Based on your understanding of our assigned readings by John Rury, Hilary Moss, Horace Mann (and our in-class primary source documents), as well as Dr. Terzian’s class presentations & our class discussions: Which of the four categories of societal change—demographic, political, religious, or economic—do you think was the most significant in helping to bring about the common school movement in the mid-19th century Northern states? In addition to illustrating your choice with examples from our assigned readings and Dr. Terzian’s video presentations, explain why you think your selected category was more influential than the others.
Responses should be between 800-1,000 words. double-space and use Times New Roman, 12- point font.
Incorporate a title that represents your main point in the essay.
Be sure to answer the question with a clear thesis statement that appears at the end of your introductory paragraph.
Be explicit in your analysis. Be direct and vivid and include specific examples.
Whether quoting directly or paraphrasing from a source, include the page number. Quotes from Dr. Terzian’s video presentations must include the title of the video.
Don’t present a quotation as a stand-alone sentence. Instead, embed the quotation into a sentence of your own. Similarly, don’t end a paragraph with a quotation; always try to end with your own words—to remind the reader how that quotation supports your thesis.
Be judicious in determining where to break your paragraphs.
Number your pages.
Use the active voice. Avoid the passive voice whenever possible.
Omit needless words. Only include essential words in any given sentence. For instance, “the fact that” should only read “that.” Etc.
Stay consistent in verb tense. In writing about the past, stay in the past tense throughout. When speaking to your reader about, say, how a particular event in the past makes sense to us today, then feel free to use the present tense.
In using parenthetical page references after a quotation, the punctuation mark follows the parenthesis—it does not fall within the quotation itself.
Always write in complete sentences (make sure there is a subject and verb).
Proofread your final draft carefully—line by line with a ruler.
Essays will be evaluated on these criteria:
An introductory paragraph that ends with a clear thesis that answers the question and briefly indicates why you think so.
How effectively your response includes a variety of relevant specific examples from each of the specified authors and class presentations to support and develop your thesis. When summarizing from a source, be sure to indicate in a parenthesis the author’s last name; when quoting from a source, indicate both the author’s last name and the page number.
How carefully and persuasively you explain why those specific examples support your thesis.
A concluding paragraph that summarizes your main points convincingly.
How clearly it is written, organized, and carefully proofread.
VIDEOS
