There was general cheering and applause...

...when I told Primary 6 members that after studying words and grammar related to debating, we were going to make our own "P.6 class only" debate.

We started making plans that same day. After discussing the real meaning of "proposing" and "opposing" points (they confuse these terms more frequently than you would guess) and learning to express "opinions" on various issues, I sent them home (or back to their dorms) with an assignment to list possible motions for our debate. For once, almost all of them completed their homework assignment!

The next day, we carried out a democratic vote to determine our motion, as well as to choose who would act as Timekeeper and Secretary. An almost unanimous decision chose "Town Life Is Better than Village Life," which I allowed even though they made the same debate last term, though I used my administrative dictatorship powers to rephrase it as "Village Life Is Better than Town Life." The efficacy of our voting process came under question when the election of our Timekeeper netted over 40 votes from our class of 32 members. This led to a short discussion of electoral policies, corruption, and different possibilities for what we should do. I again exercised my dictatorship by retaining to myself the power to determine the Chairperson, although I did not yet assign the role. Homework assignment: write 2 points proposing the motion and 2 points opposing it (I hadn't yet assigned them to a side). Again, I was shocked at how many of my students actually completed their homework, though a fair number still confused "proposing" for "opposing."

An opinion drill to help students differentiate between "proposing" and "opposing" ended with all of the boys "proposing" and all of the girls "opposing" my statement that "Girls are more clever than boys." Obviously, we still have work to do on the whole P/O thing. As a class, we practised the letter writing skills we began learning last term in P.5 to draft a letter inviting certain of the other teachers to be "Judges" for the debate, but ran out of time before we wrote any clean copies. No homework this time.

And then, P.6 members missed one of my classes to dig in the garden, and I spent a few days in Kampala because I was sick (again!). The day that I came back to school was the day that we had scheduled for the debate...

We hadn't gotten a chance to write the official letters to the "Judges." I hadn't yet assigned proposing and opposing sides or chosen the Chairperson. We hadn't yet written an official invitation calling P.5 members to watch our debate. I hadn't informed other teachers that this debate might affect the schedule a bit (i.e. it might take longer than the 60 minutes scheduled for my lesson that morning). Did any of this stop us from making the debate?

Nope. Half the staff was away that morning to visit another school, and I was sent to "occupy" P.6 for a few hours, so logistically, it worked out great. We cancelled the plan for judges. I had them draw "proposer" or "opposer" out of a cup (I stuck "Chairperson" in too, which greatly surprised the boy who pulled it out). We spent an hour writing and editing points, first individually and then in groups, mostly without my help, though I did keep emphasising that I would tell the Secretary not to record any points which failed to include examples or reasons. The Secretary, Timekeeper, and Chairperson were assigned to determine the order of speakers (which the Chairperson forgot to follow) and to decide how many minutes each person would be allowed (I over-ruled their "5 minutes" decision in favour of "2 1/2 minutes" so we could finish before lunch) and how many interrupting questions would be allowed per speaker ("2"). After breakfast, I wrote an invitation on the blackboard in the P.5 classroom and we organised the desks. To the great disappointment of some P.7 members who had gotten wind of what was happening, I refused to allow them to participate in the debate. I posted "Rules of Order" on the blackboard, threatened to send P.5ers to dig if they were disruptive or loud, and promised to bring sweets to the winning team.

And so, on Friday, 20th February, we made our debate. Here are the points presented by either side, as recorded by the Secretary, and with my explanation.

MOTION: Village Life Is Better than Town Life.

Proposing Points:

1. Food. Villagers have more food, spend less for food, and eat more variety of food.
2. Ship leader. "Cheap labour." When you do need someone to work for you, you don't have to pay them in money, or you don't have to pay them a lot.
3. Balanced diet. Particularly for school children, who supplement the school diet of posho and beans with fruit, vegetables, groundnuts (peanuts), sweet potatoes, and sometimes matooke. And, all of this food is grown in your own gardens or purchased for very small amounts of money compared to that spent in Towns.
4. Vitamins. From the fruits and vegetables you get to eat.
5. Using things without money. Most activities or work in the village don't require cash.
6. Free transport. With your feet or in the back of someone's pickup. As opposed to taxis that always charge a fee.
7. To get money after working. You can sell the extra food, beans, groundnuts, fruits, or vegetables that you dig in your garden (to those folks who live in Town) for income .
8. Free road accidents. Less traffic means fewer accidents.
9. There is no communicable disease. Cholera tends to be an issue in more crowded areas.
10. Vegetables. Yes, children consider it a privilege to eat vegetables. Children in Town, who are assumed to be more likely to attend boarding schools, don't get to eat as many vegetables.
11. More houses. There is more land available for building new houses, so people aren't so crowded.
12. Hygiene. People keep better hygiene in the village because they don't have to buy water.
13. Descpline. "Discipline." Children learn to greet and respect elders because they meet them while walking to school. Children are more likely to be day schoolers, so they have to learn time management.
14. Learning about catching. "Learning about culture." Again, as day schoolers, children spend more time at home with their elders and thus spend more time immersed in local and traditional culture than those in Town.
15. Children lear how t work. "Children learn how to work." Traditional practical tasks are learnt in the villages that would not be as important in Town. E.g. digging, fetching water, cooking, caring for animals, caring for younger children, etc. These tasks are learnt not only at home, but also at school.
16. Learning for digging. Village children spend a lot more time in the gardens than Town children. Town children or boarders might dig while at home for the holidays. Children, particularly day schoolers, who attend school in the village dig after school, on the weekend, and sometimes, during the school day (in the school garden).

Opposing Points:

1. Good schools. Town schools are generally perceived as better than village schools. They tend to have nicer facilities, more resources, higher-trained staff, better exam scores, stronger reputations, etc., in large part because they charge higher school fees.
2. Many jobs. More people means more service jobs, more commercial jobs, etc.
3. Good hospitals. Urban hospitals have better facilities, the option of laboratory testing, higher-trained staff, and better treatments.
4. Many buildings. There are more buildings, and in a closer area, than in the villages. A good sign of development and progress.
5. Good transport. You might have to pay for it, but you have a lot more options than just footing. E.g. buses, taxis, coasters, bodas.
6. Good hotels. There just aren't so many hotels (for sleeping or eating at) in the villages.
7. Many industries. As opposed to the single coffee factory in the village area where we live.
8. Fire extinguishers. (I spelled it for her). Apparently, these come standard issue in the dormitories of Town boarding schools. News to me.
9. Super markets. There is a lot more variety (and lower prices) of consumer goods in Town shoppes.
10. Places to tool. "Places to tour." Museums and zoos and such are Town attractions. And game parks, although in rural areas, are more likely to be visited by Town schools.
11. Starding. To be honest, I have no memory of what this one was supposed to mean.

In the end, the proposers won. But I brought (American) sweets to the whole class.