1113 Unit 3 Getting Started

1113 Unit 3 Getting Started! (Example)

Group Example:

Sociopolitical Issues they engage:

“Building safer, cleaner, and stronger communities” (according to mission statement)
Battling poverty or helping those who’ve encountered hardship in relation to their living space (after a natural disaster, for example)
Homelessness

Values they enact:

Community, Safety, Self-Reliance, Strength, Perseverance, Equity, Quality of life

Potential Sources:

Cleveland County Habitat Website: https://www.cchfh.org
Cleveland County Habitat Fall 2020 Newsletter: https://www.cchfh.org/wp-content/uploads/Newsletter-Fall-2020.pdf
Oklahoma News Article: https://kfor.com/news/new-cleveland-county-habitat-for-humanity-location-to-display-mural-from-local-artist/
Habitat Official Website: https://www.habitat.org
Habitat FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/habitat
Habitat YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/HabitatForHumanity
Habitat Wikipedia Page (use the sources at the bottom to gather research for your essay and Works Cited page): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Habitat_for_Humanity
- NOTE: Think outside-the-box when researching. Even if you are focusing on the organzation in general, you might select several specific branches in different cities in order to show collectively what the group stands for or the types of events they participate in. This will give you a broader depth of research. Social media sites, videos, websites, news articles, representations of the organzation in media and film, etc. can all offer a lot of different sources. Look for documentaries, as well. And books. And magazine articles. The more information you gather, the easier time you will have writing the Unit 3 essay.

Interview/Observation:

You can interview a current or past volunteer
You can interview someone who works in the organization (at the local level)
You can interview someone that does similar work in order to gain more perspective on the work that the organization does.
You can observe a past event through YouTube or even social media. A lot of organizations share video clips of events. You may even find this on a website. If you can’t find an event on the main website, or your local website, you may find one on the website of another state or county that you could use as an example.
You can observe a future event by attending. This is not always an option in the timeframe you have to complete the assignment. But if it is, it’s often a great way to gather more insight and research. And gives you a chance to potentially meet others that might let you interview them.

Polling:

Some students in the past have created questionnaires or polls that they found useful in this paper.
- For example, you might poll a certain number of students on campus and ask them if they’ve ever heard about your group (in this example, Habitat for Humanity). You might ask them how often they volunteer. Or how important they think it is to volunteer. Or if they’ve ever known someone affected by homelessness (or whatever your sociopolitical issue is). You might be surprised at the interesting information you can collect that will set your paper apart from someone else who might have chosen the exact same group.
NOTE: There are so many ways to gather information that will allow you to offer a nuanced analysis of your group and the issue with which they engage. And don’t forget the values component. If your group participates in volunteer work, you might find an article that talks about the psychological benefits of volunteering. Or one that talks more about the issue your group deals with. Think outside the box in order to really show off your research and analysis skills. Find something that you connect with and tell us about that connection. Or find something you think your classmates will identify with so you can better connect with them.