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Internet Research Instructions

(INSTITUTIONS)

In the process of our study of SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS there will be many areas, subjects, issues, and facets likely to emerge...some of which will be of more interest to you than others, some of which you may wish to know more about or see what others have said about it. One of the purposes of this assignment is to facilitate your investigation of one of these Institutions. The second purpose is to facilitate your awareness of the Internet as a source for research of all kinds...and to give you practice utilizing it as such.

So, the first thing you need to do is select an INSTITUTION. Once you've selected your institution, I want you to utilize the Internet... solely...to gather information about it.

HOW?

1. Write a STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM…what is the issue or aspect you are researching? Explain the issue/area/topic of interest...in general...give it a context...why is it of interest to you...academically and maybe even personally…and how and why is it important sociologically? In other words, what is your purpose in selecting this particular institution and what are you going to be looking at? You may even want to formulate an "hypothesis" to guide your work.

2. Provide a "URL BIBLIOGRAPHY," (Internet Addresses) for sites which could be used for writing a research paper about your topic. You must have a (MINIMUM of 10 sources).

3. Write an ANNOTATION (a short description) for each site...what's it about and why (in what way) is it relevant to your research?

4. Write a DETAILED SUMMARY, of what you have found out about your topic...general and suggestive. Include here further research activity you may want to conduct...such as interviews, surveys, or observational work...if any.

5. Provide an OUTLINE of your paper...organize all your data.

NOTE: You DO NOT have to write a full research paper. The point is to find information about the topic...on the Internet...and to describe and summarize what you've found...NOT to write the paper itself.