Digital technologies, such as phones, apps and the internet, are part of almost every day. Today the class will debate a hard question.
Do digital technologies, especially social media, do more good than harm for people your age?
- Hear the strongest arguments for both sides.
- Argue for one side, which may not be the side you agree with.
- Think again about where you stand and whether anything changed your mind.
The motion is the sentence that a debate argues about. Today's motion is below.
Social media does more good than harm for people our age.
What steelmanning means
Today you will steelman a side. That means giving the strongest, fairest version of its argument, even if you disagree with it.
For example: "Even if I think social media wastes time, the strongest argument for the other side is that it keeps friendships going when people cannot meet."
Where do you stand?
Before you hear any arguments, decide honestly whether you agree, disagree or are not sure, because you will show this on a line in the next step.
The class will make a line across the room, and your teacher will show the same line on the board.
- Your teacher reads the motion out once more: Social media does more good than harm for people our age.
- Decide where you stand right now and go to that part of the room, with agree at one end, disagree at the other and not sure in the middle. Keep your reasons to yourself for now.
- Your teacher will move a marker on the board for each group, so look at how the class is spread across the line.
After the debate you will come back to the line and place yourself again.
Where you stand now
The class will split into two sides to debate the motion, which is the debate sentence: Social media does more good than harm for people our age. You may be asked to argue for the side you disagree with.
| Stage | Time | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Prepare | 5 min | Your side picks its two strongest points from its list below and finishes this sentence for each one: Our strongest point is… because… |
| 2. Opening statements | 2 min each | The For side speaks first, then the Against side. Nobody interrupts. |
| 3. Steelman | 90 seconds each | Each side explains the other side's argument so fairly that the other side would agree with how it was put. |
| 4. Open floor | About 20 seconds each | Anyone can make a short comment, up to four comments for the whole class. |
Challenge ideas, not people. Use made-up names only, and never target anyone in the room.
Pick your two points from your own side's list only.
| For the motion | Against the motion |
|---|---|
| Connection: keeps friendships going when people cannot meet, and helps new students find their group. | Comparison and pressure: highlight reels, which show only the best moments of people's lives, push people to compare themselves with edited versions of others. |
| Learning and interests: tutorials, hobby communities, language practice and exam tips that are hard to find offline. | Privacy and permanence: posts, screenshots and location data last long after the moment and can be used in ways the poster never meant. |
| Voice and creativity: people your age can make things and be heard without waiting for an adult to let them. | False or twisted claims: rumours travel faster than corrections, and angry content spreads especially well. |
| Support and information: reliable advice, and people who have been through the same thing, can be found quickly when something is hard. | Time, sleep and attention: feeds are designed to hold you, crowding out rest, schoolwork and face-to-face time. |
| Belonging: fans of the same music, sport or cause can find people like them online, even when there is nothing like it nearby. | Hurt and being left out: pile-ons, where lots of people gang up on one person, being left out of group chats, and mean comments all hurt and are hard to switch off. |
The debate is over, so place yourself on the line again. Your teacher will move the markers to match the room.
- Go to where you stand now: agree, disagree or not sure.
- Look at the class markers and compare them with where everyone stood at the start.
Today was not about finding a winner. Social media has real good sides, such as connection, learning, having a voice and getting support. It also has real bad sides, such as pressure, privacy problems, false claims, lost attention and hurt. So digital technologies are not only good or only bad, and the skill is to weigh both sides and explain where you end up and why.
Where you stand after the debate
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