About This Assignment
In this assignment you will demonstrate your understanding of one of the key political philosophies that has driven American expansion and policies since the early 1800s, Manifest Destiny.
Prompt
In this course, you learned about the reasons behind the founding of the original colonies and the subsequent expansion across the North American continent of what was to become the United States. A major influence was Manifest Destiny. For this assignment, you must write a 1,750 – 2,00-word paper which explores how the concept of Manifest Destiny shaped the early expansion of the United States in North America and its later influence on relations between the United States and other nations.
Use these guiding questions to plan your essay:
· In the early years of the colonies how did the colonists use an idea similar to Manifest Destiny to support their colonization of lands belonging to other groups?
· In the 1800s how did Manifest Destiny play a role in the expansion of control of the United States across the continent? And, what type of response did this elicit from the current occupants of the territories? Provide 2 -3 examples.
· In the 19th and 20th centuries how did this belief in Manifest Destiny influence American involvement in regional and global geopolitics? Provide 2 – 3 examples.
· And finally, what role, if any, does Manifest Destiny play in how the United States deals with other nations and conflicts today?
Your essay must include a cohesive and defensible thesis statement.
Formatting & Sources
Please write your paper in the APA format. You may refer to the course material for supporting evidence, but you must also use at least three credible, outside sources and cite them using APA format. Please include a mix of both primary and secondary sources, with at least one source from a scholarly peer-reviewed journal. If you use any Study.com lessons as sources, please also cite them in APA (including the lesson title and instructor's name).
· Primary sources are first-hand accounts such as interviews, advertisements, speeches, company documents, statements, and press releases published by the company in question.
· Secondary sources come from peer-reviewed scholarly journals, such as The Journal of American History. You may use sources like JSTOR, Google Scholar, and The National Archives Catalog to find articles from these journals. Secondary sources may also come from reputable websites with .gov, .edu, or .org in the domain. (Wikipedia is not a reputable source, though the sources listed in Wikipedia articles may be acceptable.)
If you're unsure about how to use APA format to cite your sources, please see the following lessons:
·
·
Grading Rubric
Your essay will be graded based on the following rubric:
|
Category |
Unacceptable (0-2) |
Needs Improvement (3-6) |
Good (7-8) |
Excellent (9-10) |
Total Possible Points |
|
Purpose (x3) |
Main points do not respond to prompt or are irrelevant |
Portions of the prompt are addressed but not all. Support for prompts is missing or uneven. |
All components of the prompt are addressed but support is uneven |
All components of the prompt are addressed and well-supported |
30 |
|
Structure and Organization (x2) |
Structure is disorganized and confusing, making the narrative difficult to follow. |
There is evidence of a core structure to the narrative although some portions do not follow as logically as others |
The structure is logically organized and support is evident for all main points |
The overall structure is clear and logical and developed in such a way as to present a complete and persuasive argument |
20 |
|
Critical Thinking (x3) |
Little or no critical thinking is evident in connecting response to the prompt |
Some critical thinking is evident in selection of examples but relevance is not clear at times |
Critical thinking is demonstrated in selection of examples but there is opportunity for further development of support |
Critical thinking is demonstrated in the selection of examples as well as in connecting them clearly to each portion of the prompt |
30 |
|
Mechanics (x2) |
Numerous errors throughout in spelling, punctuation, capitalizations and grammar interfere with the effectiveness of the communication |
There are a number of instances of errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalizations and grammar that distract from the narrative |
There are some instances of errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalizations and grammar. |
There are very few or no instances of errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalizations and grammar |
20 |
|
Total Points |
100 |
