Party Platform Research Assignment
Use the following guidelines to complete the research assignment : Party Platform Research Assignment.docx
Read the following information to avoid common problems that students have, generally because they are not familiar with writing papers or because they do not read directions or ask questions:
Sources for this paper
As explained in the instructions, you must use the Texas State Party Platforms. In Federal Government you look at the national platforms. If you do not use the Texas Party Platforms, you will likely fail this paper.
Rules for proper Citing:
1) You must not only have a works cited page, you must also cite within the paper to show your reader where you specifically found the information you are summarizing. For Example you can say: According to the Democratic Party Platform, Democrats do support the right of citizens to own guns. However, they view crime prevention and public safety as a job of the government and police. ( Public Safety, 40)
You must then have a specific entry in the Works Cited page for the Texas Democratic Party Platform. Feel free to use EasyBib or any other citation generator such as that..
If the platform does not use page numbers, then you must cite to the specific section/number where the information was found. This will be true for the Texas Green Party and the Texas Libertarian Party. For example:
The Green Party, under the section “Gun Safety” , supports licensing and registration of hand guns and assault weapons (II.G.3).
OR
Libertarian party supports maximum rights of people, and the sole role of government should be to defend the freedoms of the people. The party clearly states that any government that prohibits a person right to self-defense should be brought to “heel” or be repaired (Statement of Principles, 1). Specifically the party supports the right of citizens to open carry ((II.1.C).
There is a citation guide posted for you under the Important Course Module.
No Quotes Allowed
The purpose of this assignment is for you to learn to read the platform, analyze the party stance on your issue, and then explain to your reader in your words how the party stands on the issue. I suggest you select a friend or family member to read your paper and see if they understand the party’s position on the issue after reading the paper. If they do not, then you probably have not done what you need to do.
You are not allowed to quote in this paper, because I know what the platform says, I want to see if you can understand and explain the platform. You must still cite to the page number(s) where information was gathered. Students incorrectly believe you only cite when you quote. This is wrong, use my example above. You must always tell the reader where you collected any information you are summarizing. You must always give credit to the source.
