STEP ONE
Your goal in this assignment is to choose 3 articles, one from each level of government.
- Municipal - Coquitlam
- Provincial - British Columbia
- Federal - Canada
Choose each one carefully, finding a story that interests you.
Print out the articles and . . .
- Circle all the names listed
- Underline the main idea of the article
STEP TWO
Fill in the sheet below ( download sheet)
STEP THREE : An informal class debate
- Form groups of 4 members who will share the articles they have collected and choose one issue that is controversial and debatable.
- Two members of the group will take one side of the debate (pro); two members will take the other side (con). If everyone shares the same point of view, one side is asked to play devil’s advocate – to take the opposite side, for the sake of the argument.
- Please fill in this Sheet as you do further research and think about your topic in more depth to find evidence to support your point of view and argument.
DEBATE FORMAT
Each group will present their controversial issue to the class.
A
- Pro side will try to convince the audience (rest of the class) that their side is to be believed.
- Con side will try to convince the audience (rest of the class) that their side is to be believed.
A few minutes is allowed for groups to prepare for step B
B
- Then Pro responds to what Con has said (called a rebuttal)
- Then Con responds to what Pro has said (another rebuttal)
C
- The audience will then ask questions of both pro and con sides and they will reposnd. The teacher or a student will moderate the discussion
D
- A class vote will be taken to decide who has won the debate
...................................................................................................................
Point Counter Point (Notes from informal debate)
State controversial issue to be debated.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1) State three strong points that support your side of the argument.
a. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
B.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
c. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2) State your opponents’ three strongest points. And - your response to their arguments (rebuttal portion of debate).
a. PRO____________________________________________________________________CON______________________________________________________________
B.
PRO____________________________________________________________________CON______________________________________________________________
c. PRO____________________________________________________________________CON______________________________________________________________
3) State what you believe to be the biggest weaknesses in your opponents’ argument.
4) State what you believe to be the biggest weaknesses in your own argument.
5) Have your opponents’ arguments changed your viewpoints in any way? If yes, state why. If no, state why not. (If you agreed from the beginning, be creative here! Take the opposite side)