Turn-of-the-Century Topics Fishbowl Debates

What is a fishbowl? It’s where you keep a fish, duh! It’s clear, so that you can watch the fish Weirdly staring as the fish does very little , other than swim You can also make the weird “fishy face” and convince yourself that the fish is as interested in you as you are in the fish, even though you are really just lying to yourself Anything the fish does, you witness

And for this assignment…? You will be having a small group debate in front of the class No one from the class will be participating, just observing You should present both sides of the issue You should be debating, not just presenting Your points should be grounded in the evidence provided Victory should not be the only goal. Your group needs to make sure that all information is presented.

The Debates What is America saying through their actions? The debates you are having are examples of some of the key issues around the turn of the century, they exemplify American attitudes at the time and help shape America moving forward. Guiding Questions: What is America saying through their actions? What position does this put the United States in going forward?

Logistics You will get a chance to select your topic today You will need to read about your topic for Tomorrow and answer the following questions as homework What are the two sides of the issue? What evidence supports each side? Why is it an issue? How is it resolved and how does it impact America moving forward?

Presentation Requirements Background This can be on a handout you provide to the class, or something you display on the projector One slide with a two sided table displaying the best arguments for each side to be displayed during the debate The debate should be a discussion, many of the discussions require you to use the “logic” of the era Resolution & recent connection A slide, or handout (could be the same as background) explaining what became of the issue, including a timeline and major events and how it may be related to issues recently gaining public attention

The Scoring Topic Background Debate Resolution & Developments 40 points for group 10 8 6 or below Topic Background Clear, explicit, multi-faceted, well explained includes any nuances or side issues Clear, factual and accurate. Unclear, minor inconsistencies or incomplete Debate impressively prepared and smoothly delivered with depth, shows expert understanding clear and well-prepared and informative lacking in delivery or depth organized and clear but requires more explanation to fill in all necessary points Resolution & Developments Clear factual and accurate Recent Connection Recent connections apply broadly to policy and precedent Recent connections are included, but only as they specifically relate the topic being debated Connections incorrect or omitted

Group member evaluation 10 8 6 4 Leader, or team member who embraced their role with depth and a high level of understanding. No one had to worry, at any point, about if this person would complete their tasks or how well they would do their job Did what was asked of them, in a timely manner, and did a quality job. Did not take a leadership role, did not go above the base expectation Participated, completed tasks, did the bare minimum, or required others to help get them to the required level of expectation Other people had to pick up the slack for this person who was not reliable, or did not complete tasks