Text Based Role Play & Debate:
A Critical Thinking Group Project
The following sequence of activities was inspired by and is based on Bill Bigelow’s lesson plan “Oil, Rainforests, and
Indigenous Cultures” published in Rethinking Globalization, Teaching for Justice in an Unjust World.
Materials:
Savages by Joe Kane (pages 3-196)
Development as Colonialism Research Handouts (available from K.Land)
Name tags with quotes for the Tea Party (available from K.Land)
Ecuadorian National debate handout (included below)
Handouts with role play information (from Rethinking Globalization)
Rethinking Globalization (full lesson/instructor guide)
Introductory Activity: The Tea Party
This activity is intended to build interest in the themes presented in the book and is particularly useful
because many of the characters’ names are difficult to pronounce. You may wish to remind the
students that none of us speak the Huaorani language, so our pronunciations may be based on best
guesses and based on the guide Kane provides in the opening of his book.
1. Assign each person a character from the book Savages. Pass
Moi
out name tags with background information and a quote.
(See Moi’s sample).
Background: Huaorani activist. Vice
2. Have students introduce themselves to as many different
Presidident of ONHAE (Organization of
Huaorani Nation of the Educadorian Amazon;
people in the classroom as possible by saying their name and
ONHAE means flower in Huaorani).
reading the quote. (I also encourage a handshake). Sharing
background information is optional. As the instructor, I may
play the role of the Ecuadorian President.
Quote: “We live with the spirit of the Jaguar.
3. After about 10-15 minutes of the tea party, ask students
We do not want to be civilized by your
missionaries or killed by your oil companies.
who they met and what they think this book will be about?
Must the jaguar die so that you can have
What themes or issues are likely to come up?
more contamination and television” (Kane 4).
4. Let them know that tomorrow they will be assigned groups
based on this character in the book and that in a few weeks,
they will participate in a classroom debate, arguing from this
character’s perspective on two key National Questions facing the Ecuadorian people.
Close, Critical Reading: Ecuadorian National Debate
1. Assign students to a group of 4-5 based on characters in the national debate (Huaorani,
Missionaries, Oil Company, etc.).
2. Pass out the National Debate Questions and explain the process for the debate.
3. I use these same groups as their daily discussion group to process sections of the reading.
Although I preview the debate questions, I do not require students to discuss the book in
character during every class session.
4. At least 2 class sessions before the actually debate, we begin our “character based discussions”
in small groups. Each group must develop a position on all of the major questions in the
national debate.
5. Early on, I remind them that as they read the book, they will be gathering arguments and
evidence to inform and defend their group’s position. Reading closely will also help them
understand more fully the perspectives their opponents hold which may help them develop
stronger, more realistic responses to the debate questions.
6. One day before the debate, student have an opportunity to negotiate with other groups – in
character – in order to make deals. (This takes about 15-20 minutes. Two members from each
group act as the negotiaters, while two others stay put so others can visit them).
7. See Bill Bigelow’s lesson plan for the full debate lesson ideas.
8. Each group member will earn his/her own grade based on quality of participation in the debate
itself so they should not repeat information that another group member presents.
Ecuadorian National Debate
The Players
Ecuadorian President – Instructor
Land
Huaorani Clans (2)
Missionaries (Evangelical &
Catholic)
The Setting
Quito, the Capitol City of
Ecuador, 1993
Huaorani Territory; Block 16
and Via Auca
Environmentalists & other activists
Maxus Oil Company & others connected to Oil
Exploration
Colonists/Workers
Coca, the pop-up oil city on the edge of the
Amazon River
Cofan Territory
The Questions
1. Should the Maxus Oil Company be allowed to explore for oil, build roads, oil wells, and pipelines on
Huaorani land in the Oriente? Why or why not? If not, what alternative do you have to develop
Ecuador and the Oriente/Amazon?
2. Should the Ecuadorian government and missionaries build schools to civilize the Huaorani? Why or
why not?
(These two main questions can be broken down into sub-questions, see below)
Regular Class Discussions on Savages
As you read, pay attention to the sub-questions listed below the two main questions to help you
develop a stronger position on the issue above. You do not need to discuss the answers in character at
all times. Feel free to discuss from your own perspective before you try to take on your character’s
point of view.
1. (Main Debate Question) Should the Maxus Oil Company be allowed to explore for oil, build roads,
oil wells, and pipelines on Huaorani land in the Oriente? Why or why not? If not, what alternative do
you have to develop Ecuador and the Oriente/Amazon?
Do the Huaorani have any rights to the land legally, historically, or morally?
Who benefits from development and in what specific ways? Who does not benefit from
development?
Who benefits from the LACK of development and in what ways? (Who does not)?
In this case, is development of the Amazon Rainforest a modern day extension of colonialism? If
so, what specific aspects of the colonial mindset are present? Which aspects of colonialism are
not? Which aspects appear with slight alterations?
2. (Main Debate Question) Should the Ecuadorian government and missionaries build schools to
civilize the Huaorani? Why or why not?
Is the traditional Huaorani culture “backwards” or “savage”? In what ways are the Huaorani
“morally inferior” and in need of “modernization”?
Does the traditional Huaorani culture have any assets? What kinds of cultural wealth (resistant
capital, navigational capital, linguistic capital, etc.) exist in the Huaorani’s traditional culture?
Should any of their assets be preserved in the missionary schools? Is it possible to preserve
these assets if the schools are run by missionaries?
What is the motivation for building the schools? Is it done in a spirit of charity or solidarity?
(Use Eduardo Galeano’s definition of the terms or Michael Parenti’s arguments about charity).
Is bi-culturalism – acceptance of both modern and traditional values - possible in these
schools?