Alright, this is my first DBQ and i'm getting pretty worked up about it. THe question is

"From 1781-1789 did the Articles of Confederation provide the U.S.with and effective government?"

So...WHat i'm doing right now is going through my text book and writing down the good's and bad's of the A of C. Is that the right thing to do? Because i was thinking, if i'm just taking notes about the A of C, i'm not really finding out if it was effective? or maybe i am? that'd be great for the help