- Gun control in the United States
- Gun control laws effect on crime rate
- States’ crime rates where citizens are allowed to carry guns
- Encourage the average citizen to own a gun so that they feel safe and protected
- Arm the average citizen and teachers with guns to discourage school shootings and overall gun violence
- Arm citizens and teachers, and instruct the general population on firearms and firearm safety to reduce the amount of gun violence and school shootings
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Counterintuitive 
You’ve chosen a very important topic, KB, and I won’t dissuade you from writing about guns and violence, but I will caution you about the traps inherent in electing to research some SO COMPLETELY OVER-ANALYZED.
First caution: Actually do research. The temptation will be very strong to pit opinion pieces against each other and let them each have their say. Instead, you’re going to need to go to the places where real numbers can help you draw sound conclusions.
Second caution: Keep it narrow. Gun violence is SO broad it’s breathtaking, and 3000 words don’t begin to be enough to even introduce all the topics, let alone write a complete and compelling argument about ONE of them. For example, if I ask you—since it appears school shootings are essential to your hypothesis—whether guns are used in more homicides or more suicides, how would you answer? Will giving every person the means to kill herself reduce gun violence?
Third caution: Pick citizens or teachers. Pick schools or suicides. Pick universal gun laws or the total abandonment of gun laws. In other words, I’m repeating the Second caution: keep it narrow.
Fourth caution: Avoid popular press opinion pieces except to provide you background and guide your research. An essay made up of quotes from already digested opinions of others isn’t a research paper. (It’s not useless, but it’s been done, or you wouldn’t be able to quote it.)
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