| Body | Learning Objectives: Students will be able to demonstrate understanding of the US school system, effectively express and support opinions regarding private and public schooling, and use different modes of persuasion in order to deliver a convincing argument in a debate format.
Modes: interpretational reading, presentational speaking, interpersonal-communication
Materials Needed: Vocabulary Sheet, Debate preparation sheet
Description: This activity was designed to align with the topic of the week and, more specifically, the topic of the U.S. school system. Additionally, it demonstrates what an activity may look like after key and frequent vocabulary terms have been identified.
Procedure:
- Firstly, teachers and students should go over the key terms in the vocabulary sheet.
- Students will then be given an overview of the US education system to ensure that everyone has at least a basic understanding of its structure. This webpage gives good, basic information that largely applies to both public and private schools : https://www.justlanded.com/english/United-States/USA-Guide/Education/The-American-school-system
- Teachers should plan to answer any questions students may have and discuss unfamiliar words.
- As students read, instruct them to note any additional vocabulary they feel would be helpful. Have them write this in the free space of the vocabulary sheet and provide them with definitions/explanations in the target language(Do not simply translate).
- Next, teachers should go over the three persuasion styles: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos. If students have difficulty grasping the difference, it could be helpful to provide example sentences of each.
- Ethos—appeal to ethics
- We shouldn’t litter because it is our duty as mankind to protect the environment.
- Pathos—appeal to emotion
- We shouldn’t litter because the trash kills thousands of cute birds who try to eat it and suffocate.
- Logos—appeal to logic
- We shouldn’t litter because it costs taxpayers ____$ every year for clean-up efforts.
- Divide the class into two teams: Team Public Education and Team Private Education. The two teams will engage in a class debate about which of the two education types is most beneficial. The premise of the debate is that the students are representatives from schools who have been selected to counsel families about which educational path to choose for their children.
- Each team should meet to discuss their topic and select roles. Each student will be in charge of one specific aspect of the argument. For example, one student can research and talk about financial burden while another discusses resource distribution and a third mentions quality of teachers or sports/recreation, etc. Combined, students as a team should aim to develop a well-rounded argument that covers the most important aspects and best supports of their side.
- For the research component, students should use primary sources such as news articles or scholarly journal articles. Each student should use at least two sources. Instruct students to use the debate preparation sheet in order to find information that satisfies the three different modes of persuasion: Ethos, Pathos, Logos.
- After enough information, has been gathered, students will then begin to craft their own argument. Students will select the most pertinent or poignant pieces of information they have found and think up possible counterarguments to their main points. Students will use this to write out a strong argument that will aid them in the debate. This written piece does not need to be overly formal and may be in more of an outline format. After all, given the nature of debates, students will most likely need to amend their argument in the moment in order to rebut or defend a previous point.
- Before the actual debate, have each team meet in order to share information and select their opening and closing speakers who will give a brief overview of why their side should be selected as a whole.
- Each team will be given 3 minutes for the opening speaker to introduce their side. After opening speeches, teams will take turns speaking back and forth until each student has spoken at least once. Finally, the closing speaker will be given 3 minutes to present. The closing speaker should plan on adding to/changing their summary according to how the debate plays out.
- Finally, after the debate, the instructor should give feedback on the speakers’ language use and efficacy of argument. This would be the time to draw the classes attention to any mistake trends you may have heard or structures that were not used correctly.
Notes: While the activity itself has students vying for one side over another, in reality, the activity is designed to illustrate the complexity of the issue and give students a well-rounded understanding of the public/private divide in the US while further developing students’ speaking skills and ability to respond in-time to the unexpected.
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