The Tri-Partisan Dictionary Project

For this project, students were given the following instructions:

In American political discourse, we share a common language, but we do not consistently agree on meanings.  It is quite common for individuals from different political leanings to interpret and use language in different ways.  This leads to miscommunication and strife.  The goal of the Tri-Partisan Dictionary project is to find linguistic common ground between individuals with conflicting political leanings.  This dictionary is to be used as a resource to increase our awareness of the ways we use vocabulary and what our vocabulary might signify to others.  Increased understanding can lead to more empathetic and productive communication, which is the objective of this work.

For this challenge, you will choose one term and define it from multiple viewpoints. Together, as a class, we will build a preliminary dictionary of complex terminology that deconstructs language in a way that is inclusive to multiple stakeholders and parties.

For each dictionary entry, you are required to find the following sources:

1. The dictionary definition of the term.
2. The implied definition of the term according to the two primary American parties, Democrats and Republicans, and a third political group of your choosing (such as, Green Party, Libertarians, Constitution Party).

• •  Be sure to include:
    • Examples of the term in context.  Interpretation and analysis of the term in use by each group.
    • Proposed rationales for why term is used this way by each group.