{"id":718,"date":"2007-02-07T14:51:00","date_gmt":"2007-02-07T14:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/?p=718"},"modified":"2021-11-03T23:52:47","modified_gmt":"2021-11-03T23:52:47","slug":"debate-and-role-play-social-issues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/2007\/02\/07\/debate-and-role-play-social-issues\/","title":{"rendered":"Debate and Role Play: Social Issues"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This is a resource I prepared for an evening to have a debate and then engage in a role-play. These activities really help young people consider other people’s different perspectives and interests in matters – especially where compromises may have to be sought.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Debate<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It may help to prepare some articles about the motion proposed to give each team a creative boost.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guidelines<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There are no set rules\nfor effective debate and group discussions. There are, however, a few key\npoints to remember:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  • Listen to each\nother<\/li>
  • Make sure\neveryone has a chance to speak<\/li>
  • Don\u2019t put other\nspeakers down<\/li>
  • Be helpful and\nconstructive when challenging views<\/li>
  • Offer help and\nsupport when needed<\/li>
  • Everyone has a\nright to \u2018pass\u2019 if they do not want to speak on an issue<\/li>
  • Show appreciation\nwhen someone explains something well<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    The dynamics of each\ngroup varies so it is important for each group to establish their own ground\nrules, which they can amend as the debates and discussions increase in\nconfidence and sophistication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A formal structure<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Many debates do, however, follow a formal structure with individuals taking on specific roles<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    • A Chair<\/strong> – to preside over the debate, ensuring everyone has a fair chance to speak and timings are kept<\/li>
    • Speakers<\/strong> – usually there are two speakers representing each side of the debate<\/li>
    • A time keeper<\/strong> – to ensure that each speaker has the same amount of time to present his\/her case<\/li>
    • A record keeper<\/strong> – to make notes on what is being discussed and the arguments being put forward<\/li>
    • Audience<\/strong> – to offer additional input – they may finally vote for a decision<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      First a motion is proposed ( e.g. \u201cThis class believes school uniform should be banned\u201d) and the Chair may take a vote on the issue and then introduces each speaker in the correct order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Each speaker is allocated a set amount of time e.g. 5 minutes and then the following order is undertaken:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      1. Speaker for the motion<\/li>
      2. Speaker against<\/li>
      3. Speaker for (the same speaker as before or an additional)<\/li>
      4. Speaker against (the same speaker as before or an additional) <\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        There may then be contributions from the audience (the ‘floor’). It is usually a good idea to plan several questions in advance in order to get the discussion going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        A final vote is taken, which can be compared against the first vote’s results to see if opinion have altered, and why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Example Motions<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        People have the right to choose how they want to use drugs\nincluding caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, cannabis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Young people should be allowed to vote from the age of 16.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Computer games is having an adverse effect on society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Role Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        I adapted the following scenario from an ‘Access to Police’ course I attended (when I was thinking about joining the Police). It’s a good example of a role-play that utilises several participants (each having different stakeholder interests) and be relevant to young people.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Scenario<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        The local council has proposed the implementation of a curfew scheme under the Crime and Disorder Act for England and Wales 1998 and the anti-social behaviour Act 2003. The scheme intends to combat crime and antisocial behaviour including drinking, drugs graffiti and vandalism. Under the legislation, a person under 18 years of age found on the streets after 9pm can be arrested. The council has called a forum and invited members of the community to voice concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Roles<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        Shopkeeper <\/strong>\u2013 your shop has been vandalised by youths frequently over the past year<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Teenager <\/strong>\u2013 you have swimming lessons and band practices often after 9pm and rely on public transport<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Police Chief<\/strong> \u2013 You responsibility is to decrease crime and anti-social behaviour<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Councillor <\/strong>\u2013 You are accountable to the public and their fears over crime and anti-social behaviour<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Parent <\/strong>\u2013 Your teenagers are frequently out past 9pm but you have little control. The legislation could result in fines if your children are arrested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Lone Elderly Person<\/strong> \u2013 You are concerned over mugging and have become recluse over recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Neighbourhood Watch<\/strong> \u2013 You want to ensure that the communities and streets are safer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Youth Leader<\/strong> \u2013 You are concerned with engaging and understanding teenagers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Church Member<\/strong> \u2013 You are concerned that people\u2019s rights are upheld such as freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Commercial Leisure Manager<\/strong> \u2013 Teenagers and families are your target market for customers in a bowling alley\/cinema complex.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        This is a resource I prepared for an evening to have a debate and then engage in a role-play. These activities really help young people consider other people’s different perspectives and interests in matters – especially where compromises may have to be sought.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[26,50],"tags":[30,14],"class_list":["post-718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-human","category-professional","tag-education","tag-scouting"],"featured_image_src":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"james","author_link":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/author\/james\/"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p89zH1-bA","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=718"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":720,"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718\/revisions\/720"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=718"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jameshatton.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}