Critical Thinking Exercise

The Truth About Income Equality

Read the February 2020 Reason Magazine Article - The Truth About Income Equality - by David R Henderson

Then, make a single web page in your Independent Practice Tab with two posts as follows

• Visible Thinking Exercise - I Used to Think......Now I Think - write two 100-200 word essays in a 2-column format; Left Side - I Used to Think....; Right Side....Now I Think - explaining your views on immigration policy --1) Income Inequality is a Bad and Government must take steps to reduce Income Inequality; 2) Income Inequality is not Bad / it is justifiable; any attempt by Government to fix Income Inequality only makes poor people poorer; or 3) Certain types of Income Inequality - like unjustly acquired wealth - is a serious problem and Government needs to ensure Justice -- before and after reading David R Henderson's article in Reason Magazine.
• What political affiliation do you think David R Henderson identifies with? (state your hypothesis...then support with 3 evidence-based arguments). After you write your answer, check what David R Henderson says about Political Discussion in an Economics Classroom

Does the U.S. Need More (or Less) Immigrants?

Read the August/September Reason Magazine Article - The U.S. Needs More Immigrants - by Jack Goldstone

Then, make a single web page in your Independent Practice Tab with two posts as follows

• Visible Thinking Exercise - I Used to Think......Now I Think - write two 100-200 word essays in a 2-column format; Left Side - I Used to Think....; Right Side....Now I Think - explaining your views on immigration policy --1) Keep the same rate; 2) Decrease the Rate of Immigration; or 3) Increase the Rate of Immigration -- before and after reading Jack Goldstone's article in Reason Magazine.
• What political affiliation do you think Jack Goldstone identifies with? (state your hypothesis...then support with 3 evidence-based arguments)

Student Loans Aren't Working

Read the May 2020 Reason Magazine Article - Student Loans Aren't Working - by Mike Riggs, deputy managing editor of Reason Magazine

Then, make a single web page in your Independent Practice Tab and answer the following

• What is the Bennett Hypothesis? Explain it. Do you believe it? Why? What is your supporting evidence?
• The facts presented in the Reason Article - Defaults for student loans keep increasing, and the Federal Government unwittingly is the guarantor, so the cost of the program keeps escalating (more Federal dollars needed on total basis and per student loan) with no favorable outcomes (graduation rates, responsible borrowers, federal program gushing red ink and no current way to stop it. What would you do to fix this? IB style essay with three themes and 3 evidenced-based bullets.
• If you are planning to continue with higher education in the United States - do you think a portion of your college expenses will be paid by Federal Student Loans? If so, who will be the winners and losers...and why? (for winners and losers - pick from among - you, your parents, your college, your State, the State which the college you attend calls home, and/or the Federal Government).

If you enjoyed reading this paper, check out this paper by Andrew Gillem, Introducing Bennett Hypothesis 2.0

Gillen received a PhD in Economics from Florida State University. This paper was published in February 2012 when he was the Research Director for the Center for College Affordability and Productivity at Florida State, a position he held before become mayor of Tallahassee. He lost the 2018 Florida Governor race to Ron DeSantis is a very close election.

Is the American Dream Dead?

Read the May 2020 Reason Magazine Article - Is the American Dream Dead? - by Katherine Mangu-Ward, editor-in-chief of Reason Magazine

Study the infographic on price changes of stuff - Jan 1998 to Dec 2019.

Some things have gotten more affordable (like TVs and new cars), while other things have become less affordable (like Heath Care, College Expense and Housing), For the things that have gotten less affordable - are these the things that government needs to work on? ... or, does government involvement drive up the cost?

Find 3 secondary web sources that support the claim - these are the things government should work on.

Find 3 secondary (web) sources that support the claim - government involvement drives up the cost for these items.

Then, state your position (what you believe) supported by 3 evidence-based bullets.