Read this persuasive essay on the topic of year-round school. Respond to the questions that follow to find examples from the essay of the persuasive techniques discussed in this lesson.
Year-Round School
Imagine yourself sitting in a classroom in the middle of July. There’s no air conditioning, very few windows, and you are sweating all over the grammar worksheet in front of you. Schools around the country are thinking about adjusting the classic school schedule to provide education to students year-round. They believe the time that students have away from school is being wasted. However, summer break is more than just time off for students. Changing to a year-round schedule would negatively impact everyone. Schools should not start running all year because students need a break, many students need to work, and year-round schooling will cost more money to taxpayers.
Summer provides a necessary break for both students and teachers. As schools become more and more rigorous, it is more important than ever to give students time away. According to Brittany Chu of theDaily Bruin, “Relaxing during summer break is important because it allows students to recharge for the fall quarter. After a stressful year of nonstop work, students who choose not to take the summer off will find themselves burnt out and less motivated during the regular academic year.” Summer is a time for students to recharge their batteries and prepare for the next school year. Without a break in the summer, more students would become frustrated and burnt out by school, and effort and achievement would go down. If we truly care about the success of our students, we need to maintain summer break.
Summer is also a time for students to do things that they do not have time for during the school year. Many students work, participate in extracurricular activities, and volunteer for charitable causes and organizations during their free time over the summer. These activities provide students with real-world learning experiences. They can also prepare students for college, where admissions officers will be looking for students who are not just achieving academically. According to a reporter for the Huffington Post, “Colleges care about the character of people they admit; therefore, what you do after school, during weekends and over summers tells them a lot about the kind of person you are” (Shaevitz). Students need the summer to find who they are and devote some of their time to their interests and skills. While colleges may not be looking for the student who does everything anymore, they are certainly looking for students who excel in more than just academics. Without summer, students would be struggling to find the time to think about music, sports, or charity work, activities that could get them a better education.
Not only does summer vacation provide students with a needed break, but it also provides a break to towns and cities from the expense of running a school. When you consider it, the amount of money that taxpayers must pay for a school to run is astounding. Schools need to spend money on teachers, administrators, maintenance workers, and utilities. If schools get rid of summer break, the school year will increase from 180 days to about 230 days. That’s about a 27 percent increase in school days. Without summer, schools districts would have to find 28 percent more funds in already shrinking school budgets. This’s just not reasonable. Schools cannot expect to increase the school calendar this much without having to pay more money in salaries and utilities. Doing away with summer break will cause a strain on everyone involved in the school, including the taxpayers.
Students and districts need summer break, so schools should not attempt to adopt a year-round calendar. Many may argue that students forget a lot of the material they have learned when they are on summer break. However, the benefit of the break that students get from summer vacation greatly outweighs the drawbacks. The only way we can keep school administrators from trying out year-round schools is if we speak up. Write a letter or email to your principal and superintendent immediately to let them know why this is a bad idea. If you don’t take action, you’ll have no right to complain when its summer and you’re sitting in a boiling classroom and dripping with sweat in a year-round school.
Works Cited
Part B
In the second paragraph, what evidence does the writer provide to support the main idea of the paragraph? How does this evidence convince the audience? Does the writer draw on the audience’s reason, emotions, or beliefs?
Part C
In the third paragraph, what action verbs make this paragraph persuasive? Can you find a sentence that uses active voice?
Part D
Can you find the call to action? Why is it an effective way to end the essay?