Y07W14WR Should Community Service Be Compulsory?

Part 1

How to Write

Persuasive – Persuasive submission

A persuasive submission argues for a clear position on an issue and aims to influence a specific decision-maker. It is written for a formal audience — often a committee, council or leadership group — and must be credible and well-reasoned. The tone should be confident and respectful, demonstrating careful thinking about the issue.

  • Ideas & content: Take a clear position and develop it with logical, well-supported reasons. Acknowledge complexity where it exists, but always return to your core argument.
  • Structure & cohesion: Open with your position, develop your reasons in a logical order and close with a clear recommendation. Use connecting language to move from point to point smoothly.
  • Voice & audience: Write for your specific audience — formal, measured and credible. Avoid emotional exaggeration. Show you understand the issue from multiple sides, even while arguing one position.
  • Language choices: Use precise, formal vocabulary. Control modality carefully — words like should, must and strongly recommends signal conviction. Vary sentence structure for impact.
  • Conventions: Spell key terms correctly. Use punctuation to manage complex sentences. Check that your sentences are as clear as they are persuasive.

Common pitfalls: Arguing from passion alone without evidence or reasoning — a good submission shows logical thinking, not just strong feeling. Failing to acknowledge the other side even briefly, which makes your argument look one-sided.

Part 2

Your Task Plan for Today

The brief

Question: Write a submission arguing whether compulsory community service should or should not be part of your school’s program. Take a clear position and support it with reasons. Your submission will be read by the school leadership team.

Stimulus: Your school is considering whether to require all students to participate in a weekly community service program. Supporters argue this builds empathy, civic responsibility and real-world skills. Critics argue that community service loses its meaning when it is forced, that it takes time away from study and that genuine community contribution should be a personal choice. Students have been invited to write a response before a decision is made.

Task Analysis: This task asks you to take a clear position on a contested issue and argue it persuasively to a formal school audience. A strong response will go beyond personal preference — it will build a logical argument with specific, well-developed reasons and show awareness of the other side, even while arguing against it.

Quick Plan

Before you write, plan:

  • Your position — clearly for or against compulsory community service
  • Two or three specific reasons that support your position
  • The strongest opposing argument — and how you will address it
  • Your recommendation to the leadership team

Thesis / position

State your position clearly in the opening paragraph. Don’t hedge — the leadership team needs to know exactly where you stand before they read your reasoning.

Evidence chain

For each reason you give, develop it fully: state the reason, explain the logic behind it, and give a specific example or consequence. Underdeveloped reasons are less persuasive than two or three that are fully argued.

Counterargument

Acknowledge the strongest argument for the other side and explain why it does not outweigh your own position. This shows the leadership team that you have thought seriously about the issue.

Call to action / Recommendation

Close with a clear, direct recommendation. Tell the leadership team specifically what you think they should decide and why. End with confidence.