purpose of the activity is to allow you to see where the Democrat and Republican voting bases are located in our state.  Fill out your blank maps with the appropriate color for the political party candidate that won the district (in the case of the 2012 US Rep elections) or the county (in the case of the 2010 Governor election)

Here are the links to get to the proper maps for the activity:

2012 US Congressional Map
http://www.sos.state.mn.us/index.aspx?page=1734
Select US Representative, margin by district

2010 MN Governor Map
http://www.sos.state.mn.us/index.aspx?page=1634
Select Governor, margin by county

Political Science- Redistricting Game, January 16 2014

Yesterday you took a look at redistricting on paper with the example of the city of Athena.  Today, you will participate in a simulation on the desktops that will challenge you to create new voting district boundaries based on equal population distribution, ethnic representation in accordance with the Voting Rights Act, and bipartisan fairness.  After completing as many missions as possible, record on the sheet what you map looked like for each mission before continuing on to the next.

Here is the link to get you to the ReDistricting Game.

http://www.redistrictinggame.org/index.php?pg=game

Political Science- Political Compass Test; Jan 3, 2014

Your job is to take the political compass test to see where you rank on a two-dimensional political spectrum.  Click on the following link.

http://www.politicalcompass.org

Next you want to click on the "Take the Test" link in the blue box on the left side of the page.

Once you have completed the test scroll down (quite a long way) to see the analysis of where you are placed on the spectrum.  Record the graph and your results on the sheet of graph paper supplied in class.
Also write the name of the historical figure you most closely match on the test (scroll back up and examine some of the previous graphs and explanations)

Lastly, give me a brief biography of the person whose political views yours align most closely with.  

• Which country is he/she from?  
• When were they in power in their country?  
• What was their country like under their leadership.
• How do you feel about your results of the test?

Political Science Nov. 11, 2013-Supreme Decision

Today you should check out the simulation "Supreme Decision" on the iCivis.org website.
Click on the following link to get there...
http://www.icivics.org

Once you get to that page, look for the option to play "Judicial Branch" games
Click on the green icon, then select "Supreme Decision".
After playing "Supreme Decision", you should now find the game titled "Argument Wars" and play that game as well.
The two cases you examine in the games are Tinker v. Des Moines and New Jersey v. TLO
Both cases involve students rights in school.  One is a first amendment case and the other is a fourth amendment case.

To earn the unit for today you need to play the game twice and write a one paragraph review of the game.  In the review, highlight what is good about the games and what you feel could use improvements.  Lastly, tell me what you learned about the Supreme Court by playing the games.