A few weeks ago I set my Weds seminar group an assignment - they had to write me an essay describing a crime and a suitable punishment for it. After I'd collected their essays, we were to debate some of the issues which they'd looked at...
However, 3 students hadn't done the homework :-(
In a moment of inspiration, I decided that we would enact a courtroom scene - the 3 students were charged with not doing their homework - two said that they were too busy and had forgotten about it - the other one said that he was probably lazy and couldn't even remember it.
I was the prosecutor and one of the remaining students volunteered to be the defence - the rest of the class (about 9-10) were to be the jury.
The students gave their testimonies...then I opened my case and asked some questions - the one with the bad memory came very close to being charged with crimes against English, as some of his grammar was a bit dodgy!
Then the defence made some closing remarks & the jury was sent out.
I expected that all 3 would be found 'not guilty'...and quickly. But time passed and in the end I had to ask the jury to come back in (so we could move the lesson along). They came back, nominated a spokesman, and said that the one with the bad memory was 'stupid' and therefore could not possibly be guilty. He protested against being called 'stupid' - I suggested he could be found 'guilty' if he wished, and he dropped the protest ;-)
However, the other 2 were found 'guilty' as charged, and their punishment was to write a poem about me, and to read it to the class in the next seminar...which I think is due to happen next week...and I'm looking forward to it!
On reflection, this was a great way to role play a topic, and is something that I could use creatively in future for such offenders of not doing homework, and using mobile phones in the lesson ;-)
That was creative :) I like the fact that you did not tell your students which side do they have to defend. I remember my English lessons from a Secondary School when a teacher asked me: 'So, Wojciech, tell me why are you against death penalty'. I got a little irritated, and, as calmly as I could, I replied that I was FOR death penalty. She did not want to hear it :/
ReplyDeleteThanks, Wojciech, for your comments...I really appreciate them! A jury should be fair - but mine also had a lot of fun with it too...I think they liked the idea that their decision meant something too ;-)
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