Module 2: The Art of Persuasive Writing

Persuasive writing is not a skill only utilized by English professors and teachers. Scientists regularly use a form of persuasive writing when obtaining grants and writing up results from their experiments. Lawyers use persuasive skills throughout court proceedings. Politicians and public figures constantly work to persuade their audience through writing and speech. Almost all professionals find themselves engaging in persuasive writing at some point in their careers.

The craft of writing is more of an art than a science. Successful writers understand that the skills involved are not ones they can simply memorize. You must practice, revise, and perfect your writing in an ongoing process. No matter where your high school academic career takes you, the skills you learn here will undoubtedly assist you in the future. In this module, you will take a closer look at each step of the writing process. You will practice with the various steps and learn the characteristics of an effective persuasive essay.

Getting Started

At this point in your academic career, you already have much experience with formal writing. Before delving deeper into the strategies and characteristics of effective writing, take a moment to check what you already know. In this non-graded activity, read the set of directions associated with each question and provide your answer. Click the player button to get started.

 

Key Vocabulary

To view the definitions for these key vocabulary terms, visit the course glossary.

 

bias	organization	topic sentence
counterargument	outline	transition
evidence	refutation	web
flow	thesis statement