Activity 7: Discussing Issues

Focus
Discussing contemporary issues provides students with an approach to forming their opinions on a topic.

Background
Letters to the Editor in local newspapers provide a forum where contemporary issues are discussed and a range of personal opinions are brought to the community’s attention. The following short video interviews are also useful classroom resources:

What are the Major Threats to the Rainforest?
What are Some of the Challenges?
Will the Rainforest Exist in 2040?

Pedagogy/teaching strategies
Directed discussion is used to discuss an issue in a controlled way. Divide the class into two groups, affirmative and negative. Each group decides on four points of view which support their side of the issue and selects one student to present each of the points of view. Affirmative first speaker delivers their point of view then negative first speaker. No rebuttal is allowed. Then other speakers present their points of view in turn. After this, the process is repeated with ordered rebuttal, first affirmative then negative until all points of view are exposed.

Activity sequence
1. Look through the Letters to the Editor provided.

Alternatively, research your local newspaper and identify an issue related to the World Heritage Area (eg. Daintree buyback). Isolate the important elements of the issue.
2. Work through the Directed Discussion activity described above.
3. An alternative to this activity would be to examine the issue with the whole group using the Six Thinking Hats Strategy.
4 Role Play. Use role plays to explore the diversity of opinions related to the Daintree buyback issue. Divide the class into three user groups and a fourth whose role, as a council, is to make a decision concerning the Daintree buyback. Give each group a copy of their users’ opinions outlined below to construct their arguments. They should also research the media clippings.

Each group presents a case, both verbally and in writing at a council meeting, in which the council members are called upon to justify an acceptable compromise.

Group 1 – Opinions of Conservationists
• The Daintree area is a habitat for many rare and endangered species.
• The Daintree area is a living museum.
• The Daintree area is an important educational resource.
• The Daintree is so important it belongs to everyone, not just the people who own blocks of land there.
• The Government should buy back privately owned land in the Daintree to protect them from development.

Group 2 – Opinions of the Tourism Industry
• The Daintree is an excellent area to take visitors and is very popular.
• Daintree tourism provides a lot of money and jobs for the regional economy.
• Visitors come to the Daintree area to experience the rainforest. If it becomes a housing estate they won’t come here any more.
• The Government should provide more facilities for tourists in the Daintree.

Group 3 – Opinions of some residents
• We are already looking after the rainforest, we don’t want other people telling us what to do.
• We’re sick of delays at the ferry crossing and want a bridge over the Daintree River.
• We want mains power, shops and services like other Australians.
• Development will add value to my land.
• Housing development will provide employment and boost local industry.