A well-researched issue will lead to the creation of a successful active citizenship campaign. Through research you will be able to find out more about the issue, test your own assumptions and develop arguments that are backed by data.
Research isn’t just searching for your issue online, reading the first link and calling it a day. Researching an issue is about creating questions which help you come to a greater understanding of the topic, evaluating sources for reliability, accuracy, and bias, and looking for help and other opinions. These activities will help you build your skills in these areas.
Where do you start? What should you do first? These seven steps will help you start researching an issue.
Although information found in books can be out-dated, in particular if you are looking at statistics, books are still the most reliable sources of information. By looking for your search terms on an index page or reviewing the contents page, you can easily find out if the book is relevant to your issue. Librarians can also assist you in searching for a suitable book.
Does the media influence which issues we see as important? Does it sway our opinion one way or another? In this activity you will look at different forms of media with focus on environmental issues and examine the language choice, question the reliability of sources and look at the possible assumption in your thinking.
When taking an action on issues you need to be well informed and understand your issue in depth. Apart from reading about the issue, you can also gather information by just simply talking to people. A more challenging task is then finding the right person or people to talk to.
An expert is someone who knows a lot about a topic. They have spent years researching it, writing about it and advising others.
You would like to change the menu in your canteen. One day should be a healthy eating day. This will be good for students and teachers. You will write a letter to a principal requesting a change. But who should you consult first?
When taking an action on an issue you will have to influence a change by asking a decision maker to either assist you or to show support for your action. A decision maker on an issue can be a community leader, a Councillor, a government representative, a Member of Parliament, a business owner, or even your principal!
Activity Instructions
Once you have worked out who has the power to change an issue you are working on, your next step is to find out how you will approach them and what you are going to say to them. Drag the paragraph descriptors into correct order. Once completed, use it to start writing your letter.
Include how they can get back to you
What are the benefits of change you are seeking?
Who are you writing the letter to?
Thank them for their time
What is it that you need assistance with?
Reflect on how wide the impact of the issue is
Who are you and what is your issue of concern?
Why it is that something needs to be done?