Citizenship and the Constitution Modified Portfolio Directions
Directions: When the Founders wrote up the US Constitution, they did so with an understanding that for this government to endure beyond their generation it would need to both be strong enough to survive, but also flexible enough to adapt to circumstances none of them could possibly have foreseen. Issues like airport security or internet regulation were not exactly hot button topics in the late 1700’s. While they did their best to strike this balance, and the resulting document has stood the test of time, there will always be room for improvement. Your task, therefore, will be to try and improve the Constitution by writing a five paragraph essay answering the following prompt.
Prompt: “Looking back from the 21st century, what is one change you would make to the US Constitution? You must support your change with the ideas of either Locke (Natural Rights) Montesquieu (Checks and Balances) or Rousseau (Social Contract Theory).”
Breakdown: Here are step by step directions on how to complete this assignment.
Step 1: Review the Constitution. In order to do this essay you need to understand what the Constitution actually says. Lessons 9-14 focus heavily on this topic, as does several of my LiveLessons and MiniLessons. You want to make sure you have a good understanding of the part of the Constitution you want to change.
Step 2: Determine what part you want to change. Think about the modern day issues our country is facing. Perhaps you think that the Electoral College is broken and does not reflect the will of the people. Perhaps you think that the Second Amendment does too much or too little to control gun ownership. You are 100% allowed to use hindsight for this assignment, so make the change you want to see. If you’re having trouble, there are sample topics further down the page.
Step 3: Review your chosen philosopher. Are you going to focus on how your change supports the social contract? Look at how it improves the checks and balances of the different branches of government or between the Federal and State? Does your change better protect natural rights? Remember, you want to justify your change using the principles that helped define the Constitution.
Step 4: Write your outline. Use the template I provided to create a rough outline of your essay. It may seem like extra work, but actually it helps you get your thoughts on paper without worrying about making the sentences sound good (something I struggle with).
Step 5: Go back and flesh out your outline into full sentences to make your paper.
Sample Topics: If you are having trouble coming up with your own topics, you can choose from these three options:
Article II, Section 1, Clause 3 of the Constitution should be changed to get rid of the Electoral College and allow the president to be elected by the people (social contract theory)
Amendment IV of the Constitution should be altered to add electronic records like e-mails to be protected against unreasonable searches and seizures. (natural rights)
Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution should be altered so that the Legislative Branch can overrule the decisions of the Supreme Court with a 2/3rds majority vote in order to limit the power of the Judicial Branch (checks and balances)
Resources: Use these resources to help you write the essay
Transcript of the Constitution
The Constitution in Plain English
A Brief Summary of John Locke and Natural Rights
A Brief Summary of Checks and Balances
A Brief Summary of Rousseau and the Social Contract
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