Prompt:
Directions:
Please reflect on your experience in Essay 1. Discuss some overall issues that you
had with Essay 1, and how you fixed these issues for your final draft. What will you
do differently next time?
OR
I'd like for you to reflect on the hardest essay you ever wrote. What was it
about? Why was it hard for you? Did you end up doing better than expected or
worse than expected, why?
Requirements:
Length: 250–500 words
Reflection Response:
The hardest essay I have ever written was an argumentative essay I completed
two years ago in my 11th grade English class. We were assigned to write an
argumentative essay on a topic of our choice and then present it to the class in the
school’s auditorium. I decided to argue that states should increase their high
school graduation requirements. My main claim was that low graduation
requirements do not prepare students for college, set a low academic mindset, and
mislead students into thinking college is easily attainable.
The most challenging part of the process was choosing a topic. I didn’t want to
write about something overly polarizing like abortion or capital punishment because
I wanted a more balanced topic that still felt relevant and personal. I eventually
chose this topic because I was in the middle of researching colleges and comparing
their admission requirements. It made me wonder how well our school system was
preparing us—not just for tests like the SAT or ACT, but for the overall college
experience.
After choosing the topic, the research portion gave me the most trouble. I had to
find credible sources that supported my viewpoint, which wasn’t easy. The essay
Directions:
Please reflect on your experience in Essay 1. Discuss some overall issues that you
had with Essay 1, and how you fixed these issues for your final draft. What will you
do differently next time?
OR
I'd like for you to reflect on the hardest essay you ever wrote. What was it
about? Why was it hard for you? Did you end up doing better than expected or
worse than expected, why?
Requirements:
Length: 250–500 words
Reflection Response:
The hardest essay I have ever written was an argumentative essay I completed
two years ago in my 11th grade English class. We were assigned to write an
argumentative essay on a topic of our choice and then present it to the class in the
school’s auditorium. I decided to argue that states should increase their high
school graduation requirements. My main claim was that low graduation
requirements do not prepare students for college, set a low academic mindset, and
mislead students into thinking college is easily attainable.
The most challenging part of the process was choosing a topic. I didn’t want to
write about something overly polarizing like abortion or capital punishment because
I wanted a more balanced topic that still felt relevant and personal. I eventually
chose this topic because I was in the middle of researching colleges and comparing
their admission requirements. It made me wonder how well our school system was
preparing us—not just for tests like the SAT or ACT, but for the overall college
experience.
After choosing the topic, the research portion gave me the most trouble. I had to
find credible sources that supported my viewpoint, which wasn’t easy. The essay
