Quarter One
Summer Assignment
ACE Paragraph:
Argumentative Essay:
Kenaan Barakat
10/05/18
Phillips
AP Argument Essay
Ladies and gentlemen, I beseech the institution in a time of uncertainty and controversy. Surely an overwhelming majority of students across this nation enjoy the satisfaction of their electronic devices and the gratification we receive from our phones everyday. All phone users have inalienable rights to their phones and are able to choose the location, time, quantity, and content of their phone use. Such rights have been provided to us by our phone carriers, and are, essentially, a written contract which can neither be abandoned or abused. However, when a school system such as Wake County implements unjust policy designed to handicap us from our phones and to strip us of our most prized possession, it becomes necessary to abandon this injustice or to advocate for a change of policy.
The Wake County school system seems to be either unaware or ignorant of the rights granted to us, something that is quite astonishing. The inequitable policy which looms over our heads is an abomination in every sense of the word, like that of the colonial period in America prior to the revolution. Are they negligent of the very founding of this glorious nation? Have they forgotten what sparked the American Revolution and the enlightened men who, with their unbounded grace, set forth their inalienable rights above all other arguments presented by the British? Their fight for freedom and justice exemplified their utmost virtue and dignity, willing to do anything in order to get back what was rightfully theirs: their liberty and their independence. Verily, this is the age we are currently living in; the blasphemy in this ridiculous phone policy as clear as the color of the cloudless sky. Yet the administration do not see this falsehood, nor do they acknowledge it.
Consequently, the county policymakers preside over these issues, making a mockery of our requests and shoving aside any suggestions that hint at the freedom of accountability of our phones. They tell us that the administration’s priority is to keep us engaged and focused at school, hence, we cannot be on our phones at school. What logic is this? Our use of a device designed for easy access to anything (including school related material) must be restricted for our concentration? What a kind gift from Silicon Valley, an instrument of knowledge and entertainment, a prize as generous as the Earth which our Lord made for mankind. Many students use their phones for study resources, for class links, for contacting there teachers and parents, and even for assigned classwork which they must complete. Yet the teachers are blind to this, and blatantly threaten us with harsh consequences, such as in-school-suspension and lunch detention, and for this, I deem the administration's reasoning irrational and absurd.
Furthermore, as a way of compensating for this severe policy, the county has come up with a ‘reward’ for our compliance to phone policy: BYOD (Bring Your Own Device). BYOD, they say, will make us more moderate phone users and will allow us to adhere to our teachers’ demands while using our phones. And what business do they have in regulating when and where to allow us to use our phones? Do they consider themselves to be the overseers, to be gods of the school? BYOD would have been a plausible idea had it not been filled with restrictions and unnecessary clauses. Do they perceive themselves to be so benevolent over the years they have the moral authority to strip the greatest form of entertainment from our high school. Such is the current state of our schools, as was the state of Moses and his people during the tyranny of the Pharaoh, who persecuted the people of Israel day and night for their simple wish of freedom and just rule. The Sun can no longer smile at a county that uses phone policy as a method of punishment.
The County has gone so far as to confiscate our electronics if they are spotted and not put away, punishable by referral on the second ‘offense’. Their excuse is even more laughable; students should learn to comply with the administrations’ orders and be responsible for keeping their electronics away. I cannot look at this cruel rule without thinking back to our ancestors who refused to allow British soldiers to confiscate their homes under the Quartering Act of 1765. How similar these two governments are, both making policy designed to ruin the very jubilation of their citizens, and both acting ignorant to the requests of their people. When was confiscating ever a method of teaching and not of punishment? Surely Wake County’s judgement has become as stubborn and blinded as a rock. They must be reminded of the third amendment of our nation’s constitution, one of the foundational principles of United States, which prohibits the government to confiscate people’s homes and property without the owner’s consent.
I am not asking for the county to “give me liberty or give me death”, for such measures are unnecessary for this issue. I am asking for reform of this policy, which has been successfully implemented by some of the greatest institutions of the modern world, that the county charges us with the responsibility of using our phones, and that we dictate when it is appropriate to use them during school hours. Rather than enforcing a policy that is not suitable for everyone, the county should regard us as individuals and not as a flock of sheep from the same mother. If this new policy is put into effect, the difference in students’ attitude at school will be like day and night. The choice is Wake County's’ to decide. I hope they will consider the best interest of its students and their requests which have gone unnoticed.
Kenaan Barakat
10/05/18
Phillips
AP Argument Essay
Ladies and gentlemen, I beseech the institution in a time of uncertainty and controversy. Surely an overwhelming majority of students across this nation enjoy the satisfaction of their electronic devices and the gratification we receive from our phones everyday. All phone users have inalienable rights to their phones and are able to choose the location, time, quantity, and content of their phone use. Such rights have been provided to us by our phone carriers, and are, essentially, a written contract which can neither be abandoned or abused. However, when a school system such as Wake County implements unjust policy designed to handicap us from our phones and to strip us of our most prized possession, it becomes necessary to abandon this injustice or to advocate for a change of policy.
The Wake County school system seems to be either unaware or ignorant of the rights granted to us, something that is quite astonishing. The inequitable policy which looms over our heads is an abomination in every sense of the word, like that of the colonial period in America prior to the revolution. Are they negligent of the very founding of this glorious nation? Have they forgotten what sparked the American Revolution and the enlightened men who, with their unbounded grace, set forth their inalienable rights above all other arguments presented by the British? Their fight for freedom and justice exemplified their utmost virtue and dignity, willing to do anything in order to get back what was rightfully theirs: their liberty and their independence. Verily, this is the age we are currently living in; the blasphemy in this ridiculous phone policy as clear as the color of the cloudless sky. Yet the administration do not see this falsehood, nor do they acknowledge it.
Consequently, the county policymakers preside over these issues, making a mockery of our requests and shoving aside any suggestions that hint at the freedom of accountability of our phones. They tell us that the administration’s priority is to keep us engaged and focused at school, hence, we cannot be on our phones at school. What logic is this? Our use of a device designed for easy access to anything (including school related material) must be restricted for our concentration? What a kind gift from Silicon Valley, an instrument of knowledge and entertainment, a prize as generous as the Earth which our Lord made for mankind. Many students use their phones for study resources, for class links, for contacting there teachers and parents, and even for assigned classwork which they must complete. Yet the teachers are blind to this, and blatantly threaten us with harsh consequences, such as in-school-suspension and lunch detention, and for this, I deem the administration's reasoning irrational and absurd.
Furthermore, as a way of compensating for this severe policy, the county has come up with a ‘reward’ for our compliance to phone policy: BYOD (Bring Your Own Device). BYOD, they say, will make us more moderate phone users and will allow us to adhere to our teachers’ demands while using our phones. And what business do they have in regulating when and where to allow us to use our phones? Do they consider themselves to be the overseers, to be gods of the school? BYOD would have been a plausible idea had it not been filled with restrictions and unnecessary clauses. Do they perceive themselves to be so benevolent over the years they have the moral authority to strip the greatest form of entertainment from our high school. Such is the current state of our schools, as was the state of Moses and his people during the tyranny of the Pharaoh, who persecuted the people of Israel day and night for their simple wish of freedom and just rule. The Sun can no longer smile at a county that uses phone policy as a method of punishment.
The County has gone so far as to confiscate our electronics if they are spotted and not put away, punishable by referral on the second ‘offense’. Their excuse is even more laughable; students should learn to comply with the administrations’ orders and be responsible for keeping their electronics away. I cannot look at this cruel rule without thinking back to our ancestors who refused to allow British soldiers to confiscate their homes under the Quartering Act of 1765. How similar these two governments are, both making policy designed to ruin the very jubilation of their citizens, and both acting ignorant to the requests of their people. When was confiscating ever a method of teaching and not of punishment? Surely Wake County’s judgement has become as stubborn and blinded as a rock. They must be reminded of the third amendment of our nation’s constitution, one of the foundational principles of United States, which prohibits the government to confiscate people’s homes and property without the owner’s consent.
I am not asking for the county to “give me liberty or give me death”, for such measures are unnecessary for this issue. I am asking for reform of this policy, which has been successfully implemented by some of the greatest institutions of the modern world, that the county charges us with the responsibility of using our phones, and that we dictate when it is appropriate to use them during school hours. Rather than enforcing a policy that is not suitable for everyone, the county should regard us as individuals and not as a flock of sheep from the same mother. If this new policy is put into effect, the difference in students’ attitude at school will be like day and night. The choice is Wake County's’ to decide. I hope they will consider the best interest of its students and their requests which have gone unnoticed.
Timed Writing One: