Write a short speech of your own (about 250 words) in which all of the components of classical organization are accounted for. Make sure to have at least two sentences for each section except the partitio, which should be one sentence. Here are some possible topics
Our school should/should not adopt i Pads in the classroom.
Our school should/should not require students to wear uniforms.
Our school should/should no shorten the school day to 2 pm
Students should/should no be required to participate in extracurricular sports.
Our school should/should not have a football team.
Our school should/should not separate students into single-sex classes.
________________should/should not be included as a literature selection in English class.
Facebook promotes realy/false friendships.
Stuents should/should not be allowed access to cell phones during the school day.
Our school should/should not have vending machines that sell pop and candy.
Once a topic has been claimed and completed, it may not be repeated. You may, however, choose the opposing side. So if a classmate argues in a speech that our school SHOULD shorten the school day, another students is permitting to argue in a speech that they SHOULD NOT shorten the school day.
When commenting, do you discuss whether or not your classmates did a "good job". Instead, you are to make intelligent comments in regards to the order of the speech etc. All comments must be at least 30 words.
Seventh period, the door is shut and so is the mouth of each student. The room is silent save for the scratch of pens on paper. It is a comfortable sort of silence made typical by the repetition of the action; that is until the silence is cut in half by an embarrassingly cringeworthy buzz. Every pen stops for a moment, suspended in fear and anticipation for the response of the teacher staring down the class from the front of the room while each and every student considers the possibility that the sound may be their own fault—that their phone may have been the one to go off during class. At Elk County Catholic High School there is a no cellphone policy for students during school hours. Something such as the above scene could result in confiscation of the device as well as a possibility of a detention. This policy, however, may not be as effective as it may intend to be. Here is why the cellphone policy is, in a way, made nonsensical in the classroom. Cellphones are a convenient way to stay in touch and out of trouble. Many parents seek some sort of connection with their children. They require some sort of correspondence to be sure of plans and whereabouts. A cellphone provides all of this and much more, which leads to the inconsistencies in the cellphone policy. The issue with the cellphone policy is that it is, at ECCHS, contradictory. Each student is given an iPad, which is capable of nearly all of the same functions as the average cellphone. Because students and staff have proven the usefulness of the iPads, it makes the question of cellphone usage less of a matter of whether or not the students can utilize them in the classroom, and instead makes it one of whether or not students can exercise self control. ECCHS students have proven that they have enough respect for their teachers to not pull their iPads out during class in the middle of a lecture. So then what makes the administration believe that a student would not maintain that same respect for their teachers should cellphones be involved? Cellphones are not always bad, as they can be just as useful as the tools provided in the classroom already. Even with all of the similarities between the iPads and cellphones, however, one can be sure that one is welcomed into the classroom and the other not.
ReplyDeleteGreat way to explain the topic in the final sentence!
DeleteI agree with you Anna. If they try and control our cellphone usage, they are not really doing anything.
DeleteEveryone walks into eighth period ready for the last class of the day. As you anticipate that final bell the class feels longer and longer, and your focus starts to fall apart. The school day at Elk County starts at 8:00 and ends at 2:25, that’s almost six and a half hours of focus and work. While this is obviously a realistic request, shortening this day just twenty-five minutes may increase productivity and focus among students. While this may seem detrimental, this change may prove more beneficial than one might think. Once eight period rolls around most students are ready for the end of the day. As this class goes on, their minds start to wander from the subject at hand and more towards their after school activities, such as plans with friends, sports, clubs, their homework, and more like these. If we shorten each class by only three minutes, we can keep attention from students more easily and let them out at 2:00. While some may argue that we need all the instructional time we can get, how productive is this time when students are thinking about something else or are tired from the night before, especially when daily homework is assigned and after school activities are highly encouraged. I’m not discouraging homework or staying involved with these other activities, but rather saying the extra thirty minutes would give students a few extra minutes which can be a great addition to the time needed to get these other things done as well. So as we try to improve the lives of our students, we need to consider not only what can be added but also what can be taken away. Giving students a few extra minutes if their own time every day may prove to be helpful, rather than hurtful.
ReplyDeleteNice job explaining it from another side, I never looked at it that way. I would figure the longer school day the more efficient but your blog encouraged me to look at it from another point of view.
DeleteThis really seems to be a good presentation of your argument. It appears that you meet all of the requirements for a classical argument as far as the organization of the paper goes. Your exordium is intriguing, and your narratio only serves to support both it and your partitio. The logical devices you use to support your confirmatio and refutatio also give you quite a bit of credibility. Not to mention how well you surmise your overall point and end it with an impactful quip.
DeleteI like how you stressed that extracurricular activities are good and how by the time 2:25 comes around our minds are a little foggy. I agree that shortening the school day by this small amount of time is good for our grades.
DeleteThe part where you explained that reducing classes by only three minutes was very smart. This may make the reader or audience think that it is such a small change, which could make them more inclined to side with you and possibly change things,
DeleteIt’s halftime of the highschool homecoming game and the running back walks in holding his head, he took a brutal hit that could cause permanent brain damage! Increasing numbers of average citizens who played football are developing dementia, Alzheimer’s, and serious brain conditions. Why possibly put this danger on young kids in the Elk County Catholic School System? These serious conditions are mostly caused by concussions which almost every football player receives at one point or another in their career. So the school system is allowing its students to play a sport that could bring struggles to them for the rest of their lives. The football program also does not even have enough children to provide for a football team in some grade levels. The chances just do not weigh out. In one hand there is a district 9 football championship, in the other hand there is a successful future without head trauma. I’m not saying that every football player receives these painful injuries however many do. For example, former Pittsburgh Steelers star, Antwaan Randle, says that he regrets ever playing football and that sometimes he can hardly remember how to spell his name due to brain injury. If this pro level athlete is telling this much people should open their ears and listen. These are children with entire lives ahead of them that could be effected. Why put this terrible possibility of danger on your child when he/she could be participating in another extracurricular activity that accomplishes just as much or more?
ReplyDeleteExplaining the consequences, such as injury of playing a sport was a great idea. This may lead people to rethink their decisions for schools which require you to be involved in one way or another,
DeleteAs a student at a catholic school, I have been stereotyped my whole life. People have told me that I’m rich, a snob, and that all I do is pray. Although I have gone to catholic school my whole life, these stereotypes never really get any easier. A common stereotype of people in our school system is that we are all modest and chaste teenagers. This opinion is incredibly false. I grew up in Ridgway and went to St Leo’s throughout my whole life. As we know, the average st Leo’s class size is very small, in fact I actually graduated with only two other girls. Shannon, Ellie, and I went most of lives will little or no boys in our class. When we graduated eighth grade, and went on to elk County Catholic High School, the classes tended to be very different. Having no boys in your class can be a blessing in many ways, but having males in your class, definitely is very beneficial. Some people argue that they think boys and girls should be separated by class. I disagree, the boys add a certain amount of intelligence that most girls just don’t have. They are not nervous to say what they mean, and they are not afraid to be wrong. Taking away the males in our classes, also, isn’t fair. Do you think that boys will be separated from girls in college? When you come from a class of all girls, it makes you nervous to talk in class, to participate, and really to learn. I wouldn’t want to wish my three years of recovery from this cultural shock to anyone.
ReplyDeleteI can relate, it has been hard adjusting to having boys in our class again. If people were separate by sex in high school and sent out into the world I think they would struggle. I like how you bring up that point when you talk about their future years in college.
DeleteI like how you brought your personal experience into the entire essay. This establishes your ethos very well. It almost puts the reader in your shoes to also appeal to their pathos.
DeleteMy entire life I have woken up and known exactly what I was going to wear. I can thank my two Catholic schools for this blessing. Getting up in the morning is hard enough and adding on having to pick out an outfit would just make things harder for me. My uniform is easy and safe for me, I couldn’t ask for anything better. Often people say to me “Ew why would you want to wear that?” “It’s so ugly how can you wear that?” “Our skirts are ugly I hate ECC so much.” And many other things but I don’t really care what they say because I can wake up in the morning and know exactly what I’m wearing without giving it any thought at all. I’ve gone to two different Catholic schools and can honestly say ECC’s uniforms are actually really nice and could be worse. In all uniforms aren’t bad and are actually many people’s saving grace. Yes with wearing uniforms everyday can come some issues. If you go somewhere in town right after school you have to make sure you are perfect in how you act and speak because you are wearing a uniform and therefore representing your school. Ive personally walked around town in my uniform and received dirty looks and mean comments from the people walking by me or driving by in a car. These are just things you need to be ready to deal with and ignore if you go to a Catholic school, so I do. I also don’t have clothes like many other people do. My mom and I don’t go shopping and when we do I never really buy anything. That’s just how we are, so he’s having a uniform and not needing clothes for school has put a damper on life because for activities outside of school I don’t have much. I often have to ask a bunch of my friends to borrow things because I don’t have stuff to wear and I’m not good at telling of things match because I’ve always known to just put on my polo and skirt for school. Some may argue that dressing down for school is better and for them it might be. As for me uniforms are the way to go. Some might argue that they can express themselves more at a public school and that is very true but Catholic kids can express ourselves in little ways too. Even though it may seem to some that uniform are bad and annoying they aren’t for some of us and can really help us.
ReplyDeleteI find it kind of interesting that you delivered your exordium and narratio from a first person perspective. Your partitio is presented with clarity and precision. It is also good to see your topics of invention made use of in your confirmatio and refutatio. Your refutatio does a really good job of exploring the many counter arguments for your point. Even your peroratio is concise and comprehensible.
DeleteI agree shannon, wearing a uniform is very nice. I love always knowing what I’m going to wear
DeleteNear the end of most classes, as soon as the teacher finishes their lesson for the day, at least half of the students will take their iPad out of their backpack and open up an app that has no relation whatsoever to the lesson. Whether this is consisted of games, news, or social media, it will always be the case unless the teacher says otherwise. Although students should be able to control themselves and use their iPads for school-work only, that will never be the case. If teenagers have the option of education or pleasure, pleasure will always be their choice. Taking away iPads as a whole will take away that option and students will be more inclined to learn than to play games, go on the news, or scroll through social media. Having iPads has many upsides to it such as typing and printing out essays which will look more professional than writing one on paper, easy communication with teachers in case you are absent, and using websites such as Blogger to interact with your class whether you are at home or at school. Taking away iPads as a whole may have many downsides, but these can be easily solved. Students can type and print out essays in the school computer labs like most other schools (Mainly public schools). You can communicate with teachers if absolutely needed by devices you keep at home. Finally, using websites such as blogger to interact with your class can be done by going to your local library and using computers their for the time needed. There is really no need for iPads besides convenience. Whether students have them or not, it will always be possible to complete assignments.
ReplyDeleteYour exordium gave a good picture of what many kids at our school do with their extra time. You did good supporting your idea with examples of how students can do the same tasks without their personal iPad.
Delete