y = ( x - 3 ) 2 - 2 )
Creating character , one loss at a time
Cammisa ’ s team jumped directly into practice meets and full-on tournaments in the ASAP league with up to 19 other teams . Her students immediately competed on two critical topics in economics and technology — guaranteed public college tuition , and the benefits and risks of GMO products .
“ My first debate was a big challenge because I had no experience ,” says Claudia , grade 7 . “ But I overcame it by practicing with other students .”
“ I was always nervous while speaking , and I would fidget a lot , so I worked on standing still at practice ,” says Francesca , grade 7 . “ Everyone says stupid things and loses sometimes , there ’ s no reason to be nervous .”
8th grader Jade agrees . “ Don ’ t be scared of talking in front of people — just go and give it your all !”
Saint Mary ’ s teachers are already seeing results from STEAM debate team in their students . In addition to building critical reasoning and research skills , they share an opinion that the program is helping students build confidence and clarity of thought .
These were precisely the types of STEAMconnected topics Cammisa had hoped for . But , more importantly , her students were dauntlessly tackling the pressure of the tournament format , swiftly picking up constructive ways to deal with the heavy research and presentation tasks at hand . Saint Mary ’ s children caught on to winning mindsets quickly — even when they weren ’ t taking home medals .
“ The students involved are more poised in their speaking , and for many , their self confidence has gone through the roof ,” says Judy Crossan-Sannicky , 8th grade teacher .
“ I have noticed the same things ,” Dana Grossi , 7th grade teacher , agrees . “ I saw students who previously struggled with self-expression begin to prompt discussion with comments that show a more analytical approach to literature . I ’ ve also noticed that students on the debate team consider both sides of an argument before making their points . Awesome !”
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