After a long awaited school year the annual CHS schoolwide debates are set for Friday, March 14.
The debates will be held in auditorium with the whole student body as the audience, and the debates will cover six whole periods, taking up most of the school day.
CHS is a college level debate class offered through the University of Pittsburg where students can earn 3 college credits. Every year Bellwood-Antis holds some kind of theme to go along with the debates. Staff from Pittsburg work to provide a theme each year and local teachers and students adapt debate prompts from the theme.
This years theme will focus on how emotional well being is more important than seeking discomfort.
“Its a unique topic that is quite in tune with our time,” said CHS teacher Mr. Naylor. “How do we as people grow the best? By working on ourselves, placing our prime importance on mental health? Going through hardships and being forced to adapt even if it causes mental anguish?”
From this theme the class developed six topics for each individual debates:
- “In high school, intellectual growth is more important than working for a grade”
- “Gentle parenting is the most beneficial style of parenting”
- “Medicinal marijuana should be used to help treat anxiety”
- “It is important to limit exposure to social media platforms for mental health”
- “An ideal society focusing on mental health fosters resilience”
- “Emotional validation in self-help culture promotes genuine personal growth”
After 18 years of teaching CHS and 12 years holding school wide debates, Mr. Naylor thinks the debates have become a fun tradition at Bellwood-Antis and something all students look forward to.
“We love having the large audience and sharing what we have learned about debate with the entire student body. These debates are also an excellent way of demonstrating the best practices for debating and encourages our student body to discourse and debate the right way,” he said.
Senior students in CHS are looking forward to the debates as well. They have been participating in different types of debates in class since October.
“The thing I am looking forward to the most at the CHS debates is conquering my fear of public speaking,” said Kenzie Weber. “Debating in class and debating in front of the whole school are two very different things. I am also excited because our topic is a little controversial.”
Weber and her partner Rylie Andrews are debating whether it is beneficial to use marijuana to treat anxiety.
For the second year in a row, junior students have chosen to join in the debates as well and will decide their argument sixth period.
It looks like we are in for a debate. They will run from periods 1 through 4 and 6 through 8.
