Today I shared another resource listing the agree disagree statement I often use in Relationship lessons. I find agree disagree activities as a bit of a two edge sword. Sometimes they are great and sometimes they just seem flat.
I think agree/disagree activities work well if young people in the group do not all think the same. The true value in agree/disagree activities is the discussion it can stir up. The discussion is the point where young people learn things and develop their attitudes. The statements need to be crafted to try and divide opinion and stir up this discussion. When the statements do not divide group opinion then rarely will I get a good follow up discussion. The problem is that the statements that work well for one group do not work for another group.
The temptation is to try and pick truly controversial issues but I have had as much success with the historically controversial issues (abortion, porn etc) as the more standard issues (loyalty, respect, condoms, etc). The only constant approach I have found to divide a group is to make a statement firmly gender related but you can only use them for some, not all the statements. I find it a difficult task to choose the statements that will work for your group. In the file of statements I have shared I have colour coded the statements to what the majority of young people normally respond, Blue agree, red disagree.
For a youth group I once created some True False statement cards that where back to back. The trick was that some had two false sides. Some had two true sides and some had statements that could not be resolved. They where made to cause discussion/arguments. It was one of the most successful discussion starters I have ever used in a youth club but has not quite worked in a school environment. Have a look at the images in the album below.
Let me know what statements you would use to stir up discussion and debate.
The temptation is to try and pick truly controversial issues but I have had as much success with the historically controversial issues (abortion, porn etc) as the more standard issues (loyalty, respect, condoms, etc). The only constant approach I have found to divide a group is to make a statement firmly gender related but you can only use them for some, not all the statements. I find it a difficult task to choose the statements that will work for your group. In the file of statements I have shared I have colour coded the statements to what the majority of young people normally respond, Blue agree, red disagree.
For a youth group I once created some True False statement cards that where back to back. The trick was that some had two false sides. Some had two true sides and some had statements that could not be resolved. They where made to cause discussion/arguments. It was one of the most successful discussion starters I have ever used in a youth club but has not quite worked in a school environment. Have a look at the images in the album below.
Let me know what statements you would use to stir up discussion and debate.
 |
| True/True False/False ???/??? |
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete