Debating for Better Understanding, Embrun 9/2024
Debating for Better Understanding - Kouvolites in Embrun - Fall 2024.
LIFTOFF !
The trip began in the wee hours of Sunday, September 15, 2024. Sleepy Finns dragging their luggage in the brisk Kouvola morning to the bus. Excitement mostly hidden behind sleepy eyes and underneath yawns. Bagdrops and security checks, boarding passes and unreasonably priced breakfasts. Everyone who has travelled by plane knows the tedium of going through the motions at the airport - you arrive too early to be on time, and end up waiting for a good hour or two to sit uncomfortably for an hour or two to hop on a bus for an hour or three... Our group was a well-equipped one, so navigating the ins-and-outs of air travel went without surprises. A few bags were checked, but everyone was on time where they were supposed.
The dullness of the flight was tangible. The reader of the audiobook blabbered regardless of me dozing off from time to time. Sorry, everyone, if I snored. Excitement only started to surface when the plane began its descent, at least for me.
ITALY !
At Turin airport, the excitement of travel slowly shifted to irritation and eventually into laughter. The coach to pick us up and drive us to Embrun was nowhere to be seen. Phone conversations and text messages between us and the driver had us walking from one end of the - rather large, mind you - airport to the other twice. Culture shock? I hope not! Finally on the bus, hunger needed to be satisfied and thirst quenched, but company policy declared its thou shalt not and forbade us nourishment inside the bus. A few moments later a pop in a one-stop-shop by the highway after a long drive, bellies full of snacks and coffee, and off we go again.
FRANCE - finally !
Italy seemed all too flat for a couple of hours. Besides not being allowed to eat on board, we were also not spoiled by jaw-dropping landscapes. Flat fields, a straight highway, a large warehouse here and there, a cooling tower every once in a while - think Ostrobothnia on PEDs.
Good things come to those who wait, however, and the shadows of the Alps looming in the distance became more vivid by the kilometer. What was an enjoyable climb up narrow, winding roads for some, was a horrific acrophobic nightmare for others. Well, perhaps just the one other. Deep valleys, lenghty tunnels and a long line of ski resorts later we passed from Italy to France without ceremony of border control.
By this time, our mandibles had been dropped several times from disbelief, amazement and pure awe. "That's quite something," I often thought to myself grinning awkwardly, unable to do the picturesque setting justice with words. I am confident that the feeling was shared amongst our whole group, though white-knuckling the edge of my seat prevented me from taking a poll.
DAY-TO-DAY IN EMBRUN.
Arriving in Embrun, hours behind schedule, was a welcome relief. The welcoming committee of students and their parents there to greet us made us feel as welcome as can be. 'twas heart-warming to watch the kids meet their hosts. The joy of meeting new people highlighted one of the cultural differences between us and them: the ease with which we approach people (at first) is - it seemed - worlds apart.
Our first morning at the school had us walking by a rather serious looking, broad-shouldered gentleman at the school gate, who nodded to our bonjours not unsuspiciously. We started with the almost inevitable problems with our IT - which cable goes to where and so on. Luckily getting to know one another is easier without a digital interface. While some of us banged our heads against the hardware wall, others took charge in having the kids be active. Breaking barriers from the get-go worked like a charm and the thirty-odd students were quickly babbling away in each others' native tongues.
A quick introduction later we started our games. We started with simple tasks and gradually worked our way towards more complex ones. Not to go into detail, on Monday we began from how to use one's voice when speaking in public and ended up debating on Thursday in front of an audience, being judged for our performance - quite the leap, I'd say. After lunch we ventured onto the streets of Embrun, and worked our way down to the lake. The youth competed in a race which combined orienteering and general knowledge (or knowing how to use a search engine). Cooperation seemed to start without hiccups. We teachers enjoyed the beautiful day in a beautiful town in a less competitive fashion.
Working as a part of an international team takes effort, the most simple one being conversing in English, even amongst your countrymen and women. Among the most challenging efforts was trying to remember everyone's names - children at play, it might've seemed to the outsider, but all our frolicking had a more lofty end goal. The afternoon was spent running around at the lake, trying to get to know the others' and learning something about them. Arguably all that breaking of ice paid off, and we became fairly tight-knit in only a few days. FYI, the magnificently cinematic lake is one of the largest reservoirs in Europe - Lac de Serre-Ponçon.
A couple of days later, le lac called us again to teambuild. The students partook in aquatic activities, where they needed to follow complex instructions, work as a team, compromise, and combat their frustration from trying and failing at something they hadn't tried before.
It wasn't all fun and games, though. We did spend time in a classroom, studying and applying the how-tos of debating. We dissected arguments, tried to convince others, learned about rhetoric and how to win in a debate. From simple either-or choices we moved to more complex and creative tasks; the culmination of the week were the 4-vs-4 team debates. No belts were handed out in our amicable contests, but everyone had a championship mindset. Ethos, pathos and logos were summoned and channeled to aid in achieving victory and everlasting fame. I dare say that the songs about the bravery of our youth will be sung for centuries in the Hautes-Alpes.
Amidst verbal dueling and providing stories for future sagas, we ventured on an outing into the mountains our gracious hosts organized. The intellectual exercise before the bodily exertion was to utilize the Six Hats model [made famous by Edward de Bono in the year 1 Before Chernobyl] to expand their thinking laterally, or to give the not-so-obvious choices a fair chance to win. Cryptic, eh? The students had to choose a few survival items from a larger selection without settling for their gut feeling. While the youths were deciding between a flashlight and a hatchet, I was busy trying to follow Guylaine's advice on how not to feel nauseous on the busride up the serpentine mountain road.
When we finally put boots to mountainside, not only did we gasp from lack of oxygen and the stunning scenery, we learned about the history of the wolf in the region - a contested discourse very much akin to what we have in Finland. Pathos versus logos - fear against reason, emotion against statistics. Or is it that simple? Put your thinking hats on, let's debate! In addition to the lupine topic we discussed the effects of tourism and the resorts built for the - from the Finnish perspective at least - bourgeoisie with little regard to anything besides slippery slopes.
Oh, did I mention the postcardesque landscape yet? Whew!
The grande finale of our week's worth of debate skill acquisition was what shell henceforth be known as the Day of the Debate. The students were placed in teams to defend or oppose a statement. We followed a modified World Schools Debate format which sets timelimits to each speaker of the team. It also encourages a strategic approach to the game where your team needs to have several arguments for the same conclusion, and be able to counter the opponents' arguments in a collected manner, trying to be clear and convincing, and patient enough to wait your turn.
Success. Victory. Learning. Grace in defeat. Intellectual effort. Team work. Everyone achieved something.
FAREWELLS.
Party-party-party as only teenagers with endless tolerance for loud music and the willingness to jump up'n'down incessantly for hours can.
In other words, on our final night together in Embrun we dined and partied together. After the meal in the school cafeteria, our motley crew enjoyed themselves listening to bangers and dancing. Those of us with tinnitus went outside to stare at the moonrise and the dark shadows of the mountains with a slight sense of melancholy; farewells are bittersweet.
Bonus round in TURIN.
We departed homeward on Friday morning. Our first destination was Turin, but unlike Hannibal, our intents were peaceful and we traversed by bus. We had only a few moments to see the city centre, half of which I spent eating - devouring, rather - pizza and gelatto. Pizza is pizza, but gelatto has levels to it, as the saying nowadays goes. The rest of the time I did the tourist thing: I stared at pretty buildings, photographed Roman ruins, bought artisanal chocolate and drank as much coffee as was reasonable considering I'd have to sit on a bus soon for a few hours. Eating and shopping were the pastimes of choice for the students, too, as was evidenced by the rustling of wrapping papers and the boom-boom-boom of a portable speaker at the back of the bus.
Post Scriptum.
You can find photos of our trip below, not in any particular order.
The trip began in the wee hours of Sunday, September 15, 2024. Sleepy Finns dragging their luggage in the brisk Kouvola morning to the bus. Excitement mostly hidden behind sleepy eyes and underneath yawns. Bagdrops and security checks, boarding passes and unreasonably priced breakfasts. Everyone who has travelled by plane knows the tedium of going through the motions at the airport - you arrive too early to be on time, and end up waiting for a good hour or two to sit uncomfortably for an hour or two to hop on a bus for an hour or three... Our group was a well-equipped one, so navigating the ins-and-outs of air travel went without surprises. A few bags were checked, but everyone was on time where they were supposed.
The dullness of the flight was tangible. The reader of the audiobook blabbered regardless of me dozing off from time to time. Sorry, everyone, if I snored. Excitement only started to surface when the plane began its descent, at least for me.
ITALY !
At Turin airport, the excitement of travel slowly shifted to irritation and eventually into laughter. The coach to pick us up and drive us to Embrun was nowhere to be seen. Phone conversations and text messages between us and the driver had us walking from one end of the - rather large, mind you - airport to the other twice. Culture shock? I hope not! Finally on the bus, hunger needed to be satisfied and thirst quenched, but company policy declared its thou shalt not and forbade us nourishment inside the bus. A few moments later a pop in a one-stop-shop by the highway after a long drive, bellies full of snacks and coffee, and off we go again.
FRANCE - finally !
Italy seemed all too flat for a couple of hours. Besides not being allowed to eat on board, we were also not spoiled by jaw-dropping landscapes. Flat fields, a straight highway, a large warehouse here and there, a cooling tower every once in a while - think Ostrobothnia on PEDs.
Good things come to those who wait, however, and the shadows of the Alps looming in the distance became more vivid by the kilometer. What was an enjoyable climb up narrow, winding roads for some, was a horrific acrophobic nightmare for others. Well, perhaps just the one other. Deep valleys, lenghty tunnels and a long line of ski resorts later we passed from Italy to France without ceremony of border control.
By this time, our mandibles had been dropped several times from disbelief, amazement and pure awe. "That's quite something," I often thought to myself grinning awkwardly, unable to do the picturesque setting justice with words. I am confident that the feeling was shared amongst our whole group, though white-knuckling the edge of my seat prevented me from taking a poll.
DAY-TO-DAY IN EMBRUN.
Arriving in Embrun, hours behind schedule, was a welcome relief. The welcoming committee of students and their parents there to greet us made us feel as welcome as can be. 'twas heart-warming to watch the kids meet their hosts. The joy of meeting new people highlighted one of the cultural differences between us and them: the ease with which we approach people (at first) is - it seemed - worlds apart.
Our first morning at the school had us walking by a rather serious looking, broad-shouldered gentleman at the school gate, who nodded to our bonjours not unsuspiciously. We started with the almost inevitable problems with our IT - which cable goes to where and so on. Luckily getting to know one another is easier without a digital interface. While some of us banged our heads against the hardware wall, others took charge in having the kids be active. Breaking barriers from the get-go worked like a charm and the thirty-odd students were quickly babbling away in each others' native tongues.
A quick introduction later we started our games. We started with simple tasks and gradually worked our way towards more complex ones. Not to go into detail, on Monday we began from how to use one's voice when speaking in public and ended up debating on Thursday in front of an audience, being judged for our performance - quite the leap, I'd say. After lunch we ventured onto the streets of Embrun, and worked our way down to the lake. The youth competed in a race which combined orienteering and general knowledge (or knowing how to use a search engine). Cooperation seemed to start without hiccups. We teachers enjoyed the beautiful day in a beautiful town in a less competitive fashion.
Working as a part of an international team takes effort, the most simple one being conversing in English, even amongst your countrymen and women. Among the most challenging efforts was trying to remember everyone's names - children at play, it might've seemed to the outsider, but all our frolicking had a more lofty end goal. The afternoon was spent running around at the lake, trying to get to know the others' and learning something about them. Arguably all that breaking of ice paid off, and we became fairly tight-knit in only a few days. FYI, the magnificently cinematic lake is one of the largest reservoirs in Europe - Lac de Serre-Ponçon.
A couple of days later, le lac called us again to teambuild. The students partook in aquatic activities, where they needed to follow complex instructions, work as a team, compromise, and combat their frustration from trying and failing at something they hadn't tried before.
It wasn't all fun and games, though. We did spend time in a classroom, studying and applying the how-tos of debating. We dissected arguments, tried to convince others, learned about rhetoric and how to win in a debate. From simple either-or choices we moved to more complex and creative tasks; the culmination of the week were the 4-vs-4 team debates. No belts were handed out in our amicable contests, but everyone had a championship mindset. Ethos, pathos and logos were summoned and channeled to aid in achieving victory and everlasting fame. I dare say that the songs about the bravery of our youth will be sung for centuries in the Hautes-Alpes.
Amidst verbal dueling and providing stories for future sagas, we ventured on an outing into the mountains our gracious hosts organized. The intellectual exercise before the bodily exertion was to utilize the Six Hats model [made famous by Edward de Bono in the year 1 Before Chernobyl] to expand their thinking laterally, or to give the not-so-obvious choices a fair chance to win. Cryptic, eh? The students had to choose a few survival items from a larger selection without settling for their gut feeling. While the youths were deciding between a flashlight and a hatchet, I was busy trying to follow Guylaine's advice on how not to feel nauseous on the busride up the serpentine mountain road.
When we finally put boots to mountainside, not only did we gasp from lack of oxygen and the stunning scenery, we learned about the history of the wolf in the region - a contested discourse very much akin to what we have in Finland. Pathos versus logos - fear against reason, emotion against statistics. Or is it that simple? Put your thinking hats on, let's debate! In addition to the lupine topic we discussed the effects of tourism and the resorts built for the - from the Finnish perspective at least - bourgeoisie with little regard to anything besides slippery slopes.
Oh, did I mention the postcardesque landscape yet? Whew!
The grande finale of our week's worth of debate skill acquisition was what shell henceforth be known as the Day of the Debate. The students were placed in teams to defend or oppose a statement. We followed a modified World Schools Debate format which sets timelimits to each speaker of the team. It also encourages a strategic approach to the game where your team needs to have several arguments for the same conclusion, and be able to counter the opponents' arguments in a collected manner, trying to be clear and convincing, and patient enough to wait your turn.
Success. Victory. Learning. Grace in defeat. Intellectual effort. Team work. Everyone achieved something.
FAREWELLS.
Party-party-party as only teenagers with endless tolerance for loud music and the willingness to jump up'n'down incessantly for hours can.
In other words, on our final night together in Embrun we dined and partied together. After the meal in the school cafeteria, our motley crew enjoyed themselves listening to bangers and dancing. Those of us with tinnitus went outside to stare at the moonrise and the dark shadows of the mountains with a slight sense of melancholy; farewells are bittersweet.
Bonus round in TURIN.
We departed homeward on Friday morning. Our first destination was Turin, but unlike Hannibal, our intents were peaceful and we traversed by bus. We had only a few moments to see the city centre, half of which I spent eating - devouring, rather - pizza and gelatto. Pizza is pizza, but gelatto has levels to it, as the saying nowadays goes. The rest of the time I did the tourist thing: I stared at pretty buildings, photographed Roman ruins, bought artisanal chocolate and drank as much coffee as was reasonable considering I'd have to sit on a bus soon for a few hours. Eating and shopping were the pastimes of choice for the students, too, as was evidenced by the rustling of wrapping papers and the boom-boom-boom of a portable speaker at the back of the bus.
Post Scriptum.
You can find photos of our trip below, not in any particular order.