Speed Debating Discussion Strategy: Explanation
Present learners with a statement related to the topic of study.
Divide the class in two. Explain that one half of the class will be arguing in favour of the statement and the other half will be arguing against it.
Give learners fifteen minutes in which to develop a series of arguments they can use to defend their position and to critique their opponents’ position.
This is best done with the two sets of learners sat on opposite sides of the room.
It is important, however, to avoid having two very large groups working together (as many learners will struggle to participate).
Instead, split each half of the class into smaller groups, but allow ideas to be shared. Here’s an illustration:
- There are 24 learners in a class.
- 12 will argue ‘for’ and 12 will argue ‘against’.
- Each set of 12 is split into 3 groups of 4.
- The groups of 4 work together to develop their arguments.
- Groups can exchange ideas with each other if they wish.
Make sure that every learner writes down their own set of arguments. They will need this as a reminder when it comes to the debate.
Give learners around five minutes to come up with their arguments.
When the time is up, ask the team who are ‘for’ to stand up and move to the side of the room.
The team who are ‘against’ should distribute themselves around the room so that each learner has an empty chair next to them.
Ask the learners who are ‘for’ to find a debating partner and to sit down next to them.
This leads to a series of debating pairs, all containing one learner who is ‘for’ and one who is ‘against’.
Now it’s time for the debate! It runs as follows:
- Team ‘for’ have one minute to make their case. Team ‘against’ are not allowed to speak, they can only listen.
- Team ‘against’ now get their turn. They have one minute to speak while the Team ‘for’ learners must sit and listen.
- Finally, a free-for-all. This is sixty seconds in which both sides can speak. Expect some noise in your room!
When the free-for-all is over, ask Team ‘for’ to stand up and find a new partner. Repeat the debate a second time, but this time let Team ‘against’ go first out of fairness.
You may also find that learners need less time on their second go because they have already practiced their arguments.
You can repeat the process as many times as you think is useful. I usually find that three or four iterations is about right. Any more than that and the activity starts to lose momentum.
Two final points.
First, you can play around with the timings depending on the age of your learners and the level of knowledge they have around the topic.
Second, this is a great activity to use in advance of a piece of writing. Having been through the process of speed debating, learners are primed to write at length about the statement they have been discussing.
Speed Debating Discussion Strategy: Example
Topic: Human Geography
The teacher presents the following statement: ‘More negative than positive effects result from migration.’
The class is divided in two.
One half is asked to argue in favour of the statement and one half is asked to argue against it.
Learners are divided into sub-groups, as outlined above, and given ten minutes to prepare their arguments.
Speed Debating then ensues.
There are three important points to note about this activity.
First, it is worth walking round the room during the preparation period, helping learners who are struggling to develop arguments.
This ensures the subsequent debates are of a higher standard and that all learners have enough to say when it is their turn to speak.
Second, you should ensure the statement you present is sufficiently debatable to afford a variety of interpretations and, in turn, a range of arguments for and against it.
A statement that is weighted too heavily in favour of one side or the other will lead to debates that are less effective.
Third, asking learners to repeat the activity three times (to ‘speed debate’) ensures they enhance and refine the arguments they have developed (as well as the presentation of those arguments).
This is one of the fundamental benefits of speed debating.
It gets learners engaging in active practice and verbal rehearsal, subtly helping them to refine and improve their thinking.
Speed Debating Discussion Strategy: Extensions and Developments
- Instead of dividing learners along the lines of ‘for’ and ‘against’, ask each half of the class to take on the role of an individual or group who is connected to the statement. For example, if the statement is ‘Macbeth is a puppet who has no free will’, one half of the class might argue from the position of Macbeth, while the other half argue from the position of Lady Macbeth.
- This activity works well as a precursor to an essay. Once the debates have finished, ask learners to get into pairs by joining up with a member of the opposing team. Turn the statement into an essay title by adding the phrase ‘To what extent do you agree?’ Pairs share the arguments they developed and discuss possible essay plans. Each learner then produces their own piece of work, answering the question in their own way.
