Author: chris

 You will be assigned to work in a group of 1-2 or 2-3 classmates. Then, you will begin to investigate possible timely information technology policy and strategy interests, situations, or needs to suggest to the group   look for areas that need improvement and can be solved with outstanding leadership and innovation.   Only then, begin to discuss possible solutions to the problem. Discuss the extent, origins, and possible causes of the problem, consider alternative solutions, and select the solution that seems most practical and that meets these criteria: If the group cannot achieve consensus on a solution, go back and select another problem.Assign someone to take or record this discussion; it will grow into the proposal’s “Background” and “Statement of Need” sections. The “Questions for Problem-Solving Proposals” suggest what information will be needed. You may need to cover other areas not listed. To gather data, you will probably use some or all of the following:   Then the group needs to find the reason. If the reason is convincing, assign him/her another, equal task. If all else fails, see the instructor. If the instructor intervention fails, the student will probably not complete the course.  Contact the instructor immediately. Adjustment will be made. 7.  After each group member has had time to read all members’ work and make written comments on the content, verify that all needed questions have been answered so that everyone understands what everyone else has written.  As a group, begin to arrange the material in the order suitable for a proposal. Decide what illustrations are needed and who will be responsible for each. Meet for the first and second revisions of sections of the body. Provide copies of revisions for each group member.   Assign individuals to prepare the paper’s abstract, table of contents, and table of illustrations, title page, any needed appendix (es) and reference list.     The following elements should be demonstrated in this assignment:  Definition of a Problem: A situation, issue, policy, or practice this is difficult and perplexing but can be improved or solved. What is a current situation, policy, practice that you see as a problem? How do you know the current situation, practice, or policy is not beneficial ? Can it be improved, changed, eliminated? How do you know?  Who/what does the problem hurt? In what way? When? For how long? With what results?   When did the problem start?  What are some of the causes of the problem?  Has anyone before tried to solve this problem here or elsewhere? When? How? With what effect?  What is your proposed solution?Why did you choose it over alternative solutions?If your solution is accepted, what benefits will be gained. By whom? How soon?   What steps need to be taken to start putting your proposed solution into effect? What people need to be involved in planning the implementation of the solution? What steps need to be taken to implement your solution? What materials/equipment will be needed to accomplish each step? What facilities (space, utilities) will be needed at each step? How will they be used? For how long? What people will need to be involved at each step of the implementation? What will they need to know and do? For how long?  How much will it cost for the people needed? How do you arrive at the total? How much will it cost for the materials/equipment? How do you arrive at the total? How much will it cost for facilities? How do you arrive at the total? What other direct costs will there be? How do you know? What are indirect costs (time lost by personnel; health benefits; insurance for equipment; unexpected delays)? What will be the total cost? How do you arrive at the total? How will this proposal be funded? Direct sources? Indirect sources? Evidence for availability of the needed funds? How long would it take to plan to start implementing the proposed solution? How did you arrive at this answer? How long will it take to have the proposed solution approved? How did you arrive at this answer?What method of monitoring progress will you use? What method of evaluation of success/failure will you use?  What are the reasons in favor of implementation (summarized)? What is the group’s recommendation? Most helpful choices? Correct label, title, and arrangement? Introduced and interpreted in text?  References: (APA formatted)  (control+click to follow link) Appendix (es)Title Page Table of Contents Abstract Introduction Background Statement of Need EvidenceEmpirical DataSecondary Data Plan of Action Budget     Funding ScheduleEvaluation Conclusions/Recommendations Appendix(es)     Basic Formatting Guidelines    

The Discussion Board (DB) is part of the core of online learning. Classroom discussion in an online environment requires the active participation of students and the instructor to create robust interaction and dialogue. Every student is expected to create an original response to the open-ended DB question as well as engage in dialogue by responding to posts created by others throughout the week. At the end of each unit, DB participation will be assessed based on both level of engagement and the quality of the contribution to the discussion.At a minimum, each student will be expected to post an original and thoughtful response to the DB question and contribute to the weekly dialogue by responding to at least two other posts from students. The first contribution must be posted before midnight (Central Time) on Wednesday of each week. Two additional responses are required after Wednesday of each week. Students are highly encouraged to engage on the Discussion Board early and often, as that is the primary way the university tracks class attendance and participation.The purpose of the Discussion Board is to allow students to learn through sharing ideas and experiences as they relate to course content and the DB question. Because it is not possible to engage in two-way dialogue after a conversation has ended, no posts to the DB will be accepted after the end of each unit.Now that you have written about the topic that you selected in Unit 1, it is time to explore what others have said about that same topic. To begin the process, use the AIU library databases and online search tools to locate at least 6 sources that are related to your topic.The best way to begin this search is by first reading encyclopedia articles on the topic, especially the encyclopedias in the AIU library. Encyclopedia articles provide a summary of current information and, most important, a list of books and articles about the topic. You can often find titles of useful works at the end of encyclopedia articles.Remember, encyclopedias and other reference books (online or print) can be consulted, but their information cannot be cited in your paper. This means that material from reference works cannot be quoted or summarized in your paper. Reference works help you begin your exploration of a topic; however, reference works do not contain original material and therefore cannot be cited in your paper.After consulting reference works, locate at least 6 credible sources related to your topic. These published works will inform you of arguments that are related to your topic. They can also provide evidence (facts, statistics, quotations, and examples) to support your own thesis and main points in the research paper that you will write later in the course.There are two types of citations in APA style: in-text citations and reference citations. An in-text citation is an abbreviation. A reference citation lists all relevant information about a source. The following is a paragraph from a research paper on preventing juvenile delinquency that illustrates the difference between in-text and reference citations:The author and date in parentheses (Friedman, 2014) is an in-text citation. It appears in the sentence where the source was used and is an abbreviated form of the reference citation. All of the information in the paragraph was the student writer’s except what was in the sentence that included an in-text citation.After the paragraph, you can see the full reference citation of the source. The reference citation provides all of the information that someone would need to find this source.Complete the following for your assignment:Each of the six entries should look like this:    

 This week we turn our attention to California.  We will begin by looking at the California Constitutions of 1849 and 1879.  Here is a brief introduction:  Given that the 1879 Constitution is the third longest in the world (after Alabama and India), you will be glad to know I want you to focus only on those parts of the Constitution that address religion or God.  Hint: Note the preambles to both constitutions.  How is this different that the preamble to the United States Constitution?   Why did the US Constitution not have such a preamble? When is religion mentioned in the US Constitution?   What about both of the California Constitutions?  (An easy way to explore this is to use the “find” tool and include such words as “God” or  “religion” or “religious.”) One of the reasons that the California Constitution is so long is explained in this article:  To better understand California’s inclusion of direct democracy in its Constitution, this article from Houghton Mifflin History/Social Science page might help: California’s Direct Democracy The United States has a representative democracy. This means citizens vote for people to represent, or speak for, them. California has a representative democracy, too. Californians vote for their governor, senators, and representatives. These elected officials create, uphold, and interpret California laws. In our democracy, people agree to follow the laws, even if the person they vote for doesn’t win the election. California’s voters can also help make laws by creating ballot propositions. Propositions are ideas citizens have for new laws or changes to the Constitution. Voting on whether or not to make a new law is direct democracy.   History of Propositions: The system of direct democracy in California started in the early 1900s, when many Californians were unhappy with their state’s government. Wealthy railroad owners controlled the governor and other state officials. The officials made laws to help businesses instead of the people they represented. In 1911, citizens in California changed the state constitution so that voters could help make laws. They created a system of initiatives and referendums. An initiative is a proposal for a new law. If enough citizens sign a petition, or written request, these proposals become propositions and they are added to a ballot. Citizens vote on whether they want propositions to become laws. Another form of direct democracy in California is the referendum. A referendum allows citizens to vote for or against a law that the state assembly has passed. Any California citizen can write a petition to propose a new law. If enough people sign the petition, the government must put the proposition on the ballot and let citizens vote. If enough people vote for the proposition, it becomes a law in the same way the legislature creates new laws. Currently, it takes more than 900,000 signatures to bring an initiative or a referendum before the voters. That is a tough obstacle to overcome. Even so, the number of these propositions has soared in recent years. Too Many Questions? Some people think there are too many initiatives and referendums in California today. To make good decisions, voters need to learn about each issue. This can be hard when there are so many initiatives on the ballot. “Democracy in California is on overload,” said the Fresno Bee newspaper. Many voters like direct democracy, however. Elizabeth Garrett, a law professor at the University of Southern California, says the voters feel better about laws that they pass themselves. People prefer to make changes directly, she says, “rather than hoping that lawmakers, who have an interest in the process, will reform [change] themselves.” Examples of Propositions: One of the most recent and contentious propositions—Proposition 8—promoted serious questions about how much an established religion(s) participate in a political campaign.   Prop 8 and Religious Voters  These two commentaries give reflect the two sides of this issue: Against religious political activism:    Prop 8 Challenge Puts Religion on Trial    The complexities of the entry of religion in politics is evident in this video:    Although there were church/state issues involved in Prop 8, another was the issue of direct democracy and whether or not it was good for the running of the state:    Use your discussions to find out and discuss more information about other court cases involving church/state issues that have arisen in California.   ***USE AS REFERENCE-  ***ANOTHER REFERENCE WILL BE ATTACHED *****PLEASE make 3 SEPERATE discussions 250 words in length.