Demographic Changes in Texas

Guidelines:

Be sure to follow all formatting guidelines provided in the syllabus. Your final work product must have a cover page with a word count, an essay that is 3-4 pages in length and a works cited page. The minimum writing requirement expectation is two full pages. If the minimum expectations are not met, the assignment will be marked incomplete. Be sure to provide a proper citation in MLA or APA format for all works consulted on a separate works cited page. The minimum research criteria is the use of 2-3 scholarly source (articles from a peer-reviewed academic journal).

Background:

Being the second largest state in the United States in terms of area and population, Texas has experienced major changes over the years. Perhaps nowhere is this more evident than in its diverse citizenry. These population transformations have had a tremendous impact upon Texas as a community. This assignment will allow you to explore those changes, identify patterns and apply a critical assessment of how those changes may shape the future of Texas.

Activity Prompts:

1. Research some of the data collected on the demographics of Texas. Here are a few online sources to help you get started:
I. https://www.dallasfed.org/assets/documents/research/pubs/fotexas/fotexas_petersen.pdf
II. http://www.fedstats.gov/qf/states/48000.html
III. http://txsdc.utsa.edu/

2. Compare historical statistics with contemporary findings by examining demographic (race, age, income) changes in Texas.

3. Your assignment is to fully addresses the following questions:

I. What general patterns do you see within the demographic data?
II. Describe the demographic category that most caught your attention? Why?
III. What factors likely contributed to the changes taking place in the demographic category you identified?
IV. What impact might the changing demographic you identified have on Texas over the next 40 years? How can these changes be addressed by the state government?
V. What effect will the changing demographic you identified have on partisan politics in Texas?

importat !! @
Mid-Term Essay

Writing assignments are the primary assessment of your learning in this course. Reading the material and taking completing open book activities does not fully demonstrate your command of the information. For this reason, the majority of your grade will be based on your written work. The deadline for the mid-term essay has been clearly identified in the course calendar. Late work will only be considered according to the late work policy. Once the deadline passes, the grade will be recorded as a zero. It is suggested that you identify which essay prompt you want to work on at the start of the course and consistently progress toward a final draft.
All course readings, supplements and activities are expected to have been examined prior to writing the mid-term essay. As a standing requirement for all coursework, your assignment must utilize 2-3 scholarly sources (peer-reviewed articles from an academic journal). Each source is to be properly cited in the body of your text and on a works cited page using formal MLA or APA citation format. The essay must be completed using the formatting guidelines provided in Addendum II of the syllabus as “Guidelines for all Coursework.” Detailed directions on what is expected for each prompt have been provided in the guidelines for each essay option. Any additional information will be provided during the semester. The essays will be graded with an assessment rubric, it has been provided for your reference in the “resources” area of the course. As a reminder, first person tone is inappropriate in any college research essay.
Each mid-term essay is to be 3-4 pages in length, with a minimum writing requirement of two full pages in your own words (excluding any cited or paraphrased information). Any assignment that does not meet or exceed the minimum writing expectations will be considered incomplete and will result in a zero. Simply meeting the minimum expectation does not guarantee a C; it only qualifies the assignment for a grade. Again, each essay must be 2 full pages in your own words and generally 3-4 pages with research to support your discussion around each prompt. If you want to earn a high grade, take the time to carefully respond to each question with research and critical thought.
There is a list of options for this assignment, please pick one topic from the list provided. Each prompt can be download (in MS Word format) at any time, so feel free to plan ahead to determine which essays you wish to complete. The final product must be submitted to the SafeAssign dropbox labelled for this activity. Detailed procedures on using SafeAssign Dropbox are provided in the course orientation