Instructions for Current Event Assignments

What Should be Included in a Current Event Paper?

Each current event paper should be approximately one page in length and should include the following sections:

(1) A correct citation of the article including title, author, publication, and publication date (using MLA or APA formats).

(2) A brief (one paragraph) explanation/summary of the article - please don't copy the article - use your own words to paraphrase and summarize the article.

(3) An explanation of why this particular article was chosen by you. What drew your attention to this article? What issues or events interested you? Why?

(4) A description of how this current event article relates to a topic of study described in your syllabus/textbook. Be specific here - this is where a great deal of your grade will be awarded - use appropriate academic vocabulary and cite from the textbook or other relevant sources to demonstrate the relevance of the article.

(5) An explanation of how you feel this current event/article will impact yourself, your city, county, or the State of Texas.

All articles should be relevant to subjects presented in class or in the textbook and should be directly related to government! Current events should be timely, relevant, and of interest to students of political science (ie. no articles from two years ago, no sports scores, not about the Justin Beeber concert in Austin or Shakira visiting El Paso; should be related to political issues related to topics we are studying or those topics described in the book or syllabus).