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Choosing Good Persuasive Essay Topics For High School: Tips & Examples


The purpose of a persuasive essay is to convince the readers that your point of view is the right one. In order to support your claims you should use facts and figures, anecdotes and stories – just about anything to prove your viewpoint. When you choose the topic for your paper you need to keep in mind that in order to make it interesting, it should be personal. Here are the things to consider when writing a persuasive essay:

  • Personal interest.
  • If the topic is interesting to you, it will be interesting to your readers, because they will feel your personal involvement. Your writing will not be boring and you will write about the topic with passion and conviction.

  • Your audience’s interest.
  • Think about who will read your paper. Consider what will be involving for them. In a persuasive essay you want to prove to the readers the correctness of your opinion. So if you feel that the audience is drastically opposed to the topic, avoid such subject.

  • The information available.
  • Before making a decision about a certain subject, do research and find out if there is enough material available that will help you make a persuasive argument.

The outline of a persuasive paper is quite simple, but it will help you reach your goal and prove your point effectively:

  • Introduction with a hook.
  • After reading an introduction the audience must want to read further. Do not forget about the thesis statement. In it you need to state your point, which you will prove in the body of the paper.

  • Body paragraphs.
  • The number of paragraphs depends on the required length of the essay. Remember that all of them need to be logically connected.

  • Conclusion.
  • It should summarize the paper and remind the audience why the topic is important.

If you don’t know what persuasive topic to choose for your paper, consider the following suggestions:

  1. The benefits of getting a job while in high school.
  2. Arguments against standardized testing in schools and colleges.
  3. The reasons for lowering the drinking age to 18 years old.
  4. The benefits of having a year off between school and college.
  5. Arguments for or against private schools.
  6. The benefits of vegetarianism.
  7. Arguments for or against vaccinations.
  8. Security cameras as an invasion of privacy.
  9. Social networks creating isolation of people.
  10. Recycling and its benefits for the society.