My three research projects...

AS A FUTURE TEACHER, the three possible research projects that I would possibly do would be the following:

• Internet and Children

The focus for 'Internet and Children' would be: does the internet make children smarter and does it socialize children more?  If it does socialize them, is it better than face to face socialization?

Where? (not sure what where means)  I would do this research project in a setting where children and the internet are.  I can go to someone's home and research the way the internet causes the child to socialize and if the internet causes the child to be smarter than he or she would be without the internet.

When?  I would do this research during the school year because children use the computer for school work.  Also, children might socialize more during the school year with friends since they are seeing them everyday in class.  I think that I would be able to get the most information when the child is using the internet the most out of the year.

How?  Methods I could use to research internet and children would be ethnography, interviewing (parents, children), and visual analysis.   Once I obtain my information/research, I can talk about the differences between children who use the internet and children who do not use the internet.  I can compare and contrast so that the focus can be 'brought to life':  does the internet make children smarter and does it socialize children more?

Would I be able to actually compare and contrast children who use the internet and do not?  Are there even children who DO NOT use the internet nowadays?  I think that would be somewhat of a problem.  I could always research information from the past when children did not have access to computers!...then talk about then and now.  


I would also do book research for 'internet and Children'.  I would go to a library before I started anything to get information relevant to my topic and purpose.  I can always interview parents of children who use the internet.  I can also observe the way children act on the internet versus face to face (as said before).  

• No Child Left Behind Act

The focus for 'No Child Left Behind Act' would be:  is this law working or isn't it?

How?  The methods I could use for this research topic would be ethnography, interviewing (teachers, parents), and visual analysis.  Once I gathered my information, I can talk about children who were left behind and who were not left behind, the problems each had, etc.  My goal would be to prove or make an inference if whether or not the No Child Left Behind law actually works.  I can go to the library and research books on this topic.  I am sure there is much information on this topic since this is a controversial issue.  I can interview parents and see how they feel about this law, as well.  All of this should be done before I start to write.

• Spanking

The focus for 'Spanking' would be: should spanking be outlawed or not. What does spanking really do to children?

How?  The methods I could use for this research topic would be ethnography, interviewing (children, parents), and visual analysis.  I could always read auto/biographies about a person who was spanked as a child and read about if or at all this person was affected.  With all my information I gather, I would be able to explain the pros and cons of spankings, if any person was severely affected, etc.  My goal would be the same as the last two ideas:  to make my purpose come to life.  Should children be spanked?  Does spanking harm children physically, mentally, emotionally?  I can go to the library and do book research about incidents/statistics/facts on this topic.  Again, this should be done before writing.  

Some general questions I have for all of these ideas:

Yes, I have written down various methods I can use, but

1.  How can I use these methods to actually do research?  It seems that obtaining research for these ideas is hard to do.  I would like to know how I can obtain sufficient information to support my point and focus for the project.