PERSUASIVE SPEECH & DEBATE TOPICS
RELEVANT TODAY
Taken from:
https://theteachingfactor.wordpress.com/2013/01/10/50-persuasive-speech-debate-topicsrelevant-today/
I. Research on the Teenage Brain
• Does video violence affect the teenage brain?
• Does the internet influence young people to engage in risky behavior?
• Once bad in math, a person will always be bad at math.
• Intelligence depends on environmental factors, not genetic factors.
• Starting school later is beneficial to teenage brain development.
• Parents who engaged with their children are more likely to excel in school and avoid risky
behavior.
• Teachers need to teach content with the teenage brain in mind.
II. Physical Education and Sports
• Should physical education be mandatory for all students every day of the school week?
• Should students on sports teams be required to carry a certain grade point average [GPA]
in order to play?
• Should coaches be required to give equal playing time to athletes at the secondary school
level regardless of skills (middle and high school)?
• Are sports athletes role models?
• Is mandatory drug testing of all athletes on a secondary, collegiate, and professional level
necessary?
• Are spectator sports overemphasized in America today?
• Should professional athletes who break the law (via drug use, illegal gambling, domestic
abuse, etc.) be banned from their professional sport in addition to doing jail time?
• Should athletes who have taken performance enhancing drugs be admitted into the Hall
of Fame?
• Should parent-spectators be required to sign a “Spectator Expectation Code of Conduct,”
which includes prohibitions against verbal abuse and obnoxious behavior (“Respect all
athletes, coaches, officials and fans.”) if their child plays a school sport. Thus, if a
parent-spectator is found disrespecting a player, coach or opposing team they should
be banned from attending their child’s athletic games.
III. Chew on This: The Obesity Epidemic
• Are Americans Getting Fatter? Does it Matter?
• The McLawsuit: Is the Fast-Food Industry Legally Accountable for Obesity?
• Do School Cafeterias Contribute to the Rise in Childhood Obesity?
• Can the growing problem of obesity in the US be reversed?
• Are Diet Companies in the Business to Help People or to Make a Profit?
• Are Low-Fat Foods the Healthier Alternatives?
• Should Sodas and Sugary Snacks be Sold in Vending Machines at Schools and Bake Sales
be Banned?
• Is Obesity a Matter of Individual Responsibility? Who is Responsible for Controlling
Obesity?
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IV. National Security and Civil Liberties
• Does the US federal government have the authority to either detain without charge or
search without probable cause?
• Should all foreigners entering the US be required to leave 2 finger prints and digital
photographs of themselves?
• Should the US deny all foreigners with desires to attend American Universities to further
education, whether M.I.T. or flight school?
• Is domestic wiretapping and surveillance acceptable without a court order?
• Should a wall be built between Canada and the US and Mexico and the US to keep out all
suspected terrorists entering the US illegally?
• Is the US Patriot Act unconstitutional and jeopardizes civil liberties?
• Racial profiling: Is it necessary?
• Should there be stronger limits on immigration?
V. The First Amendment
• Controversial T-Shirts – If a student wears a controversial T-shirt, does the school board
have the right to ban offensive and controversial clothing or does the student have
the right to wear it under the first amendment?
• Cyber Bullying Statutes – If a student is bullying someone do they have the right to claim
they have freedom of speech to say what they wanted?
• Posting Videos Online – Is This a Right & Your Freedom of Speech? – Does anyone have
the right and freedom to post videos online even if the person taking the video does
not have permission and the videos are of people in personal or compromising
actions – a school fight, personal encounter.
VI. Technology and Education
• Are desktop computer outdated?
• Are computer labs unnecessary in schools today?
• Should students be allowed to use mobile devices in class?
• Should there be a filter on the internet in school?
• Are textbooks obsolete?
• Should teachers friend students on Facebook?
• Should schools provide technology devices (i.e. tablets or laptops) for all students?
VII. School & Educational Issues
• School cafeterias should be transformed into food courts with fast food companies
supplying meals.
• Students should be required to wear school uniforms.
• Schools should shift from a nine month school year to year-round schooling.
• It should be mandatory that no teacher assign homework over the weekend.
• Video cameras should be put into all classrooms to record student and teacher
interactions at all times.
• School should begin later in the morning and end later in the day.
• Foreign Language should not be mandatory.
• Armed police guards and metal detectors should be installed in every school.
Taken from: http://helpfulpapers.com/blog/2013/04/16/50-interestingargumentativepersuasive-essay-topics/
Best Persuasive Essay Topics: Get Some Food for Thought
The best questions for argumentative essays have no obvious answers and always bring
together some conflicting options. Here are a few examples:
• Does smoking help make acquaintances?
• Should students add their teachers as friends on Facebook?
• Is the first impression of a person always right?
• Are conflicts necessary for healthy relationships?
• Should lecture attendance be optional?
• Is business ethics an obsolete concept?
• Should companies try to copy what their competitors do?
• Can businesses learn from their customers’ complaints?
• Should all energy drinks be banned?
• Is China a new superpower?
Easy Persuasive Essay Topics: Keep Them Simple
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Should employees be allowed to use social media sites at work?
Should companies send ‘happy birthday’ messages to clients?
Would Shakespeare’s plays be more interesting if shortened?
Should internet slang, like ‘LOL’ and ‘IMHO’ be included in dictionaries?
Does the English language need to be simpler?
Should kids be allowed to draw on walls?
Do modern schools depend too much on technology?
Do online students have better chances to cheat?
Should hospitals use placebo treatments?
Do innovations really make us lazier?
Amazing Topics for Persuasive Essays: Get Inspired
The easiest way to write an A+ persuasive paper is to choose a topic that truly interests you:
• Can college athletes be smart?
• Should students have profiles on all major social networks?
• Should people abandon cash and use plastic cards only?
• Should countries have ‘1 car per family’ policies?
• Should we preserve old buildings as historical monuments?
• Are some TV ads objects of art?
• Is music in shopping malls harmful to employees’ wellbeing?
• Can listening to favorite music heal?
• Should journalists who distort the truth to make the news more sensational be punished?
• Should all TV channels have censorship?
Funny Persuasive Essay Topics: Have Fun!
Are you still here? Everything is clear. You’re probably looking for something special, like these
topics:
• Do SOPA and PIPA make pirates more skillful?
• Is negative PR the secret behind Justin Bieber’s success?
• Should Wikipedia give diplomas to their most faithful readers?
• Can diamonds be girls’ best friends?
• Is the way to a man’s heart through his stomach?
• Should couples live together before marriage?
• Should parents tell their kids stories about birds and bees?
• Can virtual reality be dangerous for kids?
• Can we call any war ‘a peacemaking operation’?
• Is too much political correctness making communication more confusing?
Great Ideas for Persuasive Essays: Check Them All!
Still curious? Ok, here are 10 more amazing ideas, which surely won’t leave you indifferent:
• Are early marriages more likely to end in divorces?
• Do elderly people receive better care in retirement homes than with family members?
• Should hyperactive kids receive treatment?
• Should mind reading during poker games be banned?
• Should parents pass tests before homeschooling their kids?
• Should parents lie to their kids about Santa Claus?
• Does Beavis and Butthead have a negative impact on youth?
• Is it fair to use the results of standardized tests to define schools’ budgets?
• Are optimism and success infectious?
Is the Bermuda triangle a creation of our imagination?
Taken from: http://essaybasics.com/best-100-persuasive-essay-topics/
Best 100 Persuasive Essay Topics
• Should pregnant women go through mandatory AIDS testing?
• Should air pollution problems be more revealed to the public?
• Should abortions be prohibited by the law?
• What are the consequences of alcohol abuse?
• Should anorexia be treated as soon as diagnosed?
• Should college athletes get salaries?
• Should couples consider all pros and cons of adoption?
• Should the scientists be allowed to test products on animals?
• What are the major consequences of bad ecology?
• Are the Beauty Pageants too exploitive on women?
• Should cities invest more into Bike Sharing City Programs?
• Should Girls and Boys attend school separately?
• Should Bulimia considered to be a dangerous life-threatening disease?
• Should Cosmetic Surgery cost less?
• What are the latest climate changes and their consequences?
• Should child abuse be prohibited by the law?
• Should improper child behavior receive more attention from the modern
society?
• What is the price students have to pay for competitive side of college
admission?
• How should the problem of Defrosting be fought?
• What are the Effects of Divorce on children?
• Should Drinking and Driving be punished severely?
• Does the government has to pay more attention to the problems of
Domestic Violence?
• What are the major consequences of Drug Abuse?
• Should Economy Problems get more attention in media?
• Should Economy Issues be considered vital to solving?
• Does every American must learn to speak good English?
• Should college athletes suffer from high expectations?
• What are the pros and cons of Euthanasia?
• Is fashion important to people?
• What is the positive impact on the modern society?
• Should kids’ field trips be done more often? What importance do they carry?
• Should Fitness Activity be mandatory?
• Should school students receive free condoms?
• Should fur be prohibited from wearing?
• Should obese people pay attention to the fitness activity?
• Should girls’ cruelty be considered as same sex hatred issue?
• Should gambling be considered a disease?
• What are the consequences of the Green House Effect?
• Should gay rights be more protected?
• What are the outcomes from the genetically modified food?
• What are the major genetic issues the modern society should deal with?
• Should customers buy Energy Star labeled products only?
• What are the outcomes of the Energy Crisis?
• Should negative hip-hop lyrics be considered dangerous?
• Is home birth a better option?
• Does Human Cloning have major consequences?
• Should the government reinforce the Immigration Laws?
• Should people learn more about the consequences of eating Junky Food?
• What the impact of Healthy Food eating on person’s health?
• Should the society ban Kissing in Public?
• What problems the Larger People have to face?
• How should the information from Law Enforcement Cameras be used?
• What are the major difference between Managers and Leaders?
• Should the medical Marijuana use be become legal?
• Should Military be allowed to recruit from public schools?
• Should blood donation become mandatory by the public?
• Should Milk drinking be more advertised?
• Should the Moon get closer examination from NASA?
• Should people move to live on a Moon?
• Should modern society react more fiercely to violent music lyrics?
• What are the negative effects of Media Violence?
• Should all moms attend classes on how to raise their children?
• What does the public know about Nuclear Proliferation?
• Should people listen more to Operas?
• Should older people be prohibited from driving?
• Should older people use public transportation for free?
• What are the negative impacts on personal lives from the Paparazzi reports?
• Should Puerto Rico become a separate state?
• How the public transportation can be improved?
• Should psychic abilities get more scientific research?
• Does paternity leave receive proper funding?
• Should young parents attend Parenting Classes mandatory?
• What are the positive impacts of Quality Family Time?
• Should the Recycling get more financial support?
• Should we believe in Reincarnation?
• Can religion cause a war today?
• Should public education receive more private funding support?
• What is the importance of SATs?
• What message does the youth receive about Sexuality today?
• Should Single Parenting be considered a problem?
• Should smokers pay additional health tax?
• Are modern people are getting not enough of sleep?
• Should government spend less on Space Programs?
• What are the side effects of extensive Television Propaganda?
• Is the youth dependent on the use of technology? Should it be reduced?
• Is time travel possible?
• Should government pay more attention to Terrorism?
• Should sport programs receive more public funding?
• Should teachers take certification every 5 or 10 years?
• Should there be a trash limits in households?
• Should the state colleges be free?
• Should school get more funding for the technology use?
• Should there be private prisons with extra convenience?
• Should female and male construction workers get equal pay?
• Should women fight more for their rights?
• Should voting age be lowered to 13?
• Should people get Wi-Fi access everywhere?
• What is the negative impact from excessive X-ray?
• Should violent video games be prohibited from sale?
• Should Zero be considered a new beginning?
Taken from: http://persuasivespeechideas.org/50-funny-persuasive-speechtopics/
• ‘Little people’ is less offensive than ‘dwarf’ or ‘midget.’
• Save paper towels, save the forests. (Shake hands before using the paper, fold the
paper towel and dry.)
• Sex needs a new metaphor, other than baseball where you use terms like scoring,
getting to first base, if there’s grass on the field play ball etc. Example: The new
model is based on Pizza, it’s not competitive like baseball. You’re also sharing the
experience of pleasure and enjoyment.
• Scientists should stop talking jargon to us and make
ideas accessible.
• Parking and coffee to be included in college tuition fee.
• How to handle well-meaning people you don’t like.
• Why you deserve to be the boss instead of your boss.
• Prints of body parts other than fingers should be taken. Like ear prints. (Talk of the
burglar caught by his ear-print on the window glass – he was listening to find out if
the coast was clear)
• Men should never wear skinny jeans.
• Grades don’t matter.
• The work week should be shorter.
• Horror movies are good for experiencing the adrenaline rush.
• Funny pick up lines work.
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Blaming the horoscope when things go wrong helps.
All is not fair in burping and farting, but it is in love and war.
It is not wrong to steal bread to feed your family.
Women have to leave the seat up for men’s convenience.
Schools should ban Harry Potter for promoting witchcraft.
How playing games raised your IQ.
A thumb is a finger.
Reverse discrimination.
Men are happier than women.
If a woman hits a man, he should be able to hit back without it being called abuse.
Too much rhetoric and speech caused the fall of the Roman Empire, it will kill us too.
Keep your mom off Facebook.
Banks have to ban hats and sunglasses to avoid robberies.
Make your friends pay every time, all the time.
Guys gossip more than girls.
Adult children living at home can be a pain.
A majority of vegetarians don’t love animals.
How to eat food you don’t like.
Why being fair doesn’t work all the time.
Larger passengers should be obliged to purchase two plane tickets (the weight?).
Being a weekday vegetarian in a carnivorous culture.
Limit alternatives to make your choices easier.
Reincarnation is a fact.
Why moist cookies are better than dry. Bring cookies and demonstrate.
Boys should be allowed to cross dress and wear skirts.
Children of divorced parents should gain the right to divorce their parents if they choose
to.
• There must be a breakup insurance policy to all
• Eat lionfish to stop their invasion.
• Donate your locks.
• How to persuade someone to take the blame for your mistake.
• How to get a spouse to hand over the remote.
• Why the drinking age should be lowered.
• How to create a cult following easily with so many dumb people around.
Why airplanes should be made from the material the black box is made of.