Here are the two websites I assigned for the first discussion assignment:
http://robertreich.org/post/131476708345 (Links to an external site.)
https://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/MinimumWages.html (Links to an external site.)
The first one promotes raising the minimum wage, the second is critical of raising the minimum wage. I initially gave one page to each half of the class, so you would have different perspectives when commenting.
For this assignment, I want you to read the “other” article- whichever one you didn’t read first. Then, I want you to post your reaction to it. Have you changed your opinion in any way? How and why? Lastly, how do you think that readings from different sources has shaped online discussions about economic subjects (for example on social media sites like twitter or facebook)? Are we more prone to gaining insight from different perspectives, or are we more prone to arguing among ourselves as a result of having read different sources of information?
As with the first discussion, your post should be in the form of a short essay, about 4 (16-20) paragraphs long.
Then, you will read two other students’ essays and give comments and respond to the arguments they make. Your comments should address all of the main points in their posts, but only need to be one paragraph (4 sentences minimum though).
Finally, you will respond to comments made on your post. Your responses should address the main points made in the comments to your initial post. Your responses should be about a paragraph in length (4 sentences minimum).
