Assignment: Free Trade Debate

Due Date (Part 1): June 26, 2022 Due Date (Part 2): Jul 3, 2022

Points: Part 1 (30) + Part 2 (20) = (50 points, 20% of course grade)

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Purpose:

The goal of this assignment is to practice researching a current trade policy, differentiate between stakeholder perspectives and present those perspectives as arguments in a debate with your fellow students. This assignment will also serve as an assessment of your Global Perspective and Engagement and help you meet our Global Learning Course Outcomes.

Skills:

This assignment will focus on skills necessary for gathering and analyzing information while using that information to form persuasive arguments.

Gather and record information from credible academic sources.

Synthesize information from the course with your research to develop informed views.

Create a well-organized, clear, researched response to expand your knowledge of the course topic.

Knowledge:

This assignment should expand your knowledge of a major global trade agreement between the three largest economies in North America. You will also learn more about the stakeholders in each country and their opinions regarding this agreement.

Research Question:

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was implemented in 1994 to encourage trade between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. President Trump made a campaign promise to repeal NAFTA, and in August 2018, he announced a new trade deal with Mexico to replace it. In September 2018, Canada joined the deal: the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) was signed into effect on November 30, 2018.

Tasks:

Part 1: For this exercise, student will research the advantages and disadvantages of the USMCA (“New NAFTA”) between the United States, Mexico, and Canada. Students will be assigned a stakeholder identity and write a discussion post that outlines the main talking point/stance from that perspective.

Student will be assigned one of the following perspectives:

Official Government Perspective (from any of the three countries) (e.g. Office of the United States Trade Representative, a particular Senator, or the Canadian Prime Minister)

Think Tank Perspective (neutral nonpartisan)

Organized Labor Perspective (from any of the three countries)

Grassroots/Nonprofit Organizations (from any of the three countries)

Research the perspective of the chosen group (min. 6 credible sources).

Answer the following questions in your post: Did your group approve of the new USMCA or fight against it? Were they neutral? Did your group receive better benefits? Was a problem from old NAFTA addressed? Was a new problem created?

Your stakeholder identity should be clearly stated at the beginning of the post.

Your post should be at least 500 words, in paragraph form, with sources cited in text and listed at the end in any format (APA preferred).

Part 2: For this exercise, student will debate their stakeholder perspective with another post, one week later.

Respond to a post by a peer explaining why their perspective is “incorrect” or why their argument impacts your stakeholder group.

Remember you are debating the position, not the person.

Response should be a minimum of 300 words and use credible sources.

Criteria for Success:

Clearly state your stakeholder identity and position on the USMCA; research is thorough and valid.

Meet the minimum length and sources required for the initial post and response post.

Clearly state your concern/comment/support for another stakeholder’s position in the response post.

Use appropriate and credible resources.

Rubric

(Part 1):

Criteria Better Good Unsatisfactory/Beginning

Stakeholder identity and position clear. Content shows a thorough understanding of the topic. Stakeholder identity and position are clear. (8-10) Meets only one of the two minimums (5-7) Stakeholder identity and position unclear (0-4).

Research is thorough and credible. Substantive research from credible sources. (8-10) Meets only one of the two minimums (5-7) Research is scant or uses non-credible resources (0-4).

Length and Sources Meets length and number of sources (min. of 6) required (8-10) Meets only one of the two minimums (5-7) Does not meet the minimum length or sources (0-4).

(Part 2):

Criteria Better Good Unsatisfactory/Beginning

Response is well-researched and clear. Response shows substantive research and is clear. (8-10) Meets only one of the two minimums (5-7) Response unclear or poorly researched (0-4).

Length and Sources Response meets or exceeds minimum length and uses credible sources (8-10) Meets only one of the two minimums (5-7) Response does not meet the minimum length or credible sources (0-4).

Resources:

These are some resources you may use in your preparation. You may use resources from this list and from outside this list.

US TRADE Representative, https://ustr.gov/Mexican Government, https://www.gob.mx/sre/en

Council on Foreign Relations, https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/naftas-economic-impact

US Department of Labor, https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/our-work/trade/labor-rights-usmcaWorld Trade Organization, www.wto.orgInvestopedia, https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/free-trade.asp