3 Keys to Exceptional High School Essays

There are three elements of an exceptional high school essay:

1. Clarity of Thought
2. Supporting Research
3. Conversational Style 

But how do you teach these things to your student?

We’ve approached this through another angle we invite you to consider: journalism.

On the surface, a journalism course may not seem to teach essay writing, but the truth is, the skill set required for journalism translates to writing strong essays. It translates so well that it can result in better essays than those produced by students consciously concentrating on the formal essay structure. That the connection isn’t obvious is a terrific asset, because many teens balk at the thought of essays, but get them thinking about reporting on fascinating historical events, and they are intrigued.

We strongly believe that we need to remove
the expectation that writing essays has to be boring.

After the creation of One Year Adventure Novel and Cover Story, families have requested help with essay writing: “PLEASE produce a curriculum for writing essays!” Dr. Daniel Schwabauer created Byline to teach essay writing through another angle—one that not only inspires students (yes, even reluctant writers!), but produces exceptional essays.

Let’s take a closer look at these 3 keys (or elements) to exceptional high school essays.

   1. CLARITY OF THOUGHT

In particular, the skills of observation, inference, analysis, and interpretation. These skills are essential to writing, and to every other subject. But too often they’re separated from other disciplines. Writing is about putting thoughts onto paper. If you can’t think well, you won’t write well.

   2. SUPPERTING RESEARCH

One way we approach this in our BYLINE program is through teaching students about propaganda. Propaganda isn’t about telling lies. It’s about creating interpretations of facts. This is why every major media outlet can both fact-check its work AND be perceived by political rivals as biased.

The student who learns to separate fact from interpretation is much harder to indoctrinate.

This is a worthwhile outcome, whatever your political convictions happen to be. As Dr. Schwabauer tell Byline students early in the course, we’re not living in the information age. We’re living in the MISinformation age.

   3. CONVERSATIONAL STYLE

Modern education often sees the essay as a canvas for academic jargon. So many teachers make students memorize latinate terms like exposition and delineation and empirical persuasion—which is fine—but they don’t tell them why these terms matter, or what they can be used for.

They take the storytelling out of it. They suck out the conflict and the humor and the personality, and then expect students to learn to be good writers by outlining a five-paragraph theme about the Freudian implications of blood in Macbeth.

In contrast, when most English professors encounter a student who thinks clearly, supports her conclusions with evidence, and makes an argument in a conversational style, they are delighted. They start saving that student’s papers to read last, like dessert.

Clarity of thought and presentation will set any college student apart.

For that matter, it will set any writer apart. C.S. Lewis wasn’t just admired for his imagination. One of the main reasons his work endures is that he was so good at saying profound things in a simple way. He knew the jargon. He just avoided it. And we can promise you that a student who practices essay writing using a more relaxed and personable style—for instance, the style employed by journalists—will have a huge advantage over students who don’t.

Byline takes 9th–12th graders on a wild quest for stories left untold in the forgotten corners of history. As they step into the role of a 1930s-era newspaper reporter, students train under Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Daniel Schwabauer, who takes students under his wings to teach them everything he knows. Along the way, and before they even realize what they are doing, students learn to write great essays!

Byline combines writing instruction with intriguing historic people and events to not only equip students with essay-writing skills, but to help them enjoy the journey!

Do you struggle with a reluctant writer? Learn some strategies to transform how you approach writing!