The Great Debaters is an inspiring story of courage, creativity and resolve. Debate begins with a resolution. It starts with a point to prove. It is a form of battle, fought with words Source: .Great debaters study guide.
A great quote from the movie is: “Now is always the right time to do the right thing.” One of the most important lessons in The Great Debaters is found in one of its memorable lines:
“We do what we got to do, so we can do what we want to do.”
Pre-study activities:
- I plan to use The Question Formulation Technique here. In short it goes like this: When students know how to ask their own questions, they take greater ownership of their learning, deepen comprehension, and make new connections and discoveries on their own. Source: Harvard Education Letter.
- This activity is started by the Teacher designing a question focus .Here are several to start off the activity: How to master the art of debating and how it was to grow up as an African American in the south during the 1930’s. Jim crow laws , Harvard University, lynching, the great depression a debate team
- Give out post-it notes to the class or use wallwisher and work in groups of 4.
a:) Produce Your Questions (Ask as many questions as you can. Do not stop to discuss, judge, or answer the questions. Write down every question exactly as it is stated. Change any statement into a question.
b:) Improve Your Questions, Categorize the questions as closed- or open-ended.
C:) Prioritize the Questions • Choose your three most important questions. Why did you choose these three as the most important?
Watch the movie!
After- movie activities:
- Did the movie answer any of your questions?
- Use one or two of your questions to write a post on your blog.
Topics for discussion and activities in class:
- Trying Out Web2.0 the great debaters, based on the points given here chose a topic to discuss in class.
- Read this text in groups of 3 discuss the questions on each page.
- Make a journey on Google Earth and see where this story takes place.
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