Editorial writing forces cherubs to be opinionated

By Lorraine Lee

The cherub editorial assignment is a chance for students to express their opinions about issues that relate to them, and to publish their articles in their school or local papers, instructor John Kupetz said.

In the “Writing Editorials” lecture, cherubs learned that recognizing counterpoints is key when writing editorials. This shows readers the writer is able to understand both sides and think logically, Kupetz said.

They also learned to avoid generalizing, to persuade and to cite other sources.

This year’s topic was the potential military draft proposed by Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), which would require men and women from ages 18 to 42 to serve.

Kupetz said he wanted students to write about the draft to challenge their thinking and their assumptions about a volunteer army.

“For many students in this program, the draft is off their radar,” Kupetz said.

Cherubs said they learned a lot from the assignment and found it practical.

“Editorials are an essential thing you need to know how to write because it’s important to get your opinions heard,” said Aisha Hasan, a cherub from Woodbridge, N.J.

Among the most important techniques cherubs learned was how to recognize counterarguments. 

“I learned that it’s really important to address a counterpoint, because if you don’t put your reader at ease with your position, they won’t listen to what you have to say,” said Taylor Freret, a cherub from Los Altos, Calif.

“It made the article stronger to mention the counterpoint because I was able to argue against them before they could even bring up their side,” said Jessica Jackson, a cherub from Clinton, N.J.

 Some cherubs said they found it difficult to write the editorial.

“It was hard to organize my opinion into a clearly focused editorial,” said Elizabeth Rowe, a cherub from Lake Forest, Ill.

To make articles concise, cherubs didn’t use the first and second person and words such as “one,” “some,” and “many.”

“I thought it was challenging because you have to formulate an opinion and back up your opinion in fewer than 300 words,” Freret said. “I learned that tightening up your copy is the most important thing you can do.”

Kupetz said the draft is a timeless topic for an editorial. 

“What I thought with the draft is that it’s a major issue that’s going to continue in future years,” Kupetz said.  “It makes you think.”