At the end of this activity, students should be better able to (select as many as apply):
be open minded
ask open ended questions
Write the following statement on the board: “My knowledge of {insert topic being taught} is valuable to the world.”
Ask the class if they agree or disagree with the statement. (No discussions about this at this point.)
Group together the class into groups of 5 to 6, ensuring that the members of each group are on the same side of the argument. (So all members should either agree or all members should disagree.)
Students now have 5 minutes to ask questions of students with the contrary point of view. They can choose any student to question and ask any question they want (as long as it is on topic). Keep going until the 5 minutes are up.
Tell the groups they have to create and make a presentation on the side contrary to what they feel. So if they agree is valuable, they have to make a presentation for why it is not, and vice versa.
The groups have 20 minutes to plan their presentation. Then get each group to share their presentations.
20 MINUTES
None
Having an opinion and defending it is a skill. But forcing yourself to see the other side and defending that position is a significantly harder skill that requires being open minded to alternative points of view. This activity puts students in that position.
Gathering information from others, especially with a fixed time limit, requires knowing the right questions to ask. Asking questions to confirm biasses will not expand their knowledge at all. Students will understand that only asking open ended questions will expand their world view.
Write the following statement on the board: “My knowledge of {insert topic being taught} is valuable to the world.”
Ask the class if they agree or disagree with the statement. (No discussions about this at this point.)
Group together the class into groups of 5 to 6, ensuring that the members of each group are on the same side of the argument. (So all members should either agree or all members should disagree.)
Students now have 5 minutes to ask questions of students with the contrary point of view. They can choose any student to question and ask any question they want (as long as it is on topic). Keep going until the 5 minutes are up.
Tell the groups they have to create and make a presentation on the side contrary to what they feel. So if they agree is valuable, they have to make a presentation for why it is not, and vice versa.
The groups have 20 minutes to plan their presentation. Then get each group to share their presentations.
None
Having an opinion and defending it is a skill. But forcing yourself to see the other side and defending that position is a significantly harder skill that requires being open minded to alternative points of view. This activity puts students in that position.
Gathering information from others, especially with a fixed time limit, requires knowing the right questions to ask. Asking questions to confirm biasses will not expand their knowledge at all. Students will understand that only asking open ended questions will expand their world view.
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