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NBPS 8th Grade Language Arts & Technology Benchmark 8.4.2 Persuasive Research Paper Using Topic from President Obama's First 100 Days Resource Page

1. Why We Are Using First 100 Days Page  Download the Research Prompt - Research Prompt Page

Making informed decisions about complicated issues is a critical life skill.

-This skill must be guided and practiced.
-Today, given the ease of access to information as well as the great number of unreliable sources available, making informed decisions is even more challenging.

2. NBPS Obama First 100 Days Resource Page and Topics

President Obama was elected on a platform of change.  In his inaugural speech, he set specific goals for his administration to achieve this change.  Through his first 100 days, the President has attempted to use the power of his office to move the country toward achieving these goals.  Whether or not his efforts have been effective is a matter of argument. Each person must decide for him or herself if the President is succeeding in achieving the vision outlined in his inauguration.  This can only be done by examining the specific actions he has taken during the first 100 days. Students will be required to think critically about a current topic and not only write on the topic but be able to take a stance to justify their position.

Students will be selecting a research topic based upon one of the three major topics from the NBPS Resource Page for President Obama’s First 100 Days:

Price & Promise of Citizenship - "Those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism".

The Economy - "The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth".

Science, Technology & The Environment - "We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories".

3. Article Selection Example

Article From Science, Technology & The Environment Day 85:

Bullis, Kevin (2009). Energy and Climate Bill Advances. Retrieved
April 17, 2009, from Technology Review Published by MIT.
Website: http://www.technologyreview.com/energy/22429/ 

4. Using Selected Article, Highlight Potential Research Topics

5. List Topics From Article

6. Additional List of Possible Topics

7. Research Activity for Choosing a Topic Click Here to Download Lesson Plan

Activities from "Choosing a Topic" Lesson Plan:
1.  Teacher will read an article with their students and model how specific topics can be synthesized from it (for example, after reading “Energy and Climate Bill Advances” from day 85 the teacher could write “renewable energy”, “solar power”, or even “global warming” as potential topics that could be derived from the article.

2. Students will have the remaining class period (and additional periods, if desired) to read articles from the page.  Students who are using computers to access the “100 Days” page the students will read the articles online.  Students working without a computer will read printed out articles that they will exchange with other students when they are finished reading.

3. Students will be responsible to fill out a “President Obama’s First 100 Days Research Topic Article Guide” for three (3) articles that they read. 

4. After they finish their three Article Guides, students will choose one article to act as the focal point for their research and synthesize their topic.

8. Research Topic Article Guide Click Here to Download Article Guide

9. Researching Topic

Students will perform further research of their chosen topic. 

Here is a resource that can provide assistance: NBPS Teacher's Guide To Research Page

10. Write Research Paper Using Microsoft Word

You must:

o provide information that explains your understanding of your chosen theme;
o detail the actions President Obama has taken to this point;
o declare whether or not you believe these actions have moved the country toward his vision.

You may also:

o cite and analyze expert evaluations of President Obama’s actions;
o compare his actions to the actions of past presidents.

Your paper must:

o be at least three typed pages, double-spaced, using 12-point font.
o reference information from the NBPS RESOURCE PAGE FOR OBAMA'S FIRST 100 DAYS.
o cite at least three different sources of varying type (online; periodical; book; etc.).
o follow MLA format for a research paper (including Works Cited page).

11. Rubrics

Language Arts:  Research Paper Rubric

Technology:      8th Grade Microsoft Word Rubric