If you took the March 2008 SAT Reasoning Test, you would have been given one of the essay prompts below:

　　Prompt 1

　　Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

　　Organizations or groups that share a common goal often mention teamwork as their secret to success by insisting that people in the group work together for the good of the entire group. However, by requiring each individual to accept the decisions of the others in the group, organizations may discourage the expression of individual talent. Ultimately, a group is most successful when all of its members are encouraged to pursue their own goals and interests.

　　Assignment:

　　Are organizations or groups most successful when their members pursue individual wishes and goals? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

　　Prompt 2

　　Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

　　Being loyal—faithful or dedicated to someone or something—is not always easy. People often have conflicting loyalties, and there are no guidelines that help them decide to what or whom they should be loyal. Moreover, people are often loyal to something bad. Still, loyalty is one of the essential attributes a person must have and must demand of others.

　　Adapted from James Carville, Stickin': The Case for Loyalty

　　Assignment:

　　Should people always be loyal? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

　　Prompt 3

　　Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

　　Winning feels forever fabulous. But you can learn more from losing than from winning. Losing prepares you for setback and tragedy more than winning ever can. Moreover, loss invites reflection and a change of strategies. In the process of recovering from your losses, you learn how to avoid them the next time.

　　Adapted from Pat Conroy, My Losing Season

　　Assignment:

　　Do people learn more from losing than from winning? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.