Should Homework be Banned? | Debate class lesson

This debate lesson tackles a question every student has an opinion on: whether homework should be banned altogether. Learners start by comparing the last piece of homework they genuinely learned from with the last one that felt pointless, then study four key words — workload, burnout, retain and counterproductive — alongside phrases such as “come at the expense of” and “there’s little evidence that.” They read two opposing posts, one from the parent of a fourteen-year-old and one from a secondary teacher who replies to her, and examine how each writer concedes a point before making their case. The core skill is conceding: students learn why a speaker who defends everything stops being believed, and practice the concede-and-pivot phrases out loud so the concession sounds sincere rather than sarcastic. They then rank arguments by strength, rebuild the weakest, and answer challenges within fifteen seconds before the full three-round debate.

This is Lesson 12 in the Debate Class course.

Learning objectives

• Use topic vocabulary and fixed phrases to argue about workload, wellbeing and learning
• Explain why conceding a point makes a speaker more credible, not weaker
• Use concede-and-pivot phrases to agree with one point before arguing back
• Identify what each writer concedes in a text and locate the exact word where the argument turns
• Deliver a concession with sincere intonation so the pivot lands
• Judge why an argument is weak and rebuild it so it survives challenge
• Give an opening statement, answer challenges, and close by naming the opposition’s strongest point

Lesson coverage

• Warm-up: useful homework versus pointless homework
• Vocabulary prediction task, then definitions with word families and collocations: workload, burnout, retain, counterproductive
• Phrases for arguing with example sentences, plus a speaking task
• Two opposing texts: a parent’s post arguing for abolition and a teacher’s reply arguing for reform
• Discussion questions on tone, perspective and who is affected
• Conceding a point explained: why giving away a point buys credibility
• The concede and pivot phrases: I’ll admit that, There’s no denying that, That said, While I accept that… I still believe
• Re-reading task: find each concession and the turning point of each argument
• Delivery practice: stress and pitch so a concession sounds genuine
• Ranking activity: order arguments from strongest to weakest and rebuild the weakest
• Fifteen-second challenge drill with five counter-arguments
• The motion, with three rules: concede first, open with a response phrase, use three vocabulary items
• Round 1 role-play opening statements (parent versus head of department, 90 seconds each), Round 2 challenges, Round 3 closing (30 seconds)
• Four extension motions for extra time
• Reward game and teacher feedback form

Suitable for teenage and adult ESL learners at upper-intermediate to advanced level who are developing formal debating, argumentation and spontaneous speaking skills.