For more information on the exams, watch this VidGrid video “Information About the Mid-Term Exam and Final Exam” at https://use.vg/c03Xnz.

Instructions

For more information on the exams, watch this VidGrid video “Information About the Mid-Term Exam and Final Exam” at https://use.vg/c03Xnz. (This video is from a previous course, so it may look a little different. But you should get the gist. The dates shown in the video will be different than for your course.)

The possible essay questions are in the PDF entitled “Possible Essay Questions for the Final Exam (Units 06-10)” and in these instructions below. Choose TWO of the essays to write about, study and formulate how will answer these essay questions, write your essay, and, some time before its due date, upload your completed essay to the Dropbox on D2L. Each essay is worth 50 points apiece for a possible 100 points for this exam.

Look at the possible essay questions provided. Choose TWO of them and write a well-constructed essay for each question. Essays must be submitted in a DOC, DOCX, or PDF file. (Do not submit .pages files, .odt files, or submit GoogleDocs or Office365 links. Upload a proper file!)

Essays should be in a standard font and font size (like Times New Roman, 12 pt.), with 1 inch margins, and double-spaced. Make sure there is no wasted space on your paper (like between paragraphs, etc.); you do not need any fancy title pages, etc.

Each essay should be no less than two full pages long and no more than four pages long. Thus the whole file, with both your essays, should be between four full pages and eight pages long. Each essay should be at least five good-sized paragraphs in length, with an introduction, at least three body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Combine both your essays in one document/file.

Once your essay is completed and saved, it should be submitted through the Dropbox link for this assignment on D2L. The assignment can be found by going to Content → COURSEWORK → Units 06-10

→ Final Exam (Units 06-10). Click on the assignment link and then click

“Upload” to upload your file. Follow the instructions from there until you receive proof you have submitted it successfully.

Essays are meant to prove that a student knows not only “what” happened in history, but “how” and “why” things happened in history. For example, it is not enough to state that, “The colonists didn’t like the Stamp Act,” but you should explain with examples why they didn’t like taxes, what they did about it, why it was significant, etc. Your essay must contain specifics and examples and be long enough to prove to me that you have read and understood the book, lectures, and videos, and that you can make assertions and back them up with evidence and logic, and that you can do this all in your own scholarly words.

You must answer all of these questions by referring only to your textbook, the lecture slides, and the videos. DO NOT consult the internet or other outside sources. Basically, treat these as in-class essays that are open book, open slides, open videos, and open note, but you’re just typing them at home. If you want to quote or cite the textbook, use a parenthetical citation and cite the section of the book, like this: (Corbett, et al. sec. 18.1). If you want to quote or cite the lecture slides, use a parenthetical citation and cite the slide title and lecture set, like: (“The Red Scare,” 04 – War and the Roaring Twenties). If you want to quote or cite the CrashCouse US History videos, use a parenthetical citation and cite the name and number of the video, like: (“The Roaring ’20s,” Crash Course US History #32). If you want to quote or cite the VidGrid videos, use a parenthetical citation and cite the name of the video, like: (“Republicans and the Roaring 1920s”).

Since this assignment is a formal piece of academic writing, use proper grammar, spelling, punctuation, and formatting. For more on proper style, see the links provided on D2L under “Useful Links.” For more on good essay writing, see: http://www.historyguide.org/guide/essay1.html and http://www.historyguide.org/guide/guide.html.

Essays must show that you have read, understood, and absorbed the textbook and class material, and can utilize that information to make assertions, and then backup those assertions with evidence. Take the knowledge you have learned, pull it from your brain, and convey those ideas to me intelligently in your own scholarly words.

Remember, you are trying to prove to a professor how smart you are. A good rule of thumb: act like I don’t know the answer to the question and you’re teaching the subject to me.

Possible Essay Questions for the Final Exam (Units 06-10)

1. Using information from the textbooks, lectures, and videos, discuss the rise of the Cold War between 1945-1959. What were the major disagreements, and issues that separated the United States and the Soviet Union in this time period? What was “containment”? How, why, and where did the US try to counter the spread of communism?

2. Using information from the textbooks, lectures, and videos, discuss the black civil rights movement of the 1960s. How did the reaction of many southern whites to the civil rights activities ironically serve to help the cause of black Americans? What spurred the US Congress to pass legislation in 1964 and 1965? What were these important civil rights laws of 1964 and 1965? How did some black Americans in the late 1960s react when it became clear that the legislative victories of 1964 and 1965 were not enough to erase the effects of racial and economic discrimination?