Purpose
To understand the way the United States reacts to another country, it is important to first understand the other country. Many U.S. policies can seem odd or upsetting to some, while those same policies are praised by others. In this assignment, you will select one of the listed countries, and prepare a brief on that country in which you will decide if you think the U.S. should have a trade relationship with that country. You will also research the current U.S. position to see if it aligns with your recommendation.
Lesson Outcomes
Analyze and evaluate significant political actions of another country (CLO 1, 2, 4, 5)
Communicate a political policy position in written form (CLO 2, 3, 4)
Steps for Completing the Task
Step 1: Choose a Country.
There is a wide array of countries you may choose from, depending on your interests. This assignment is to help you understand a different culture and government, as well as our policy relationships with them.
The list is separated into parts of the world. Determine what part of the world interests you and then select one of the countries listed:
Europe: Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, Greece, Finland, Sweden
Eastern Europe: Kazakstan, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Hungary, Turkey
Middle East/North Africa: Oman, UAE, Yemen, Pakistan, Morocco, Algeria, Kuwait
Sub Saharan Africa: Sudan, Angola, Kenya, Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Central African Republic
Asia: South Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei, Cambodia
Step 2: Research the Country
You need to become very familiar with your selected country’s background, government, geography, economics, population, and industries.
Here are some interesting and informative sites to help you with this:
World Factbook
Infoplease
US Trade Policy
Writing a Policy Brief
Step 3: Write the Brief
A brief is simply a summary of important facts about a country. Your brief should be 2.5-3 pages in length. Be sure to review the Writing a Policy Brief (PDF) information. A policy brief includes the following information and you are advised to follow this:
Title: Name of the Country you are analyzing.
Executive Summary: This section is often one to two paragraphs long; It will include an overview of the people, government structure (i.e. Democracy or authoritarian), historical view of the country (are they stable or prone to political violence)
Context or Scope of Problem: This section will be one to two paragraphs outlining what the country has that America might want to trade or find desirable.
Policy Recommendations: Based on your view of the countries structure, do you recommend trade with this country? What will be the advantages? Do you see any disadvantages with trading with them (i.e. alienating other countries or replacing something we are getting from another country)
US Current Policy: Now do a quick review of the supplied web pages and/or others and explain the current US trade policy towards your country. Is it the same as you recommend?
Sources: These should be reliable sources that you have used throughout your brief to guide your policy discussion and recommendations. You may use APA or MLA style (APA is preferred).
Criteria for Success
To be successful, your paper should:
Be accurate
Include an introduction and thorough background of your chosen country
Address and explain the advantages or disadvantages to US trade
Give a concise and pointed recommendation based on your research
A thorough review of current policy
Be written in your own academic voice with minimal errors in grammar, punctuation, and spelling
Use academic English (no slang or texting language).
Make sense and flow well (Hint: read your responses out loud before submitting.)
Be properly formatted (brief style with APA or MLA citations) and 2.5-3 pages in length.
If your paper meets these criteria, then you will earn points for the paper as follows:
Criteria
Points
Completeness
5 points
Accuracy
25 points
Depth & Detail
30 points
Writing Style
10 points
Citations
10 points
Total Points Possible
80 points
Just pick any topic you think would be best for you because I don’t mind as long as it is from the listed options above. Use the attached file as an example and make sure to use Highschool language as I am in highschool taking a college class.
