Virtual Debating

Today I came across this article on Virtual Debating . This was very interesting because it included two 4th grade classrooms from different schools. These students had a debate on the topic "Spending Too Much Money on Space Exploration". Prior to the actual debate, the students talked via e-mail to set up the date and time for the debate. When it came time to proceed with the debate, the classrooms debated via a webcam. The webcam was projected onto a SmartBoard in both classrooms. The students each had their chance to come up to the microphone and present their stance on the debate.

I thought this article was very interesting because every student was engaged with the lesson. I never thought of having a debate with another class using webcams. I would really like to try this concept with my own social studies class when we get to the topic of dropping the atomic bomb in Japan after WWII.