This week we are discussing the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). President Obama made a lot of promises about transparency when he was a candidate. Has he lived up to his promises? Why or why not? Should he?
Find an Internet article that discusses transparency and FOIA in the Obama Administration. Discuss transparency and the tradeoff between privacy and the public’s right to know.
Remember to reply to the posts of at least 2 of your classmates, and always cite your sources.
Each week, students provide a critical review of the questions and substantially reply to the contributions of at least two peers. Individual postings should include an evaluation of the content of the forum questions and explain how it relates to the concepts in the text and other external resources. The postings should be analytic in nature and include comparisons/contrasts and examples that can support your argument.
Your essay should be posted by midnight Friday and be approximately 750 words. Your responses to your classmates (min 2) should be posted by midnight Sunday and be approximately 250 words each. Remember to use and cite multiple scholarly works using APA format.
| Criteria | Description | Points |
| Quality | Student critically evaluated the content of the assigned reading, responded thoroughly to the question, and made connections to the text and the real world. Submission is professional, focused, pertinent, and free of grammar and spelling errors. | 50 |
| Participation | Student responded substantively to at least 2 classmates. Responses were engaging and encouraged dialogue. | 20 |
| Use of Resources | Student performed independent research, used and properly cited the assigned reading. Student used appropriate outside sources to support arguments. | 20 |
| Timeliness | Student posted a response to the question by midnight Friday and responded to at least 2 classmates by midnight Sunday. (This grading criterion is applied in weeks 2-8). | 10 |
The Discussion Groups are designed to enhance (and evaluate) student participation and interaction during the course. Accordingly, your interaction with other students will be part of the grading calculus.
