2 minute read
HISTORY
DIGITAL DEBATES
Parallel Histories
In the autumn term we were invited to take part in a series of online debates with other schools, and asked to debate on particularly contested topics from history. The idea was not to shy away from the fixed competing narratives, indeed we were encouraged to actively seek them out; deconstruct them; lay opposing sides end to end; become immersed in both sides and then try to reach considered judgements during the course of a debate.
Debate 1
Israel-Palestine conflict: ‘Would a One State solution or a Two state solution be better for both Palestinians and Israelis?’
The aim here was to engage fully with the scholarship that we were provided with. The winners would inevitably be the team that understood both sides of the debate thoroughly. Engaging with the scholarship was really exciting as we immersed ourselves in the work of academics who took us on a journey to the worlds that they had spent years researching and effectively inhabiting. It was like entering a portal to a time and place that had passed but that still resonates today. By doing this, we could see how nuanced and finely balanced the arguments were…and how convincing both sets of arguments were, which made the debate very challenging. For example when preparing for the Irish Famine debate, the team would be won over by the likes of Coogan, then we would quickly revise our arguments on reading the likes of Foster. An added bonus for us as A-level History students was having the opportunity to engage with topics that none of us had formally studied before. It also gave us the opportunity to practise A-level skills, analysing, evaluating sources of information, reaching balanced and supported judgements. We could see that we would be entirely undone if we didn’t use the sources provided to make our arguments. So the topics had been revealed, next was which side we would be arguing for? Though by now, we felt equipped to be able to just use the scholarship and sources to make rational and responsible arguments.
Debate 2
Ireland: ‘What role did the English Government play in the Irish Famine?’
The team of four had to prepare a strictly 2 minute argument each, on selected points of issue. We came to agreements about roles and who would make which points which sources would be utilised etc. After everyone had made their points there were opportunities for rebuttals, where we were given the chance to challenge any points raised by the opposing team that we disagreed with or we felt were unsubstantiated. The rebuttals and counter-rebuttals were sometimes heated, though always good fun and light hearted. There are no winning sides with these debates, though we felt we gave a very good account of ourselves. We really enjoyed the debates as they gave us a chance to expand our knowledge, learn to think on our feet and think about issues from different perspectives, but perhaps most importantly, understand why responsible argument matters. It was good to debate topics from a perspective we did not necessarily align with, and we feel that this has given us the ability to come up with more complex historical arguments in our written work. Overall, this was a great experience for all involved, we’re grateful we were able to take part and look forward to the next one.
