The academic essay in this unit will be a written, cohesive argument for the change in your community you have written about throughout the course which is :To address the critical teacher shortage in the Osceola School District, it is imperative that the community, including parents, educators, and local businesses collaboratively invest in aggressive recruitment and retention strategies, such as competitive salary, professional development and improve working conditions as these measures will not only ensure the provision of quality education for all students.

The assignment should be apersuasive academic essayin which you will provide reliable evidence from at leastfour sourcesto support the argument for change you are advocating. You will also need to address a rival perspective, counterargument, or misconception about your topic within the essay and a response to it, as the ability to do so is a key component of a strong argument. Essentially, the essay will reflect what you have learned about writing effectively, using research, and creating a logical argument to influence an audience.

The essay should be cohesive and utilize effective transitions between and within paragraphs. Paragraphs should exhibit the Four Cs of effective writing as described in this podcast. A formal tone should be used for most of the essay (e.g., stay in third-person voice, avoid slang, etc.). As an option, ask your instructor if you may use first-person pronouns in one paragraph of the essay to incorporate personal experience.

Requirements

Your persuasive essay must be aminimum of 3 pages, not including the title and reference pages, and should include the following elements:

• Title page:Provide your name, title of assignment, course and section number, and date.
• Body:
  • Introduction paragraph that establishes the issue
  • A persuasive thesis statement at the end of the introduction
  • Well-developed paragraphs that address each of your three thesis points
  • Evidence from sources to support your argument for specific change in your community
  • A rival perspective, challenge, or misconception and a response to it
  • A conclusion paragraph that brings the essay to an effective close Please be sure that you use effective transitions between and within paragraphs.
• Reference page:Sources listed in current APA format with at leastfour credible sourcesappropriate for academic research that is cited in-text and on your references page. All cited sources need to have full citations on a references page (except for any interviews you conduct, which only require in-text citations).
• Formatting:Current APA formatting for the document, including an appropriately formatted title page and references page.

Additional Requirements:

• Paragraph transitions:The essay should be a cohesive piece of writing that utilizes effective transitions between and within paragraphs.
• Four Cs: Paragraphs should exhibit the Four Cs of effective writing as described in this podcast.
• Tone:A formal tone should be used for most of the essay (e.g., stay in third-person voice, avoid slang, etc.). As an option, you may use first-person pronouns in one paragraph of the essay if you would like to incorporate a piece of personal experience.