You already know how digital tools sit in a normal day. Today the class takes a real position on a hard question.
Do digital technologies, especially social media, do more good than harm for people your age?
- Hear both sides argued at their strongest.
- Defend a view, which may not be your own.
- Reconsider your position, and notice whether anything you heard shifted it.
Today’s motion:
Social media does more good than harm for people our age.
What steelmanning means
A good debate is not a shouting match. Your job is to steelman a side: give its strongest honest version, even if you personally disagree. Weak versions of the other side teach nothing.
An example
Even if I think social media wastes time, the strongest honest version of the other side is that it keeps friendships going when people cannot meet in person.
Your first position
Before any evidence, place yourself on the line: agree, disagree, or not sure. Hold that first position honestly. This is a values question, and thoughtful people land in different places.
Use the interactive activity to place the class on the line for today's motion.
- Listen to the statement once more: Social media does more good than harm for people our age.
- Decide where you stand right now: agree, disagree, or not sure. No explaining yet.
- Watch as the class markers are placed to mirror the room.
- Notice the spread. Do not try to persuade anyone yet. This is your starting map only.
You will come back to the same line after the debate and place yourself again. Moving is fine. Staying put with clearer reasons is also fine.
The markers stand for groups in the room, not individual people. Your teacher drags one onto the line for each cluster of you standing together, so the board mirrors where the class actually is. Use as many as you need.
Interactive activity
Split into two sides for the motion: Social media does more good than harm for people our age. You may be asked to argue the side you do not personally hold. That is the point.
| Stage | Time | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Prepare | 3 min | Your side picks its two strongest points from its list below and fills: Our strongest point is… because… |
| 2. Opening statements | 90s each | Side A, then Side B. No interruptions. |
| 3. Steelman | 60s each | Each side restates the other case so fairly that the other side nods. |
| 4. Open floor | ~20s each | Up to two comments in total across the room. |
Challenge ideas, not people. Invented names only; no targeting anyone in the room.
Pick your two strongest points from your own side only.
| For the motion | Against the motion |
|---|---|
| Connection — keeps friendships going when people cannot meet, and helps new students find their group. | Comparison and pressure — highlight reels push people to measure themselves against edited versions of others. |
| Learning and interests — tutorials, hobby communities, language practice and exam tips that are hard to find offline. | Privacy and permanence — posts, screenshots and location data outlive the moment and can be used in ways the poster never meant. |
| Voice and creativity — people your age can make and be heard without waiting for an adult gatekeeper. | False or twisted claims — rumours travel faster than corrections, and angry content spreads especially well. |
| Support and information — Webwise, SpunOut and peer advice can be reached quickly when something is hard. | Time, sleep and attention — feeds are designed to hold you, crowding out rest, schoolwork and face-to-face time. |
| Belonging — shared fandoms, sports, music and causes give people a place when local options are thin. | Hurt and exclusion — pile-ons, being left out of group chats and mean comments land hard and are hard to switch off. |
After the debate you return to the opinion line and place yourself again.
The debate is done. Use the interactive activity to place yourself on the line again for the same motion.
- Listen once more: Social media does more good than harm for people our age.
- Place yourself where you stand now: agree, disagree, or not sure.
- Watch the class markers and compare this spread with the starting map from earlier.
- Moving is fine. Staying put with clearer reasons is also fine.
What you practised was not crowning a winning side. It was holding two honest cases at once: real benefits (connection, learning, voice, support) and real costs (pressure, privacy, false claims, attention, hurt). Digital technologies are not only good or only bad. The skill is weighing both and saying why you land where you land.
The markers stand for groups in the room, not individual people. Your teacher drags one onto the line for each cluster of you standing together, so the board mirrors where the class actually is. Use as many as you need.
Interactive activity
Unlock the full learning experience
You're previewing this lesson. Get full access to this lesson and hundreds more — each one ready to teach, with interactive activities, printable resources and pupil progress tracking built in.
This lesson is copyright of Coding Ireland 2017 - 2025. Unauthorised use, copying or distribution is not allowed.