School & learning
School life, learning, college choices and how we think.
Facts and Emotion in Persuasion
An argumentative essay weighing the persuasive strengths and limits of facts, statistics, and emotional appeals, with examples from two presidential addresses.
Are Group Projects Unfair? A Case for Structured Teamwork
An argument for keeping collaborative projects while redesigning them with individual accountability, transparent grading, structured ways to contribute, and active teacher support.
Should Schools Ditch Letter Grades? Argument Essay on Pass/Fail Grading
An argument for keeping A–F grades as the general system while using pass/fail selectively and improving the feedback, clarity, and review that make evaluations useful.
College Electives and Required Courses: Should Universities Eliminate Student Choice?
A model argument for a structured university curriculum that preserves meaningful elective choice, using historical examples to examine the opportunities and costs of institutional direction.
Testing an Argument: Must It Persuade Someone Who Disagrees?
A model argumentative essay arguing that persuasion is a useful but inadequate test of argument quality. It distinguishes sound reasoning from audience response and shows why engaging opposing views matters.
Should Schools Make Time for Physical Activity Every Day?
A qualified argument for daily school-based movement that weighs health and cognitive benefits against instructional time, accessibility, and the rest of a student’s day.
GRE Issue Essay on Teacher Salaries and Student Performance
A model argument that student achievement should inform, but not determine, teacher pay. It weighs accountability against unequal conditions and the limits of performance measures.
College Access Is More Than an Admissions Offer
An explanatory essay on why college opportunity depends not only on admission but also on enrollment, affordability, and the consequences of borrowing.
Learning from Opposing Views: When Disagreement Teaches More
An argumentative essay on when people learn more from those who challenge their views, emphasizing trust, openness, and the quality of disagreement.
Should Middle Schools Do Away With Homework? The Case for a Balanced Policy
An argument for retaining a small, purposeful amount of middle-school homework while limiting workload, protecting students’ time, and using assignments to guide instruction.
Should Teacher Salaries Depend on Student Performance?
A qualified argument for evaluating teaching with multiple forms of evidence while rejecting student test scores as the direct or dominant determinant of teachers’ pay.
Should Colleges End Legacy Admissions Preferences?
An argument that colleges should end preferential admissions for alumni children while preserving meaningful ways for alumni to support their institutions.