Click here to upload assignment 3
Assignment 3: Reconstruction: What is freedom?
Goal
The goal of this assignment is to allow you to learn more deeply about how the idea of freedom changed in the wake of the Civil War.
Context
When four years of war ended in 1865, the United States government was faced with two significant tasks. The first was how to unite a fractured nation; the second was how to incorporate millions of freed men, women, and children into the fabric of the country. Neither task proved to be easy. Following the assassination of President Lincoln, Andrew Johnson inherited what we now call Reconstruction. In the next several years, Johnson fought with Congress over the meanings of Reconstruction, especially in regard to black Americans. The election of 1876 put an end to the reconstruction of the former Confederate States, as a political compromise released the northern states from their responsibility to protect the freedom of black southerners.
Process
In an argumentativeessay of at least 3 double-spaced pages, please address the following question:
Was Reconstruction a success or a failure?
To obtain the maximum points for your assignment,you should:
- Include an introductory paragraph that puts your essay into context.
- Contain anunderlinedthesis statementin your introduction that answers one of the questions above.
- Include aconclusionthat summarizes your essay.
- Usecorrect grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
- Includehistorically accurate information and adequate detailand examplesthat support your thesis
- Include evidence fromour course textbook, and any of the videos, web pages, sources and images from our course
- Use direct evidence in the form of quotations, however,quotes should be no longer than two sentences. Cite sources using MLA in text citations (see link to MLA below).
- Not usesources other than those here that I have not vetted for accuracy.
- Use direct quotes from sources, butnot be copied and pastedfrom any source without proper citation oryou will receive a zerofor this assignment.

Video: How to submit an assignment on Blackboard
Please not write your submission in the text box. Follow the directions to attach a file. Remember, your assignment should be formatted as a word document or a pdf.

Check out the Writing Center at Bristol to work with a tutor or for a draft review
The Writing Center is offering draft reviews by email. Please submit your draft as a .doc or .docx file, assignment sheet, and three concerns about your writing to XXXXXXXXXX. This service is offered Monday through Friday, with a general turnaround time of XXXXXXXXXXhours. This service is available 9/14/20 – 12/16/20.
This is a free service for Bristol students!

Grading rubric for essays
Rubric for Writing an Effective Historical Essay
| Excellent (A+ to A-) | Good (B+ to B-) | Fair (C+ to C-) | Poor (D to F) |
Thesis | Easily identifiable, crystal clear, and insightful. | Promising and clear, but lacks insight. | Somewhat vague and unoriginal. | Cannot be identified. |
Structure | Very well organized and clearly connects with thesis. Excellent transitions between points. Solid topic sentences with excellent support. | Good overall organization. A few unclear transitions and unfocused topic sentences. | Unclear because of weak or non-existent thesis. Transitions and topic sentences unclear. | No evident structure or organization. |
Evidence | Strong evidence in the form of specific examples used to support each point. Authoritative use of source(s) in paraphrasing and direct quotes. Uses good historical context and is historically accurate. | Evidence used to support most points. Some examples may not support points convincingly or be vague. Good understanding of historical context. | Few or weak examples and factual information. Evidence does not support any particular point. | No interpretation, analysis, or contextual information. |
Mechanics | Language is clear and easy to follow. Correct word usage, as well as minimal spelling and punctuation errors. Correct style used for quotations. | Language mostly clear. Sentence structure, grammar, and style mostly strong with occasional lapses. Some spelling errors. | Some problems in sentence structure, grammar, and style. Multiple errors in punctuation and spelling. | Significant problems in sentence structure, grammar, and spelling that make understanding difficult. |
Citations | All paraphrasing and quotes appropriately cited. Correct citation format used throughout. | Mostly correct citation format; examples and quotes appropriately cited. | Some problems in citation format; some citations overlooked or omitted. | No citations or incorrect format for citations. |