What causes violence in high schools?

English Composition II Narrowing Topics

Narrowed topics have been listed in the form of questions for the first four broad topics below. The answers to these questions could be thesis statements. For instance, the answer to the question “What can be done to prevent school violence?” might be the thesis statement “Only a zero tolerance policy will truly prevent school violence.”

For the 18 remaining broad topics, only one narrowed topic has been provided. Come up with two additional narrowing questions that might lead to compelling thesis statements for each of these topics.

Violence in schools

What causes violence in high schools? Is there a developing trend in frequency or type of school violence? How should violent school children be punished? What can be done to prevent school violence? Drug use

Which drugs should be illegal? What kinds of drugs are the most dangerous? Is there a correlation between childhood exposure to drugs and use of drugs in adulthood? What kind of penalties should there be for the various kinds of illegal drug offenses? Immigration

What are the effects of illegal immigration? What are the effects of legal immigration? How should immigration laws be enforced? What’s the driving force behind illegal immigration? Religion

What makes people believe the way they do? Is it morally right to go to war to defend one’s religion? How does the history of any given religion differ from the values in its sacred text? How can people of different religious backgrounds live together harmoniously? Education

Is it necessary to go to college in order to be successful?

Speed limits

Are the current speed limits too high to ensure the safety of drivers?

Television

Should children spend more time watching educational programs?

Advertisements

Should the government protect citizens from false advertising?

Video games

Are some kinds of video games beneficial for young people’s minds?

Parenting

How much say should the government have about how parents treat their children?

Prisons

What is the best solution for the problem of our growing prison populations?

Pet ownership

Should it be legally required for pet cats and dogs to be spayed or neutered?

Health insurance

Should health insurance companies be able to deny coverage to patients with pre-existing conditions?

Sports

Are professional athletes paid too much?

Recycling

How much good does recycling really do?

Cosmetic surgery

Should it be legal for children to get plastic surgery?

Wildlife

Do we have a responsibility to protect forests and other natural landscapes for wild animals?

Employment

At what age should a teenager be able to get his or her first job?

Gambling

Are casinos unfairly manipulating gamblers?

Taxes

What’s the fairest way to tax US citizens?

Grades

Would a school without grades be successful?

Technology

Are people spending too much money in order to keep up with the latest gadgets?

This assignment does not require that you use APA formatting or citations; however, you should identify any words or ideas you draw from your readings.

Grading Criteria Assignments Maximum Points Meets or exceeds established assignment criteria 40 Demonstrates an understanding of lesson concepts 20 Clearly present well-reasoned ideas and concepts 30 Mechanics, punctuation, sentence structure, spelling that affects clarity, and citation of sources as needed 10 Total 100