The Great Slavery Debate

Should slavery be abolished? Students at Constitution High School debate the advantages and disadvantages of abolishing slavery from an antebellum 19th century perspective. Having students focus on the social, economic, cultural, and to some extent political nature of this debate, helps students understand the context of America's "peculiar institution", roadblocks African Americans needed to overcome in order to abolish slavery, as well as frame the upcoming 10th grade American history course. The purpose of this blog is to create a forum in which students can self-reflect and continue the process of peer-to-peer evaluation as they debate in class.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Charnique v. Asia

Charnique really impressed me today with her sound arguments and excellent cross examination. Asia deliver what is now considered the traditional backbone of the economy and better off as slaves arguments. They were good. However, we have heard them so much that opponents are finding it easy to rebut them. Will this be the way the rest of the debates go or will the next opponents bring something new to the table? Congratulations to both debaters.

Marina v. Miquel

Miquel came to the podium prepared with two arguments. Marina brought one. In the end, it was a debate between inhumane treatment and versus better off. Judges felt that Miquel's better off argument was more powerful. What do you think?

Eric R. v. Malika

Mr. Prosser makes his second attempt at a win and does. With such a powerful revolutionary war argument, not many opponents can handle such inconsistencies. Malika did a great job during cross examination when discussing that returning to Africa would not be any better. In the end, eric's economic argument was left untested. Congratulations to both speakers, this was a fun debate.

Bria v. Erik

Erik, fearful of not being prepared, got up there and delivered two arguments. Bria delivered a strong inhuman argument. Erik's rebuttal was strong enough to sway the judges. Congratulations to both debaters.

James v. Shante

Not a good day for Shante, but she will be delivering her argument soon. James delivered the inhumane treatment argument. This was left untested and ended up being enough to win. The student judges were very good at discussing the issues with this debate while maintaining an environment of respect.

Ishaiah v. Erica G

Round 2. Much much better. Erica really impressed me with her three arguments. They were well thought out, written, and delivered. Ishaiah delivered a passionate inhumane treatment argument and did such a nice job using the Middle Passage as ammunition. In the end, Erica's "existed for centuries" argument was left untested. Congratulations for both speakers coming back up and doing a great job!

The Great Slavery Debate