Part I: Exploration
1. Identify the issue or problem that you plan to focus on in your research project
I plan to focus on the issue of declaring English as the official language in the United States.
2. What is your personal connection to an interest in this topic?
I grew up in West Chicago, which has about a one-third Hispanic population, a majority of them Spanish speaking. It has caused me to find my stance on this issue and have an interest in this topic.
3. What opinions do you already hold about this topic?
I already hold that English should be declared the official language, and that the government should sponsor English classes to teach non-English speakers English. I also believe that creating an official language and having everyone speak it would make our country much more efficient.
4. What knowledge do you already have about this topic? What are your main questions about this topic? What are you most curious about?
I already know that the United States does not have an official language. I also know that some people that oppose English as the official language believe that having people learn English will make them lose their culture. I want to know why they think this; I also want to know what countries have an official language, and which languages have been declared as official languages. I also would like to see other arguments against declaring English as the official language.
5. Within what scholarly discipline (such as history, biology, psychology) do you expect to do most of your research? How does this discipline approach or study this topic?
I think that this topic would fit into the disciplines of history and politics. History would work because it can show how language in the United States has changed. I also think that politics would work because this topic is also a very political one. The right side believes that English should be declared the official language and all citizens should speak it, while the left side believes that people should be allowed to speak whatever they want.
6. How could you research this topic outside the library (for example, through interviews and/or observations)?
I could do many interviews, of just anyone to see their particular stance. I could also take a quick survey of people and see what percent of people believe it should be the official language.
Part II: Focusing
Write an initial claim, or an open-ended question, to guide your research on this topic. Make it specific but exploratory. Remember that a good claim opens up an area of inquiry about a topic; a claim should invite evidence, support, and debate.
Why should English be chosen as the official language for the United States?
5 comments:
Seeing how I was raised in your city, I know just how bad this problem has become. I understand how difficult it has become in West Chicago, and all across America to communicate with others. I do agree with your stance, and I do believe that making everyone speak english would make our country better and more efficient. We're not banning other languages by doing this, or even deaming them, we're just officially declaring english our other language. You should find the poll I was looking at where the questioned over 10,000 people from various countries, and they found that I believe about 85ish% already thought or believe English should be our official language. I think that some personal interviews and polls would be great for this topic and could show just what people in our country think, but I'd say to also include the question of "Do you speak more than one language?" into the poll before "Do you think English should be our official language?"
I meany demeaning, not deaming ;)
I think this is a neat topic. It's something I've never really thought of before. I don't really know much about it considering I had always just assumed English was our official language. I'd be interested to see what information you find about this topic.
:D:D Hey Matt! I was just scrolling through random proposals and I saw West Chicago =p Remember me? xD Natalie Stevens... I have a twin sis and played flute? You played trumpet if I remember. Still doing that? I think Amanda told me you were in the pit with her for Into the Woods; good job ^.^ I loved WC's production; Oswego did it too xD
Yeah... good topic choice though ^.^ I'd like to read it when you're done!
You're right that this is a politically charged issue, Matt.
I encourage you to read Bruce Horner's 2001 article in College English:
"Students 'Right," English Only, and Re-imagining the Politics of Language"
I look forward to hearing what you think of Horner's argument.
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