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Debates Thread
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Debates Thread
Debates Thread
There has not been a debates thread here on the Chatterbox, and if there has, it was probably a long time ago. Here is a debates thread, so you can argue the pros and cons of a subject. There will be NO political debating on this thread!
Each week, or depending on how popular the subject is, I will choose a different subject to debate about. Please agree and disagree nicely and fairly. You don't need to sign up! Just visit this thread every week or so and debate about the week's subject.
Subjects will be about school, books, and other friendly topics that will hopefully have calm disagreements. If you have any debate subject suggestions, share them below and I will consider them next time I choose a topic. Sometimes I will run out of ideas!
submitted by Nina, age 11, Florida
(December 28, 2013 - 4:03 pm)
(December 28, 2013 - 4:03 pm)
There was a debates thread on October 8, 2008. It kind of failed.
(December 28, 2013 - 9:21 pm)
Admin, wasn't there an Age of Debates a few years back?
I think there was a debates thread. Someone just said it was in October 2008.
(December 28, 2013 - 10:15 pm)
I actually remember quite a few debates a few years back...
(December 29, 2013 - 4:35 am)
We have to do a graded debate at school and we have two topics.
- Should plastic be banned (in Germany)?
- Should side jobs be banned when not during vacation? (Okay, that sentence doesn't really make sense but I'm trying to translate...)
I haven't started researching yet but we could debate about one of those topics...
I guess that "side jobs" means: Should part-time jobs for students be banned while school is in session?
Admin
(December 29, 2013 - 4:37 am)
It was by a Hannah, and it was on page 138 when I looked at it three minutes ago.
(December 29, 2013 - 7:45 am)
That's a great idea, Nina!
(December 29, 2013 - 11:07 am)
This week's debating subject is:
Which is better for learning in school and reading: tablets or books?
Be sure to tell why you picked your answer.
(December 29, 2013 - 4:18 pm)
That's an interesting question, since our school uses tablets for learning purposes, and real books for reading. I'd say paper books. Because then I actually feel like I'm reading. I feel like I'm "fake reading" when I read on a tablet.
(December 30, 2013 - 12:11 pm)
I am an old school person, and I would prefer p books. Thet are actually like reading, and tablets just don't appeal to me.
(December 30, 2013 - 12:42 pm)
Real books, because I get distracted when I read on a tablet and I end up surfing the Web instead of reading. And real books are just...better. I don't know how to explain it.
(December 30, 2013 - 12:42 pm)
Okay, this is actually one of my BIG pet peeves! I HATE tablets for school! HATE HATE HATE them! I understand why some schools do that, but they are over all worse.
- One of my personal reasons is I find it's easier to mark a page, and easily refer back to it with a paper book. I mean, I know you can do that on a tablet, but with books, you can have it open to both pages at once. Plus, with a tablet, if you try to change the pages to quickly, it fries.
- As Maggie pointed out, they cause distraction. I hear all the time of kids acting like they're using it for "school purposes" when really, they're frittering away their time!
- In general, paper books are dying. Everyone around me uses tablets or ebooks. Libraries are going that way! Books I used to be able to find in paper form just six months ago are now ebook only! Books are vanishing from the shelves. Selection is becoming smaller. All the time, I used to be able to find whatever I wanted at the bookstores, but now I find it's an ebook, and I have to specially order it if I want to have it in paper form. WHERE IS THIS COUNTRY GOING?! For Heaven's sake, emails are taking over the mail system! The whole world is going electronic, and I'd like one thing, just one, to stay old school. I like paper books better. I just do. There's nothing like curling up in comfy sweat pants and an old t-shirt with a book while it's raining. A tablet can't compare to that.
Also, I wanted to say thanks to Cricket for having the Letterbox! It supports kids to actually write letter, which at least from what I can see, is a dying art. Thank you Cricket!
You're welcome, BHR. We love getting real letters from our readers. We value the art of letter writing.
Admin
(December 30, 2013 - 4:04 pm)
The world is revolving around electronics right now. Some kids have their eyes on a screen instead of studying, sleeping, or spending time with family. I'm one of the few kids at my school who don't own any electronic devices. Right now, it's email instead of paper mail, e-readers instead of books, texting instead of face-to-face time. It's ok to use the electronic versions of some things, but sometimes people overuse them. I see a lot of people playing on their phones all the time and I get annoyed. I will definitely choose books for reading and school. Apps can get distracting, and if you're like some people you read for many hours, and the screen can give you headaches. I understand that tablets can be efficient sometimes, but I will pick books over electronics any day.
(December 30, 2013 - 8:28 pm)
I've never used a tablet, but I get what you're saying, Maggie. When I do work on the computer, I get distracted and it takes a really long time. Besides, it would just be awkward to read a book on something that wasn't a book.
(January 1, 2014 - 7:40 pm)
New debating subject! This week's debating topic is:
Should kids be required to take a foreign language in school?
Be sure to tell why you picked your answer.
(January 4, 2014 - 1:56 pm)
It depends. If the student is in a country with many languages, sure, why not? But it is a language you will never need, no.
(January 4, 2014 - 8:47 pm)