This course, Political Issues and Society, is designed for students who have both an interest in understanding the complexities of global, national and local political issues and in gaining important skills that will allow them to contribute to the process of solving some of the problems that plague society. The course will prepare students for success in virtually any career, by strengthening their speaking, research, thinking and debate skills. In the course students will combine the knowledge they gain with newly developed speaking and advocacy skills fulfilling the goal of common core learning, processing information to fulfill a goal. The course will help students develop a broader worldview which will enhance their understanding of the relationship of national, international, and increasingly, global issues to individual career and life goals. While acquiring knowledge about international relations and national politics, they will incorporate into their vocabulary important concepts and theories that will help them express an advanced thought process. They will research and review scholarly articles to determine the explicit context of the text in order to make logical inferences. This skill will allow them to use specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support logical conclusions drawn from the text. These abilities that will be developed will build a student with the ability to analyze controversies, select and evaluate evidence, construct and refute arguments. In a course of this nature a diversity of opinions will surface. Through both reflective journaling and discussion, students will learn to listen to different opinions with the understanding that their personal beliefs do not have to be altered.