Several analytical frameworks help students comprehend and synthesize complex concepts * The authors focus on key structural factors - including the American economy, technological innovations and change, and the American political culture - and examine how they affect politics, government, and public policy. These factors are introduced in Chapter 4, and are brought to bear on a wide range of issues in subsequent chapters.* In order to foster critical thinking and help students understand American history as a struggle for democracy, the authors foreground issues of democratic political theory throughout the text. For instance, the text examines how the evolution of the party system has improved democracy in some respects in the United States, but hurt it in others.* An emphasis on historical perspective helps students best evaluate the progress of democracy in the United States. For example, the authors show how the expansion of civil rights in the United States has been associated with important historical events and trends.* Substantial comparative information has been integrated into the text to help students achieve a full understanding of government and politics and the effect of structural factors on them, which the authors believe is possible only through a comparison of developments, practices, and institutions in the United States with those in other nations. Compelling pedagogical features help students better understand, interpret, and critically evaluate American politics and government * Using the Democracy Standard features help students to think about the American political system as a whole using a normative democracy "yardstick" that measures the degree to which we have become more or less democratic.
This yardstick is introduced at the beginning of each chapter and revisited in the final section of each chapter, which asks students to consider how democratic they think our system is.* Using the Framework visual tools show the many influences in the American political process and how they shape political decisions and policies. This feature helps students see how government, politics, and society are deeply intertwined in recognizable patterns, and that a holistic focus is required to understand American politics.* By the Numbers features help students understand statistical information on government, politics, economy, and society, and learn how to distinguish between good and bad statistical information. In each box, the authors describe a particular statistic, show how it is calculated, examine what critics and supporters say about its usefulness and validity, and ask students what they think about issues addressed by the statistic.* Mapping American Politics features present cartograms - maps that display information organized on a geographical basis with each unit (e.g., a county, state, or country) sized in proportion to the data being reported.
By helping students visualize key numeric information, these features illuminate a broad range of issues, including how the geographic bases of the political parties are changing and where American economic and military assistance dollars go.* Can Government Do Anything Well? features examine whether government or the market or some combination of the two is the most appropriate instrument for solving our most important national problems. With this feature, the authors hope to help bridge the deep divide that separates those who believe that "government is always the solution" and those who believe that "government is always the problem."* Timelines throughout the text help students develop a sense of historical context. Topics include federalism milestones, development of the U.S. census, a history of the Internet, and the rise and fall of labor unions.* Every chapter includes a marginal glossary to support students'' understanding of new and important concepts at first encounter.
For easy reference, key terms from the marginal glossary are repeated at the end of each chapter and in the end-of-book glossary. Updated content ensures currency and engages students The 2014 Elections and Updates Edition incorporates coverage of contemporary issues that dominate today''s headlines, ensuring that students see the relevance of course content to their own lives, as well as the most up-to-date data.* NEW! Substantial coverage of the consequential 2012 national and the 2014 midterm congressional elections , with special attention to these elections in Chapter 10 on voting, campaigns, and elections and in Chapter 11 on Congress.* NEW! Coverage throughout, and in Chapters 3, 10, 14, 15, 16, and 17 particularly, on important rulings by the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage, efforts to limit voting rights, immigration, affirmative action, election financing, the commerce clause, and the Affordable Care Act.* NEW! Consideration, especially in Chapter 12 and Chapter 18, on the n ew challenges posed by the rise of ISIS in Syria and Iraq, nuclear weapons programs in North Korea, Pakistan, and especially Iran, China''s emergence as a competing world power, and Russia''s attempt to reassert its power in Ukraine and in other countries formerly a part of the Soviet Union.* NEW! Increased attention to the growing partisan bitterness in Washington and across much of the nation that affects how government addresses or fails to address virtually every major problem facing the nation whether it be energy, illegal immigration, climate change, or the shrinking middle class (Chapters 9, 10, 11, and 17).* NEW! A focus in several chapters on the question of the degree to which income and wealth inequality has increased, and an examination of subsequent political and public policy consequences. We also look at globalization and technological change and their impact on Americans.
* NEW ! Coverage of the ways economic and technological trends shape government action , including new legislation to regulate the financial industry, executive orders increasing gas mileage requirements for cars, and prosecution of government employees who leak confidential government information to social media sites (Chapters 4, 6, 15, 17, and 18).* NEW! Photos in this edition were selected to capture major events from the last few years, as well as to illustrate politics'' relevancy. They show political actors and processes as well as people affected by politics, creating a visual narrative that enhances rather than repeats the text. * UPDATED! The data in all of the figures and tables has been updated throughout with the intention of helping users think critically not only about political decisions in retrospect but also about pending government action. Also available with MyPoliSciLab® MyPoliSciLab for the American Government course extends learning online, engaging students and improving results. Media resources with assignments bring concepts to life, and offer students opportunities to practice applying what they''ve learned. Please note: this version of MyPoliSciLab does not include an eText.* Explorer personalizes key course materials (graphs, maps, and other infographics) with data from specific locations, giving students opportunities to explore how the trends they are learning about impact them on a local level.
They can view statistics and trends, such as unemployment rate and demographic shifts, for their town or county, and compare this data with other parts of the world. Students can also analyze maps at different points in time, or in comparison to one another, to easily identify how trends emerge, grow, and wane geographically. Explorer activities link back to assessment within MyPoliSciLab.* Decision-making Mini Simulations within MyPoliSciLab engage students, allowing them to play the role of a political actor and apply political science concepts to make decisions - just as political figures do. These simulations have been updated to provide a more game-like environment to further engage students in the activity. We offer a simulation per chapter for all titles. All simulations can be completed in a week.* The Scholar Series consists of short video clips of authors and political science experts explaining key concepts, such as civil rights or political parties.
These videos also feature scholars talking through the history, application, and ramification of these concepts in practice. Through viewing discussions of these big ideas, students can start to think like political scientists.* Writing Space provides everything you need to foster better writing, all in one place. It''s a single place to create, track, and grade writing assignments, provide writing resources, and exchange meaningful, personalized feedback with students, quickly and easily. The availability of auto-graded, assisted-graded, and create-your-own assignments within Writing Space lets you decide your level of involvement in evaluating your students'' work. The auto-graded option allows you to assign writing in large classes without the burden of having to grade all student work by hand. And thanks to integration with Turnitin®, Writing Space can check students'' work for improper citation or plagiarism.* No class is influenced more by the events of the day than a political science course.
The Politics Matters blog keeps students updated on the day''s headlines from right within their MyPoliSciLab course. Offering a political science perspective on the latest news stories, Politics Matters provides students a model of how to apply political science concepts to the analysis of current events. The Struggle for Democracy , 2014 Elections and Updates Edition is also available via REVEL (tm), an immersive learning experience.