Many topics in the social sciences have plenty of research available and are familiar to a general audience. Some topics could include counseling made mandatory before granting divorces, the legal system's discrimination toward single fathers, the lack of women and minorities at the executive level and whether Christian-based religious holidays should be national observances. According to Anoka Ramsey Community College, you should avoid topics that are overly volatile and that have been overworked such as abortion, gun control and capital punishment.
Topics in health sciences often combine elements of physical and life science and their effects on society. Topics could include the need for more government regulation of genetically engineered foods, the use of marijuana as medicine, the need for increased FDA regulation of food additives, the case for the use of drug therapy to promote abstinence in alcoholics and whether the use of human embryos for scientific research should be banned in the United States.
Environmental issues are often hotly debated due to lobbying of special interest groups. Topics could include whether the United States should focus on finding more oil sources within the United States, whether fines for corporate pollution should be more severe, whether the designation of "endangered species" should be modified, whether increased government support for public transportation would decrease pollution and to what extent should environmental conservation affect industrial planning.
Education topics range from pre-kindergarten to college and beyond. Topics could include a foreign language being a graduation requirement, the need for yearly academic testing of home-schooled students, learning disparities between kindergarten children who attended daycare and those who did not, why computer use should be restricted in elementary schools, whether students should be required to attend school past age 16 years and whether college admission exams place minorities at a disadvantage.