Take-Home Exam Instructions
All exams are to be typed, double-spaced, using 12 point, Times font and standard English. Exams are to be completed individually: PLAGIARISM WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. If I see answers that are significantly similar from one student to the next, I will assume tthat the students collaborated. In most instances in life collaboration is a good thing, but I am trying to assess your own individual skills and knowledge, not that of your friends or colleagues, so it is important that you complete the work on your own.
Each of the essays should not be longer than two pages in length, so the total exam should not exceed six pages in length.
All exams must be turned in at the beginning of class on Tuesday, October 2. at 9:30 AM. If an emergency arises, you must inform me in advance of this due date and time that there is problem. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE NIGHT BEFORE TO BEGIN WORK--this will avoid many problems, including those of printer failures, loss of web access, and last minute emergencies and illnesses.
MSU General Education Objectives that are Measured:
Read college-level texts for comprehension. (1b)
The rubrics I will use to evaluate your essay exams are the following:
Level 1 (Beginner)
Writes little or nothing (1b)
Punctuation, grammar, spelling, and mechanics are not appropriate
Responds using incorrect information (1b)
Includes no important details from readings, lectures, discussions and activities. (1b)
Cannot identify cultural, social, economic, geographic and historical dynamics that have influenced the region (1b)
Level 2 (Novice)
Responds adequately to questions in writing (1b)
Misinterprets some information presented. (1b)
Punctuation, grammar, spelling, and mechanics are not consistently appropriate
Includes some important details from readings, lectures, discussions and activities. (1b)
Identifies cultural, social, economic, geographic or historical dynamics that have influenced the region (1b)
Level 3 (Proficient)
Responds proficiently to questions in writing (1b)
Responds with a literal interpretation of information presented (1b)
Punctuation, grammar, spelling, and mechanics are consistently appropriate
Includes many important details from readings, lectures, discussions and activities. (1b)
Analyzes cultural, social, economic, geographic and historical dynamics that have influenced the region (1b)
Level 4 (Advanced)
All the traits of Level 3, but also:
Responds with interpretation of information presented that demonstrates higher level thinking (1b)
Includes most important details from readings, lectures, discussions and activities. (1b)
Critically and thoughtfully evaluates the cultural, social, economic, geographic and historical dynamics that have influenced the region (1b)
Applies their understanding of the cultural, social, economic, geographic and historical dynamics that have influenced the region in relation to one another (1b)
Questions: You will notice that I have drawn heavily from your assigned reading (both the course text book and the assigned articles), but you are also asked to integrate course lectures, class discussions, and film viewings into your essays. To review course lectures, go to Blackboard (all power points are posted there). Organize your answers into essay form (e.g. in complete sentences in paragraphs).
YOU MUST ANSWER ALL THREE ESSAY QUESTIONS.
Essay I--Early History: Appalachian Native American History course power point, Appalachian Post-Contact History power point, course texbook pp. 7-45)
Who were some of the first peoples to live in the Appalachian region? How did they support themselves? Did they trade or travel outside the region? What do we know about their beliefs? Who were the first Europeans to arrive in Appalachia? The first people of African descent? From which countries did immigrants come to Appalachia? Describe these immigrants' lives up until the Civil War (how did most people make their living, did people trade outside of the region, or were they isolated?).
Essay II--Post-Civil War History: Appalachian Post-Contact History power point, Long Journey Home film, Blee and Billings reading (feud article),and course textbook pp. 46-100)
What were some of the changes that occurred in the Appalachian region in the period following the Civil War? How did American industrialization affect Appalachia? (give specific examples) Who made up the bulk of the labor force for the coal mines in Appalachia by 1900? What were the benefits and the problems with company towns? Were these towns integrated? What are some of the changes in Appalachia that led to the post-World War II outward migrations? (give specifci examples)
Essay III--The Environment: Rouse and Greer-Pit course reading (available as PDF file on Blackboard), and the Water in Appalachia power point, guest speaker Dr. Steven Reid's presentation(his power point is posted to Blackboard))
According to Rouse and Greer-Pit, what have been the two greatest threats to Appalachia's environmental diversity? What species have disappeared from the region? Which ones have been successfully reintroduced? What are some of the ways that the rise of the timber industry impacted the region's environment? Describe/explain some of the legislation that has helped to protect Appalachia's forests. What are the three most serious threats to the region's forests today, according to the authors? What are some of their concerns about surface mining and its environmental impact? What have you learned from Dr. Reid's visit and our class discussion about current environmental challenges related to water, specifically bank erosion and sediment pollution? (discuss at least two sources for these problems and possible solutions).