Debates in GPR: Learning and learning through open discourse (Day 1)
On Wednesday, 5th of February, our Global Perspectives and Research (GPR) teacher said, "We've been reading and writing, and reading and writing, and reading...but let's not forget to practise speaking."
And we got to work.
The class quickly got into groups, each handling one part of organization. From randomized team building to voting for motions to the debate's structure, schedule and judges, everything was done within the class. 'Decision-making' is how our teacher terms it.
On Thursday, 6th of February, we started bright and early with the first round of our 4-team round robin. After that, we engaged in a series of improv debates, tackling thought-provoking topics while honing our public speaking skills. The judges being our own classmates made the debates even more interesting, fair and engaging. They judged and gave feedback to every debater on their presentation, structure and content. This peer evaluation system not only encouraged active participation but also allowed everyone to understand different perspectives and develop a deeper appreciation for structured arguments.
Some debates were intense, while others had moments of humor and unexpected results. In the end, the process helped us build confidence, sharpen our reasoning, and learn how to say, "Respectfully, I disagree".
These debates were an exercise in persuasion, critical and improvised thinking skills, reasoning and confidence, deconstruction and analysis, and most of all, public speaking and respectful communication.
We look forward to continuing these debates next week and competing in debate tournaments around the country (maybe even the globe 👀👀)!
#RTUISST #Debate #CriticalThinking #PublicSpeaking
