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Citizenship
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What is Citizenship?

Citizenship is a foundational concept in political science, government, and social studies courses because it sits at the intersection of legal status, civic identity, and belonging. Students are asked to examine what it means to be a citizen, who gets to claim that status, and what obligations and rights follow from it. The topic draws on historical models, such as Athenian governance and its principles of selection and representation, as well as contemporary debates about naturalization processes, amnesty for undocumented workers, and the particular legal position of communities like those in Guam navigating U.S. citizenship. Works such as Danielle Allen's Talking to Strangers also invite students to consider how citizens relate to one another across difference within a shared society.

Papers on this topic take a wide range of approaches. Some are comparative, examining inclusion and exclusion across different systems or contrasting the role of the individual in society across political traditions. Others are historical, tracing what civil rights meant in postwar America or how naturalization procedures have evolved. Case-study approaches appear as well, with papers focusing on specific communities, workplace diversity, or the relationship between professional sports teams and community cohesion. Policy-oriented essays address questions of immigration reform and civic responsibility directly.

A strong essay on citizenship needs a clearly bounded thesis — arguing what citizenship should mean, or analyzing why a specific policy or definition succeeds or fails, rather than simply describing the concept. Legal texts, historical precedents, and political theory carry the most analytical weight as evidence. The most common pitfall is treating citizenship as a fixed, universal category rather than acknowledging that its terms are contested and have changed significantly across time and context.

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Paper Doctorate
Government control of African-Americans through twentieth-century science and art
A Survey of Black Social Oppression in the Twentieth Century
Research Paper High School
Global citizenship: benefits, challenges, and practical implications
With the concept of globalization taking root in literally every corner of the world and the world becoming a village, there is an apparent unstoppable trend of people seeking to be global citizens.
Essay Doctorate
Developments in Greek sculpture from the archaic to Hellenistic periods
Ancient Greek sculpture is one of the most famous historical forms of art. Three main forms of life are represented by this sculpture; war, mythology, and rulers of the land of ancient Greece. The main aim of the paper is to revisit the history of the art of sculpturing in ancient Greece and different steps of its development within different time periods. Some of the main developments in Greek sculpture included depiction of changes in forms, depiction of female and male figures, degrees of present realism, and how sculpturing was used to achieve these effects.
Research Paper Doctorate
U.S. immigration system vulnerabilities enabling terrorist entry post-9/11
The September 11 attacks have changed the ways Americans view the security and violence situation within their territory. Dramatic changes have been made in connection with security in the ports (land, sea and air);…
Research Paper Undergraduate
Boston's evolution from colonial center to modern biotechnology hub
Boston is a city with deeps ties to its historical roots, but one that constantly evolves with the times as it sees fit. It was one of the leading cities to begin the fight for the freedom of the colonies and the…
Paper Undergraduate
Dual language education and bilingualism in United States schools
The topic of first and second language in the United States is one that widely debated. Many Hispanic immigrants think that children of first language Spanish speaking backgrounds should retain that cultural…
Paper Undergraduate
Technological disruption of journalism through the Internet and social media
The traditional processes and roles of journalism are going through disruptive economic, social and political change as a result of the pervasive influence and impact of the Internet and social media. The nature of journalism itself is changing fast as the accumulated effects of the Internet reorder the economics of this industry (Thiel, 2005). With the rapid shifts in the underlying technologies increasing the speed of reporting, there is a corresponding shift in how news is produced and published (Nancy, 2000). With the accelerating speed of reporting there however have been continual challenges surrounding accountability and ethics (Overholser, 2009). Balancing the convenience and speed of the Internet as a publishing platform and the unique, highly targeted nature of social media for reaching multiple audiences into journalism continues to revolutionize the reader experience (Murdoch, 2010). The intent of this analysis is to provide a historical context as to how the Internet is changing journalism today, what the key technologies are that are impacting journalism, and assess the impact of social media on the journalism profession. Historical Analysis of Journalism in the Internet Age The Internet has swiftly progressed from a news-gathering platform to a publishing medium (Loop, 1999) This transition has drastically re-ordered the economics of news reporting and analysis, and also has led to entirely unforeseen ethical, legal and regulatory implications of journalistic practices and integrity (Nancy, 2000). Amidst all of these shifts in the industry structure and potential for profitability has been the rise of independent journalists who are often given equal or even greater attention and readership from the public. Rupert Murdoch sees the growth of the Internet as inexorable and completely capable of re-defining the economics of traditional news gathering, analysis, reporting and syndication (Murdoch, 2010). The fact that many bloggers have more loyal audiences that even the most well-known journalists is a case in point. The inflexion point for the journalism industry began when the Internet and its rapid publishing platforms including blogs, Wikis, video blogs and podcasts collectively created a foundation of trusted content faster and with greater candidness than traditional journalists could (Picard, 2009). Paralleling this shift in trust from the traditional journalists to the blogger community was increasing scrutiny of just how unbiased traditional journalists were. During election years as 2012 has been in the United States there is also the question of just how unbiased the traditional journalists are with regard to reporting the policies and platforms of presidential candidates (Picard, 2009). What's emerging from this analysis of traditional versus online media is the question of accuracy, authenticity, and trustworthiness of each type of media. Traditional media outlets that veer in the far left and right of political views as Fox News has been known to do for example illustrate this dichotomy.
Research Paper Doctorate
European colonialism and the Torres Strait Islander population
European Colonialism and the Peoples of Torres Strait
Research Paper Undergraduate
Green citizenship, environmental education, and ecological reform
¶ … Philosophically, Green Citizenship means working out how best an individual can make an ecological difference in the world. It is an ethical position, involving education, politics, economy, society and culture.
Research Paper Doctorate
Danielle Allen's approach to citizenship and civic engagement since Brown v. Board of Education
Danielle Allen's Talking to Strangers: Anxieties of Citizenship since Brown v. Board of Education