Some people believe that volunteering should be a part of life. Think carefully about this idea. Write an essay stating your position on whether high school students should be required to spend three hours a week volunteering. Think about the different organizational structures you can use to develop your essay. Briefly outline your essay by explaining which structures you will use.

High school is not just preparation for college. In fact, many students leave high school with no intention of going to college. Some join the military and others already have job prospects to pursue.

While preparing you for the future, high school is where you learn exactly what it means to be a good citizen. A major component of being a good citizen is interaction with your community. One of the most common ways of involving young adults in community activities is through volunteerism. In order to truly complete the education the public school system promises, high school students should spend time volunteering in their community.

"Without community service, we would not have a strong quality of life. It's important to the person who serves as well as the recipient. It's the way in which we ourselves grow and develop," said Dr. Dorothy Height, president and CEO of the National Council of Negro Women. What Height says is undeniably true, and it needs to begin in our educational system.

People who volunteer at an age where social interaction is essential, high school, will carry this message with them through life. The life lesson of service is just as important in "the real world" we teenagers so often hear about as that "A" on our last calculus exam.

Making community service a requirement ensures students will at least spend the minimum time volunteering in their community. If at least a third of these students are able to grasp the importance of community service, then they can take that skill and apply it not only to their professional lives but also to the general well being of their communities. If these same students use the lessons they learned from volunteering, they could solve many of today's economic and social problems.

By requiring students to do community service in high school, we are not only ensuring good and informed citizens, but also a better economic and social climate.