ABSTRACT
Students had wide latitude to choose a topic and settled on subjects to which they felt a personal connection. After all, students will be able to use the skills they develop through strong research and effective writing in any future class, job, hobby, or activist pursuit—whether drafting a grant application for a nonprofit arts organization or constructing an appellate brief for a legal case. The peer response feedback is not perfect, in that some students are better peer editors than others, but the checklist helps catch more than students would on their own. Most students finished in class, and anything they did not finish became homework. This assignment functioned in two helpful ways: exposing students to the kinds of topics that people write op-eds about and also showing them the power of a tight structure, with a powerful hook, a strong argument, illustrative quotations, and constructive counterarguments.
