Introduction I am very thankful that Intro to Public Affairs was a course that I had to take during my freshman year at IPFW. I believe that the material that I learned will be very beneficial to not only the rest of my college career but also to my everyday life outside of school. Creating reflections, blogs and even partaking in discussions, has helped me realized I can partake in public policy or at least understand it better. Constituencies and Public Policy There are a variety of different actions that constituencies can do to contribute to public policy in the United States. This course has opened my eyes and reminded me of the things that everyday Americans can do to make our society a better place. The first example is by actually …show more content…
This was not my first public policy class that I have taken and I still do not know everything about our government. I had to take economy and government as a senior in high school. Both of those classes were just an introduction into the complex system. I think that my public policy classes have helped me take a step back and not get overwhelmed by all of the information. Being able to learn a little bit of information at one time, can only help me increase my knowledge of our government. There are political actors that have to compete to influence policy making. It is important that the citizens are able to voice their opinions to the political actors and then see some sort of action being taken to help the citizens. There are many different steps that someone can take to understand the U.S. government and I am on the right track because of the classes that I am choosing to take. Conclusion Introduction to Public Affairs is just one of the many public policy courses that I need to take in order to get a criminal justice degree. It is important that citizens, such as myself, understand how the government works. This may include a variety of different things such as participating in community activities, voting, or even simply knowing the local and state laws. By doing so, we can make our government and communities stronger. I am very grateful that I get to learn about public policy and make myself a better
On the national civics assessment, “two-thirds of 12th graders scored below ‘proficient’…and only 9 percent could list two ways a democracy benefits from citizen participation” (O’Connor and Romer 4). The information provided clarifies just how little students know about democracy. Without education on the subject, they are unaware as to how their government contribution is beneficial and why it is needed in the first place. The students, because of their lack of understanding, therefore choose to not take part in their government and fail to carry out their duties as a citizen. The authors provide more research that shows “the better people understand our history and system of government, the more likely they are to vote and participate in the civic life” (O’Connor and Romer 8).
...adults compared to older adults were less likely to respond that voting was extremely important for good citizenship (133). He concludes that it is too late for the generation of young adults that do not feel voting is an important civic responsibility, however, that it is not too late to convince them that politics matter by showing them that they are giving their opportunity to make important decisions that may impact their lives to others who have different ideas. One may agree with Wattenberg’s idea that habits follow people throughout their lives instead of changing as they cycle in life. His personal accounts are an impactful way to illustrate the importance of building a sense of duty at a young age and carrying that responsibility throughout one’s life.
Schiller, W. J., Geer, J. G., & Segal, J. A. (2013). Gateways to democracy: introduction to American government, the essentials. (2nd ed.). Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth ;.
The speakers in the film believe that the purpose of education is to create a public where democracy can thrive. This means creating a new generation of young adults that are highly knowledgeable and are able to make informed decisions about political subjects and can make their votes count when they are able to vote. They have the knowledge about how the government works and what they can do as an individual to make a difference in their community. They have the knowle...
Politics is the heart of America. To enact change in a major area of the nation, the politics must be discussed to no end and one must know how to speak the words of the...
Democracy is rule by the people; the people elect governing officials based off of their personal values and beliefs. Different political parties rule the political scene and are serving to represent the people’s opinions in the best ways possible. Previously, I had a belief that my political view was essentially the only one possible and therefore it was the best. These views changed quickly once I learned the different political parties, their views, how they represent the people’s views, and how public opinion shapes politics. The government is formed around differentiating opinions on which policies should be in place and which social aspects need to be considered first. Not only is the government guided by opinion, but the people’s lives are guided by opinion as well. Each individual holds a different view, and each view can have an influence on society. Fortunately, after roughly eight weeks of studying American Government, I now have a better sense of complexity and the value of
However, through this course I have also come to recognize that due to the negative perception that is placed on our generation, the political objectives of young people will likely never be given adequate consideration by public officials should we continue to practice engaged citizenship while disregarding electoral participation. My personal definition of citizenship is recognizing the privileges we have as citizens of the United States and contributing to one’s community in whatever way they are able to do so. A responsible citizen is not simply an observer of the political process, but rather an informed
Gaining an in-depth knowledge of the criminal justice system, throughout my Bachelors program has been exciting as much as an eye opener. Some of the subjects were ones that I did not expect. There were also, ones that had no idea how ignorant I was on the subject.
Citizen involvement: A practical guide for change. Basingstoke, England: Macmillan. Beresford, P., 8! Harding, T. (Eds.). (1993).
Wilson’s focused on the importance of the separation of public administration from the political ramifications. He articulates how colleges have recognized the need for in depth studies of public administration, apart from politics.
Two years ago, I was writing my letter of intent for my application to the Master of Public Administration (MPA) with a concentration in Healthcare Administration revealing my failures, and most significantly, that I lost my passion and didn’t know where to start. I also conceded that I was relatively unaware of the field of Public Administration (PA). Little did I know, examining PA theories would enable me to connect the final dots in the big picture of my life, where I came from, who I’d come to be, what choices I’d made, the relationships I nurtured, and my dreams and desires for the future. Although confidence came slowly and awkwardly, I discovered my desire to contribute to the advancement of public health policies. I am writing to express my interest in continuing to the Doctoral program in the School of Public Administration at the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO). I am absolutely interested in the commitment to the advancement of knowledge, and confident my experience in higher education and academic research will contribute to my successful completion of the Ph.D. program, in the specialization area of public policy.
This study makes a few important contributions to the study of civic learning outcomes. First of all, it shows that there are multiple of dimensions of civic learning and fairly reliable measure, these can be readily assessed. Next, this study also establishes that students can be exposed to different perspectives on and off campus have extensive effect on civic learning through variety of curriculum and co-curriculum. The study confirms previous research that shows that connections with diverse peers and learning about diversity enhance civic learning. Third, there is contact between habits associated with student learning and civic learning outcomes.
Public Managers have to participate in the policy making process. Previously, according to scholars, “policy process” was considered “decision making” (Wu, Ramesh, Howlett, & Fritzen, 2010). Under such pretense, public managers considered their role merely with policy implementation. However the recent theories that define public policy, have demarcated public policy as an activity that involves a broad range of activities ranging from defining problems, ensuring the defined problems to make it to agenda, developing alternative solutions of addressing these issues, implementing the results and evaluating the outcomes.
...ot function properly. Politics and administration should be seen as very interconnected. It is worth reiterating just as the structure of governments has changed over the years, the structure and role of public administration have also changes dramatically. Furthermore, it is important to state that public administration has grown from its traditional role of merely implementing policies adopted by the “political” branches of government to playing very significant role in the formation of public policies. This is definitely more evident in regards to professional expertise bureaucratic officials provide during problem identification, agenda setting, policy formulation, and evaluation that shape the content of public policy today. Overall, the idea that Wilson has proposed gives an accurate idea of what the relationship should be between politics and administration.