Final Paper The purpose of the Final Paper is for you to culminate the learning achieved in the course by illustrating your understanding and application of knowledge in American History, by providing you a vehicle to show your leaning and application of historical concepts covered throughout the course. You will do this by creating a final paper that shows some of the social/cultural, economic, literary, political, and religious changes that have occurred in American History over the time periods covered in the course. As the course guide states, the course is divided into five Units. Unit I 1865-1876, Unit II 1877-1920, Unit III, 1921-1945, Unit IV 1946-1974 and Unit IX 1975-Present. **Explaining the progression of the American Railroads for each time unit** Focus of the Final Paper Choose any one group or major historical event to illustrate how people, places and/or events have been interrelated and impacted over the course of your learning in this class. You will do this by writing a paper that clearly and directly identifies which unit, group or issue, and topic you are referring to and how specifically the historical concepts and issues are interrelated and bridged through time. Your paper must include specifics of the topic or issue (background: such as who, when, where, and what was involved, etc.) and significance of the topic or issue (outcome: such as why it was important, what did it lead to, who was affected, etc.). Example 1: If you chose to discuss the historical progression of African Americans you could start with the following: Thesis- In Unit One, life for African Americans was… One Social/cultural issue they faced was… In response to that issue they chose to… The outcome of that was… In Unit Two, life for African Americans was… One political issue they faced was… In response to those issues they chose to … The outcome of that was… And so on through each unit Conclusion- Example 2: If you chose to discuss the historical progression of business you could start with the following: Thesis- In Unit One, business in America consisted of… One political issue they faced was … In response to those issues they chose to … The outcome of that was … In Unit Two, business was… One economic issue they faced was … In response to those issues they chose to … The outcome of that was… And so on through each unit Conclusion- ***These are examples only. You are not required to write on these topics. *** Writing the Final Paper The Final Paper: § Must be eight to ten double-spaced pages in length and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide. § Must use at least 8 scholarly sources. § Must include a cover page that includes: -­ Student’s name: Greg Pappin -­ Course name and number: HIS204 -­ Title of paper: “The Progression of the American Railroads” -­ Instructor’s name: Jo Macek, MAT -­ Date submitted: 11-14-2008 § Must include an introductory paragraph with a succinct thesis statement. § Must include specifics of the topic or issue (background: such as who, when, where, and what was involved, etc.) and significance of the topic or issue (outcome: such as why it was important, what it led to, who was affected, etc.). § Must conclude with a restatement of the thesis and a conclusion paragraph. § Must use APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide to document all sources. § Must include, on the final page, a Reference Page that is completed according to APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide. *************************************************************************************************************** Paper Grading Criteria A range: The paper is clear, engaging, original, and focused; ideas and content are richly developed with details and examples. Organization and form enhance the central idea and theme; ideas are presented coherently to move the reader through the text. The voice of the writer is compelling and conveys the writer’s meaning through effective sentence structure and precise word choices. The writer successfully moves the paper through academic constructs and experiential documentation to critical analysis. The paper demonstrates a clear balance of these three components.