Reflections from our first debate circle

Twelve students sat in a circle. No desks. No podiums. No scorecards. Just chairs, a topic written on a whiteboard, and the gentle hum of nervous energy.

The topic was simple: "Is it more important to be kind or to be honest?" We chose it because there is no right answer -- only different perspectives worth exploring.

The first few minutes were tentative. Students offered safe opinions, watching to see how others would react. But then something shifted. One student said something unexpected, and another genuinely disagreed. Not angrily -- curiously. "I see what you mean, but have you considered..."

That was the moment everything changed. The conversation opened up. Students who rarely spoke in their classrooms found themselves sharing ideas they had never articulated before. The loud ones learned to create space. The quiet ones learned to fill it.

No one won. No one lost. But everyone left the room having understood something new -- about the topic, about each other, and about themselves.

This is what debate looks like when you strip away the competition. Not a battle of arguments, but a practice of understanding. And it was beautiful.