What is a President’s Legacy?

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What is a Presidents Legacy?

• Evaluating a Presidency and Leadership

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Legacy

• Something handed down from an ancestor or a
  predecessor or from the past.
• www.dictionary.com

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Presidential Legacy Project

• Each president earns a legacy the lasting
  effects the president has on the country. You
  must determine that legacy and what it is based
  on.
• Working in groups, you will analyze successes and
  failures in foreign and domestic policies.
• You also will consider what great leadership is -
  how else can we know whether he has measured up
  or not?

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VH1 Behind the question

• What makes a legacy?
• Contributions?
• Mistakes?
• Controversies?
• Perception In their own time?
• By historians now?
• What is great leadership?

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Product

• A 15 minute PowerPoint presentation
• Should have a clear thesis.
• Should demonstrate how evidence was weighed.
• Should include multimedia (audio, video, etc.).
• May include handouts and other materials that
  enhance the audiences learning.
• Presentations that do not take audiences
  learning into account will not be considered
  successful.
• Individual bibliographies should be turned in.

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Recommended Process Stage 1

• First Stage Mucking Around
• Background info questions for Stage 1
• Whats the basic story of this presidency?
• Contributions? Mistakes? Controversies?
• Perception In their own time? By historians
  now?
• What is their lasting legacy?
• DO NOT look at the whole biography! Just look at
  the domestic or foreign policies relevant to
  their legacy.
• Recommended timeline Two days
• Recommended Sources
• Encyclopedic (including textbooks!)
• American Government
• American National Biography
• http//americanpresident.org/
• http//www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/

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Recommended Process Stage 1.2

• Conference with other group (domestics should
  meet with foreigners)
• Share research
• What are the major events you are focusing on?
• What are the big questions you are trying to
  answer?
• Can you determine legacy of president yet?
• Draft thesis
• Any big holes in your research so far?
• Next steps? Where and how to dig deeper?
• Recommended timeline one day

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Stage 2 The Big Dig

• Take those big issues and questions and dig
  deeper!
• Consider non-encyclopedic sources. Look for key
  experts, key pieces of evidence, and at least 3
  sources, including
• 1 scholarly biography
• 1 historical analysis or book review and
• 1 citation from that presidents library and/ or
  memorial, if available on line.
• NOW look at the whole biography. What is
  relevant to an informed discussion of the
  presidency?
• Recommended timeline two days
• Recommended Sources
• All previously listed sources plus
• Proquest or Ebscohost
• Academic Journals

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Stage 2.2

• Again, Conference with other group (domestics
  should meet with foreigners)
• Review your research.
• Weigh the evidence. This is where your group
  synthesizes the research.
• Agree on final thesis.
• E-mail final thesis with group members names to
  stwalker_at_ccsd.ws.
• Recommended timeline one day

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Stage 3 Construction

• All group members actively involved in preparing
  presentation and related materials as well as in
  the actual presentation in class.
• Each presentation should have a clear thesis that
  answers the question What is your presidents
  legacy?
• You should present how you weighed the evidence
  this will help you avoid the pitfall of a
  presentation that actually feels like two or more
  separate presentations.
• Information/ideas/quotes/images/etc. should be
  cited in-text as appropriate.
• Final individual bibliographies should be
  prepared. Follow HGHS Style Sheet.
• Recommended timeline two days

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Stage 4 - Rehearsal

• Rehearse your presentation!
• You should focus on
• clarity
• transitions
• pacing
• use of multimedia and technology and
• perspective of audience.
• Recommended timeline one day

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Image Credits

• http//www.lovethosegifts.com/products/full/9051.j
  pg
• http//www.careers-in-business.com/consulting/fdr.
  gif
• http//www.amfmdx.net/travel/gifs/president20linc
  oln.jpg
• http//www.cnn.com/interactive/allpolitics/0107/jo
  hnson.gallery/gallery.lbj.telephone.jpg
• http//www.art.net/hopkins/Don/images/nixon.jpg