Obama’s Deal

READ THIS CAREFULLY!!!

To write this essay you have to watch this video: https://mediaspace.minnstate.edu/media/Obama%27s+Deal/1_g6g7ro39

The Final Exam Study Guide (linked and available under Materials…Content…Unit and Final Exam Study Guides) is now available. It is the exact Final Exam question that will appear when you complete the exam.

The Final Exam is designed to measure how well you understand elite theory in its totality. The best way to do that is to take a bill that became law–I chose health care–and analyze the policy making process that resulted in its passage.

In order to provide context and information upon which to base your analysis, you will watch the documentary Obama’s Deal, which summarizes the key events, people, and decisions that resulted in passage of the Affordable Care Act. The documentary provides all the information that you need for analyzing what happened–and why–through the lens of elite theory. No outside research is necessary or required.

It is vital that you connect as many relevant aspects of elite theory that you have studied in the course to the policy making process that resulted in passage of the legislation; again, as described in the video. That means analyzing the role of interest groups, Congress (including the legislative process…committees, chairs, etc.), the media, the President, elections and political parties, and any other relevant insights from elite theory on American government institutions and processes.

Here is the link to the video (also found under Content…Obama’s Deal): Obama’s Deal. Take notes on it, just as you would a reading–at least twice. Use the closed captioning feature to ensure that you identify (and spell correctly) and discuss the names of the people, organizations, committees, and whatever other relevant aspects of the video that apply to your analysis.

In terms of quality expectations, I expect your exam to be commensurate with its point value. That is, the final is worth more than any other assignment and twice as much weight as each of the unit exams (i.e.,100 points/20% of your final grade). In a college course, the final exam is the summative evaluation instrument designed to measure your knowledge and understanding of both the content and methodology of the course subject; hence, the higher grading weight. As such, depending on where your grade falls going into the final exam, your grade can go up or down by as much as two letters. For example, if you have a D+ going into the final and ace it, you could end up with a B- grade. This of course depends on where your point total is before the final and the specific number of points you earn on the exam, but statistically it is entirely possible. On the flip side, a poor final exam can drop your grade just as significantly (e.g., from a C- to an F, from a B+ to a C, etc.).

You should plan on writing a multi-page paper with well-developed paragraphs and clear topic sentences equivalent to four-five double-spaced pages. Just as with any expository essay of this type, it should include introductory and concluding paragraphs. As with the Unit 1 and Unit 2 exams (and discussions), it is absolutely critical that you support your analysis with examples and evidence from the documentary and link them directly to major ideas from elite theory. The more connections, and the more specific that they are, the better. In short, this is your chance to demonstrate your knowledge of elite theory from the entire course, so don’t hold anything back!

As with the first two unit exams, you may draft your response and cut and paste it into the final. This is quite obviously recommended so that you can draft your response and revise it as many times as necessary to ensure that it meets the exam criteria and is mechanically and structurally sound (i.e., grammar, spelling, coherence, etc.). If you choose to complete the exam completely online, you will have two hours.