Debate kits

The I’m a Scientist Debate Kits project is now over (for the moment). Here’s a summary of the evaluation findings, or you can download the full report at the bottom.

Summary

I’m a Scientist Debate Kits is a project to help get more debate and discussion in the UK’s science classrooms. It was a Gallomanor project funded by the Wellcome Trust

• Over the last 18 months we have produced and distributed four kits, on different biomedical topics.
• Altogether roughly 4,500 printed copies, on three biomedical topics, have been printed and distributed, plus a further 4,000 copies downloaded.
• They have proved extremely popular with teachers, apparently meeting a teaching need for high-quality, simple-to-use resources to stimulate debate and discussion in the science classroom.
• Teachers judged them to be very effective.
• The kits got students seeing different sides to an argument, expressing their opinions and backing them up with facts, and developing their confidence and discussing science issues.
• They also increased teachers’ confidence and skills at running debates and saved teachers time in lesson preparation.
• Teachers told us they also supplied far more in-depth coverage of each topic than they would have had time to provide.

Key findings

Total kits distributed (print and electronic): 8,521.
98% of teachers would recommend the kits to a colleague.

The kits

• Were effective at prompting in-depth discussion.
• Engaged young people.
• Were easy to use and saved teachers’ time.

Download the full evaluation report (pdf)

Download kits, or make your own

For more info please email
debatekits@imascientist.org.uk

People have made some brilliant suggestions of topics for the last debate kit. Thanks!

Please vote for your preferred topic below:-

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BTW, There are some suggestions I’ve not included, for one of three reasons:-

1. It’s not a biomedical topic (e.g. renewable energy) – the Wellcome Trust fund us to promote debate and discussion about biomedicine. But we’d be happy to produce kits on other topics if someone else would fund it!

2. It’s a topic we’ve already done. Previous kits are on IVF funding, Stem Cells and ‘Are we too clean?’. You can download earlier kits here.

3. I couldn’t see a way to make a debate kit on the topic. e.g. Nature vs Nurture just seems far too big a question. It’s a fascinating one though and I’d love to produce resources of some kind on this. In fact I’ll probably be distracted for the rest of the day thinking about that now:-)

Well, of course, I’m going to say YES to that question.

What’s This?

Here is the evaluation report on the first half of the debate kits project, comprising the first two kits (from Summer and Autumn 2009). Obviously I was supposed to publish this MONTHS ago, but it’s fallen by the wayside, until now.

Why now?

We have just brought out the third IAS debate kit, on Stem Cells. We posted out 1,500 stem cells debate kits earlier this week.  I got an email from a teacher this morning saying ‘Just got the Stem cell pack…fantastic!’ so I’m hopeful they’ll be as popular as previous kits:-)

What are the debate kits?

The debate kits are designed to get students in their science lessons debating and discussing science issues, seeing things from different points of view and learning to back up their opinions with evidence. Each kit is developed in consultation with teachers, and fact checked with scientists.

Evaluation summary

“This is great I couldn’t have done a debate without it”

I’m a Scientist debate kits is a project to help get more debate and discussion going in the UK’s science classrooms. We are developing and distributing debate kits to UK science teachers. The kits are designed to give a teacher everything they need to run a structured debate on a set topic and help their students develop their discussion skills. The activity gives them a structured way to start discussing and gets them practicing the behaviour. The Wellcome Trust have funded Gallomanor to produce and distribute three sets of kits in 2009/10.

The first kit was developed as part of I’m a Scientist, Get me out of Here!, in 2008. This first kit was re-printed and distributed to 1,500 teachers and science communicators in Summer term 2009 as the first nationally distributed IAS debate kit. We also provide an electronic version of each kit, which more people can download from the website. The second kit was produced in Autumn term 2009. The topic (suggested and picked by teachers) was ‘Are we too clean?’ The third kit will be produced and distributed in Spring term 2010. A fourth kit will be developed in Summer term and distributed electronically.

Outcomes

Key aims met:-

• Kits well used
• The resources worked ‘straight out of the box
• They really engaged the students
• They developed students’ discussion and critical thinking skills

Kits also:-

• Were good way for students to learn new content
• Were effective with a range of students
• Got quieter students talking
• Inspired teachers to start making their own!

Recommendations

• Next kit in Summer term 2010, on stem cells (done!)
• Produce an electronic large print version (done!)
• Produce DIY debate kit templates for teachers to use (done!)
• Increase print run to 2,000 (done!)

More details in the full Debate Kits Interim Report (pdf).

If you would like to order a copy of the latest debate kit (they are free!) go here

If you would like to download a copy of one of the kits go here

If you’d like to know more about the kits or the project there’s more info here, or feel free to get in touch and ask us!