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it must meet two benchmarks: first, it must be a claim, not just a statement of fact; and 2
second, that claim has to be supported by evidence.
The first step in establishing your position is taking a moment to AP TIP
®
determine just what you know about the topic at hand. What have
your experiences and observations taught you? For instance, have Remember, your position on
a given topic has to be
you seen the ramifications of early (or later) school start times in your arguable. Can you imagine
school, in your community, or in the media? What have you learned someone disagreeing with
about the relationship between sleep and cognition in your classes it? If not, it may simply be a
or from your independent reading? All of these areas of knowledge statement of fact.
and experience can serve as evidence to support the position you
choose to take in your argument essay.

Considering Questions of Fact, Value, and Policy Section 2 / From Reading to Writing: Crafting an AP ® Argument Essay
Note that a well-argued essay will acknowledge the counterargument, so do consider the
pros and cons of your position. Obviously, for a teenager, a big pro might be an extra hour
of sleep before school; a con might be staying in school an hour later — unless, of course,
your last class of the day is English! At this point, you should ask yourself some questions
about the facts. For example, do teenagers get enough sleep? How do you know whether
they do or not? Why do high schools start earlier than most businesses? Think about your
parents. What do they do for a living? What time do they start work?
Then you’ll naturally progress to questions of value. What factors determine the start
time for school? Are they fair? Do they relate to economics, convenience, learning and
teaching, health, or to any other issues? What social and educational values does the
start time of high schools reflect?
Finally, you should ask some questions of policy. Should we maintain the present
school schedule or change it, and why? The answer to this question will form the core of
your argument, and questions of policy are crucial to developing your position. What
reasoning shaped the current policy — why does school start so early? Is it a leftover
from an era when farming played a bigger role in many students’ lives? Is it to accommo-
date after-school sports? Does the current start-time policy take into account what we
now know about teenage health and brain development? As you use these questions to
determine your position, keep in mind the positions others may hold; you want to be sure
you can show that you’re familiar with both sides of the issue.

Developing a Thesis Statement
Once you have formulated a position, it’s time to construct your thesis — in other words,
make an overarching claim that clearly states your position on the topic of the prompt.
Remember, an effective thesis requires proof or defense; it’s not a statement of fact but
an argument you are going to spend the rest of the essay developing with logical reason-
ing and evidence. Key to an effective thesis is addressing the prompt. In some instances,
you may have a fairly general prompt — such as “develop an evidence-based argument
on a topic of local interest.” Then, obviously, determining a specific topic is a necessary

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