| Body | From http://www.anthonyteacher.com
Anthony Schmidt describes a 2016 study that looked at how consensus building can influence how people process evidence that runs counter to their currently-held beliefs. He applies the study in his English class by having his students discuss the bombing of Nagasiki and Hiroshima and incorporating two ideas from the study: a debate in which students argue from the opposite side’s perspective, and a consensus activity in which they advise Harry Truman regarding what he should do.
His experience: “From just observing my students I saw that arguing the opposite side’s perspective (from their own perspective) quite passionately did not change minds, even though it seemed that it had. Students were fiercely in debate and it really seemed they were convinced of their position. But after the debate, a show of hands indicated that they had not actually changed their opinions. From the next activity, I (and my students) realized just how hard reaching a consensus was. This activity, where students were paired off with someone from the opposite team, often devolved into debate rather than mutual decision. However, with some redirection, students were able to eventually able to come to an agreement. Some recommended dropping the bomb elsewhere, some recommended changing the conditions of surrender for the Japanese, and others recommended waiting. If they had been given more time, more evidence, and perhaps the task to not only orally discuss but produce in writing a joint statement, this activity may have been better. Nevertheless, I was duly impressed with my student’s engagement with evidence throughout both activities.”
Read his full blog post at http://www.anthonyteacher.com/blog/on-debate-and-consensus-building-a-research-inspired-activity
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