Institutional Analysis essay
markzhang
essay_4_institutional_analysis_essay.docxEnglish 101 - Fall 2015
Essay #4 Institutional Analysis
Due: Draft #1 Mon 12/7, Draft #2 w/ Visual Presentation of Push Pin Analysis (PPP) Wed 12/9
Format: Double Spaced, Times New Roman, 12pt. font, MLA Format + works cited page.
Length Requirement: 1,000 words
Grade: 20% of Final Grade
Topic
For Essay #4 you will be conducting an analysis of an institution of your choice. Your paper should be centrally concerned with arguing why the institution or organization you are examining SHOULD or SHOULD NOT be considered “criminal.” Your topic must be different from the fieldsite you studied for Essay #3.
Related Resources:
Selections from Jews and Booze by Marni Davis; selections from The Corner by David Simon; selections from Not Quite-closed-gates: Jewish Alien Smuggling in the Post-Quota Years by Libby Garland; Selections from Inventing the Public Enemy by David Ruth; Seasons 1 - 3 of the HBO show The Wire.
Possible Institutions of Focus
- A school
- An office of government - a restaurant
- A police or fire department - a health insurance company
- A TV network - a web company (Google, Facebook)
Visual and/or Oral Presentation Requirement / Push Pin Project (PPP)
As preparation for the writing of the essay, you will construct a Push Pin Project (PPP). This involves constructing a visual representation of the organizational hierarchy of your selected institution with photos or notecards on a wall, poster, or bulletin board. Once the analysis has been completed, you are required to present, in a manner of your choosing, this Push Pin Project (PPP) at the Institutional Analysis Convention 2015 (IA-CON) organized by Professors Miller and Shahar on the last day of class, December 14 (please see below). The visual analysis presented should reflect the analysis presented in your written essay and count towards 50 % of your essay grade.
Institutional Analysis Convention (IA-CON)
At the Institutional Analysis Convention (IA-CON) Push Pin Projects (PPP) can be constructed on site and accompany a short oral presentation explaining the analysis OR Push Pin Projects (PPP) can be constructed at home and captured in a video recording and the presentation can then be exhibited at the convention as a short digital composition.
The Institutional Analysis Convention (IA-CON) will take place on Monday 12/14 in rooms: H409 and H232.
Materials Needed
The great thing about a push pin project (PPP) is that it should not require expensive materials. You can create a high quality push pin analysis with note cards, photos, string, and push pins. If you have a bulletin board at home, great! Use this. If not, you can use a poster board or a wall. You are not encouraged to spend money for this project.
Research:
Primary Research: Fieldwork as/if needed/possible (Direct Observation and/or Interviews of “suspects” otherwise see Secondary Research)
Secondary Research: Library Databases, web resources [ 1.go to QCC.cuny.edu;→2.click Kurt R. Schmeller Library on the bottom left;→3.click Databases-Find Articles; →4.click Academic Search Complete(EBSCO);→ 5.enter barcode(22371019274918)→now you can start to do research ]
Sample Paper Organization
1. Describe the relationships and structure of the institution analyzed at IA-CON .
2. State the definition of “criminal” you are following—if it is your own, then you must argue for it in terms of logic and research; if it is not your own, then you must articulate whose it is and summarize her/his/their rationale.
3. Put in context, through research, the institution you are specifically examining.
4. Argue for or against your analysis of the institution as “criminal” or not.
