2020 POLICY DEBATE PROPOSITIONS
NONPOLICY DEBATE (非政策性辯論)
Resolved: Homework should be banned in secondary schools in Taiwan.
Homework, an age-old practice, has stirred a new debate in recent years. Is homework a
necessary evil that facilitates learning? Does it, by nature, encumber students more so than it
helps them? What about its impact on those other than students? Here, “homework” is
defined as an assignment given to a student to be completed outside the regular class period.
“Ban” means “officially prohibited” and thus what is stipulated in the ban will have the
binding power over teachers. “Secondary schools” refers to both junior and senior high
schools.
As this is a non-policy debate, debaters do not need to come up with a concrete plan for how
to ban homework or make the ban binding to secondary school teachers. Instead, they should
focus on contending the reasons and proof for or against banning homework in secondary
schools in Taiwan.
Following is a list of references to serve as a jumpstart, which means it is in no way
comprehensive. Many of them also contain information or arguments that may not be
directly relevant (but may still be related in some way to the proposition) or are not without
flaws and thus warrant closer examination. So do exercise caution when reading and/or using
them.
Materials that take no particular side:
Homework policy review: A case study of a public school in the Western Cape Providence
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/0401/bbe0846471e4e248cef1c2c36881e4ed1cd2.pdf
Pros and Cons of Homework (commonly seen arguments for/against HW)
https://vittana.org/20-pros-and-cons-of-homework
What Research Says about the Value of Homework: At A Glance
http://www.ljc.ea.argyll-bute.sch.uk/uploads/files/1485174370what_researchers_say.pdf
Does Homework Improve Academic Achievement? A Synthesis of Research, 1987–2003
http://upload-community.kipa.co.il/819201525856.pdf
The Cult of Homework
https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2019/03/homework-research-how-much/585889/
Time Students from Different Countries Spend on Homework
https://qz.com/311360/students-in-these-countries-spend-the-most-time-doing-homework/
Why Homework Doesn't Seem to Boost Learning--And How It Could
https://www.forbes.com/sites/nataliewexler/2019/01/03/why-homework-doesnt-seem-to-boost-learning-and-how-it-could/#53925fa868ab
作業的意義(Doc) (Google 關鍵字「壹、作業的意義」) 本文含作業意義、功能、種類、設計原則等說明 中小學生學習問題的預防與輔導：以家庭作業為例 張民杰(2014)。教育研究月刊，第 239 期，5-18。 本論文說明家庭作業對學生學習扮演的角色、探討家庭作業的意義和書寫沿革、分析家庭作業的正 向功能與負面影響、教師應該如何指派、批改學生的家庭作業及輔導學生寫家庭作業。 爭論百年沒有定論 家庭作業對孩子是好是壞？ (節錄自《學習超載世代：史丹佛研究團隊教你用對 策略，培育健康成功的孩子》) https://udn.com/news/story/6898/3473731 法國國小費廢除家庭作業之後 https://kknews.cc/education/9nnnkn8.html
Materials that argue against homework:
Why I Think All Schools Should Abolish Homework
https://time.com/4740297/homework-should-be-banned-from-schools/
Homework Is Different from Learning (the Philippines)
https://www.rappler.com/views/imho/239185-homework-can-be-pointless
Excessive Homework May Be Exhausting Students in Japan
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/08/17/national/media-national/excessive-homework-may-exhausting-students-japan-summer-vacation/#.XX0naS2B3ow
瑞典中小學為何無回家作業
https://opinion.cw.com.tw/blog/profile/320/article/3989
家庭作業的迷思《The Homework Myth: Why Our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing》
Materials that argue for homework:
The Homework Conundrum – What the research says
https://www.westonschools.org/blog/2018/02/07/homework-conundrum-research-says/
(At the end there are links to some additional research regarding homework)
Homework or No Homework? Maybe We’re Asking the Wrong Question (Part 1)
https://www.gettingsmart.com/2018/02/homework-or-no-homework-maybe-were-asking-the-wrong-question/
Homework or No Homework? Maybe We’re Asking the Wrong Question (Part 2)
https://www.gettingsmart.com/2018/03/homework-or-no-homework-part-2/
Research Spotlight on Homework
http://www.nea.org/tools/16938.htm
“No homework” Policy Is No Good (the Philippines)
https://www.manilatimes.net/2019/08/31/opinion/editorial/no-homework-policy-is-no-good/60878 9/
Should Homework Be Abolished? (Canada)
A Teacher's Defense of Homework
POLICY DEBATE (政策性辯論)
Resolved: Gender-neutral restrooms should be established in schools at all
levels in Taiwan.
The debate over whether transgender individuals should be allowed to use the public
restrooms that correspond to their currently expressed gender rather than their biological sex
has been of recent interest in the US and many other countries as well. Proponents of the
gender-neutral restrooms stress the need to protect transgender people’s equal right of access
to public restrooms that are safe and comfortable. Opponents identify the need to public
safety by mandating that individuals use the facility that corresponds to their biological sex.
What are some other arguments for or against the controversy? This policy debate duly
provides debaters a chance to explore the issue further. A gender-neutral restroom, simply
put, is a restroom that can be used by a person of any gender or gender identity.
Gender-neutral restrooms are also known as unisex, gender-inclusive, mixed-sex or all-gender
toilets, bathrooms or restrooms. Although the controversy may well extend to locker rooms,
changing rooms, and public restrooms, in this particular debate, restrooms refer only to those
installed on campus, excluding locker rooms, changing rooms, and public restrooms.
“Schools at all levels” refers to educational stages from pre-school to tertiary (or higher)
education.
As this is a policy debate, both the affirmative and the negative have to address a
comprehensive policy conceived for this proposition. Here is a
word of caution
: This debate
tournament, aligning with “traditional” policy debate, prioritizes use of logic and evidence,
and arguments from the pragmatic perspective, instead of something philosophical or
derived from advanced debate theories or strategies. Thus, no kritiks are allowed in
structuring the affirmative or the negative case, and the negative counterplan, if the negative
decides to run one, has to be non-topical (meaning the counterplan cannot affirm the
proposition) and non-conditional (meaning the negative cannot ditch their counterplan
during the debate).
Following is a list of references to serve as a jumpstart, which means it is in no way
comprehensive. Many of them also contain information or arguments that are not without
flaws and thus warrant closer examination. So do exercise caution when reading and/or using
them.
Materials that take no particular side:
Planning A Unisex Bathroom: The Pros, Cons & Practicalities
https://www.washwareessentials.co.uk/content/unisex-bathroom
Should Schools Have Gender-Neutral Bathrooms for Transgender Students?
https://www.debate.org/opinions/should-schools-have-gender-neutral-bathrooms-for-transgender-students
https://www.mydoorsign.com/blog/gender-neutral-restroom-debate/?
gclid=EAIaIQobChMI0pG19t_P5AIVVq6WCh1iZABLEAMYASAAEgLfPPD_BwE
What’s The Backlash Against Gender-Neutral Bathrooms All About?
http://theconversation.com/whats-the-backlash-against-gender-neutral-bathrooms-all-about-57028
The Transgender Bathroom Debate at the Intersection of Politics, Law, Ethics, and Science
http://jaapl.org/content/46/2/232
中性廁所
https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/ 中性廁所
一場難以政治正確的「跨性別如廁之爭」
https://theinitium.com/article/20160705-international-LGBTBathroom/
Materials that argue against such restrooms:
GLSEN 2017 National School Climate Survey (NSCS) - Full Report
https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/GLSEN-2017-National-School-Climate-Survey-NSCS-Full-Report.pdf
GLSEN 2017 National School Climate Survey (NSCS) - Executive Summary
https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/GLSEN%202017%20National%20School%20Climate%20Survey %20%28NSCS%29%20-%20Executive%20Summary%20%28English%29.pdf
Con: Gender neutral restrooms tough to implement
http://theroundupnews.com/2016/05/22/con-gender-neutral-restrooms-tough-implement/
A Bathroom of One’s Own?
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/18/opinion/a-bathroom-of-ones-own.html
Here's Something: Women suffer when bathrooms are unisex
https://www.pressherald.com/2017/11/13/heres-something-women-suffer-when-bathrooms-are-unisex/
Unisex Toilets in Schools Should Be Avoided at All Costs
https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/unisex-toilets-in-schools-should-be-avoided-at-all-costs-9206081.html 投書：性別友善廁所未必友善 https://www.upmedia.mg/news_info.php?SerialNo=51755 雷倩／性別友善廁所真對性別友善嗎？ https://forum.ettoday.net/news/613506
Materials that argue for such restrooms:
“Kicked out”: LGBTQ youths’ bathroom experiences and preferences https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5346479/
What Does Research Suggest About Transgender Restroom Policies?
https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/06/08/what-does-research-suggest-about-transgender-restroom.html
Gender Identity Disparities in Bathroom Safety and Wellbeing among High School Students
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10964-017-0652-1
Creating Gender-Inclusive Restrooms on Campus
https://eab.com/insights/expert-insight/facilities/creating-gender-inclusive-restrooms-on-campus/
To Those Who Oppose Gender-Neutral Toilets: They’re Better for Everybody
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/dec/01/gender-neutral-toilets-better-everybody-rage-latrine-trans-disabled
5 Reasons All Bathrooms Should Be Gender Neutral
https://www.bustle.com/articles/163101-5-reasons-all-bathrooms-should-be-gender-neutral
Gender-Neutral Bathrooms: Some Ways to Meet Everyone's Needs
https://nccj.org/blog/gender-neutral-bathrooms-some-ways-meet-everyones-needs
Public Bathrooms Are Gender Identity Battlefields. What If We Just Do It Right?
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/oct/03/public-bathrooms-are-gender-identity-battlefields-what-if-we-just-do-it-right
School Officials Agree: Policies Protecting Transgender Student Do Not Compromise the Privacy or Safety of Other Students
https://transequality.org/what-experts-say
3 Myths That Shape the Transgender Bathroom Debate
https://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/07/health/transgender-bathroom-law-facts-myths/index.html
「性別友善廁所」為何？從政大通過設置辦法談起
https://www.thenewslens.com/article/60861
觀點投書：性別友善廁所 X 強暴迷思─回應雷倩
