Ms. Gokturk

Journalism

I’ve Got Some Interesting Background Facts:

How Does My Community Compare?

Having now completed the basic background research for your topic, you will probably have remarked at some point things like, “That is so not true,” or, “Wowo, zower, that is so bizarre! That’s like Schreiber,” or, “I wonder if this happening here.” These are valid questions.

The next phase of the exposé is to research local attitudes and facts. This can most easily be done by creating survey.

Write a questionnaire of ten-twenty questions which surveys students' attitudes towards your subject. You should include mostly QUANTITATIVE questions, though be sure to include at least two QUALITATIVE questions. The questions should be clear and simple. In order to make your survey easy to follow and non-daunting to your victim, create questions using the following formats:

QUANTITATIVE:

§ Yes/No Questions:

I have lied to my parents. YES NO

§ Multiple Choice: Circle the most appropriate response

I lie to my parents:

A) NEVER B) SOMETIMES 1-3 times per week

C) ALWAYS (every chance I get)

§ Likert Scale (or rating scale) –usually with 5 degrees: Circle what best describes your feelings:

I feel like my parents are always nagging

1 Never 2 Rarely 3 Sometimes 4 Most of the Time 5 All the time

These types of questions’ answer are easier to answer and easier to to tabulate.

QUALITATIVE: Emotional responses are desired. Create lines/space so that your subject may answer briefly.

· How do you feel about your parents when they deny your requests?

· Describe the worst fight you ever got into with your parents.

· When is OK to lie?

· How do you feel about lying?

GUIDELINES

Your survey must include:

· Your name and Journalism Class at the top (Heading).

· Title of Survey.

· A disclaimer of this sort: The following survey is for my journalism project. I am seeking to find out ____[fill in what your goal is here]. Please take a moment to complete the survey and return to me. Thank you.

· 10-20 questions. Keep ‘em simple. No longer than two pages.

· YOU MUST HAVE Ms. G review your survey BEFORE you submit the final draft.

· Zero errors in spelling, capitalization, grammar, etc. PROOFREAD it 6,000 times. No kidding. This is being distributed to the student body!

· Easy to read and answer. Don’t bunch stuff up.

· Don’t ask leading questions. Aim for questions that will allow the person to answer for themselves. THINK about how you phrase the questions.

· Must fit on two sheets of paper.

· Due ________. This is imperative so that copies are sent to Xerox and available for the next class. Late surveys will be heavily penalized. (10 points off a day.)

· Hand in THREE final copies.