Summary
In this project, students work with a partner to research a controversial topic, choose opposing sides to support, create a visual presentation, and present a persuasive speech to the class. The purpose of this project is to encourage the students to think critically, not only about their own topic which they have researched, but about their assumptions of the topics of other groups. While listening to their classmates’ speeches, they will decide who has the more persuasive speech, and keep an open mind to changing their opinions. Note: While this lesson plan would be valuable for high school students in terms of learning both sides of a controversial topic, marshaling arguments for and against, and giving a persuasive speech, it poses more of a challenge (though if successful, reaping great rewards) for ESL students. Not only is there a possible language barrier, there may be cultural/religious differences, the level of a student’s literacy in his/her own country and other variables to consider. It can be a very rich, complex lesson, if students are able to compose a persuasive argument in what is not their first language, especially if they choose to argue a viewpoint that they don’t necessarily support.
TIPC Ratings
The students will need to select information from books, databases, and online resources to synthesize information regarding their topic. They will need to organize this information to explain it to their classmates.
The students chose their partners and need to figure out how best to work together. Even though they are partners, they are actually on opposing sides of each topic and are competing against each other to see who is more persuasive.
The students will all need to listen to the ideas of everyone else in the class in order to figure out the best ways to persuade people.
The students will need to think critically to determine how best to persuade people of their side of the argument.
The students will need to think critically and question their own values as they evaluate the arguments of their classmates.The students will reflect on their own persuasion techniques as well as the techniques used by the class to determine how they could improve their own ability to persuade in the future.
They will create a Prezi in which they will need to synthesize information they have learned from their research with their own moral values about their controversial topic.
Student Artifact
Download Files
- Lesson Plan
- Project Information and Rubric
- Prezi Grading Rubric
- Sample Prezis
- Student videos
