Name: _______________________________
Structured Academic Controversy
Whether you like it or not controversy is a part of life. When people disagree there are two paths to take. One
path is ignorance (lack of knowledge), when you choose to not to listen or understand another’s point of view.
The other path is understanding, when you listen to another point of view and try to learn from it. When
controversy arises usually the best plan of action is to get all the facts. Once you have the facts you are equipped
with the wisdom necessary to deal with the problem.
History is full of controversy. Since the beginning of mankind, human interaction has resulted in problems. The
Structured Academic Controversy (aka SAC) is a class activity that lets you explore both sides of a controversy
and gain the facts necessary to take a position (or point of view). Here is how it works:
Step 1: You take a side (it does not matter which) and become an expert on the facts.
Step 2: You take notes in box A about your side, writing down all the arguments that you think best
defends your position.
Step 3: You argue your case against the opposing side.
Step 4: You read the facts about the other side.
Step 5: You take notes in box B on any arguments the other side missed.
Step 6: You argue the other side’s position for them.
Step 7: You meet with the other side and come to a compromise as a group. Answer the controversial
question together in Box C
Box A -Your Side ________
Box B - Their Side ________
Box C
Columbian Exchange: Ultimately was it GOOD or BAD for the world?
Columbian Exchange: Ultimately was it GOOD or BAD for the world?
Introduction
With the arrival of Christopher Columbus, biological life of the Old and New worlds began to mix. The transfer
of plants, animals, food, human populations, diseases, and culture between the Eastern and Western Hemisphere
is known as the Columbian Exchange. The Columbian Exchange had dramatic and long lasting effects on the
world. Your job today is to decide if the Columbian Exchange was good or bad for the world.
Resources:
Text Source:
Learn NC - http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/nchist-twoworlds/1866
Graphic Sources:
http://www.vhinkle.com/modern/studyguide33.html
http://www.darke.k12.oh.us/curriculum/SocialStudies/ColumbianExchangelesson.pdf
http://ljaworldhist15.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/a-global-age-exploration-and-the-columbian-exchange/
http://www.openherd.com/articles/61/rising-sun-alpacas---alpaca-vs-llama-what-are-the-differences??
The Columbian Exchange was GOOD.
Before European arrival llamas and alpacas were the main domesticated
animals used by natives. Native Americans eagerly adopted the horses, cattle,
sheep, goats, and pigs brought from Europe in the Columbian Exchange.
Since the Americas had no large domestic sources of meat, these animals
became important sources of protein in the New World. Of all the animals, the
horse had the most dramatic impact on Native Americans. They quickly
learned to ride and raise horses. As Europeans moved in to what is today the
southwestern United States the horse population quickly grew. Eventually the
arrival of the horse in the Great Plains revolutionized Native American live
making their nomadic lifestyles easier and the hunt for buffalo far more
effective.
Crops from the Americas transformed life around the Eastern Hemisphere. Crops like potatoes, tomatoes, various
beans, and peanuts spread throughout the Old World. The most important of which was maize (corn). Maize
would eventually establish itself in North Africa, the Ottoman Empire, Eastern Europe, and even China. Maize is
not only good for feeding people but animals too. Maize became and still is a staple of the diet for many poor
people around the world. In Northern Europe, especially Ireland, the potato also had a tremendous impact.
Potatoes thrived in the northern climates and its gradual acceptance allowed populations to explode in Europe.
The increase in people may have laid the foundations for developments like the Industrial Revolution.
The trade and new goods established global relationships and created a new source of wealth for Europeans.
Without the Columbian Exchange modern, multicultural societies in North and South America would not exist.
Mercantilism was adapted by Europe during the Columbian Exchange. Wealth for European nations
depended on the amount of gold, silver, and other treasures the nation had. By establishing colonies in the
New World, European nations had markets they could sell to and establish a favorable balance of trade where
the countries could sell more goods than they bought. In other world nations like England would take
materials from the colonies, turn them into a product, and then sell those products to the colonies making the
profit. Mercantilism was one the reasons for our American colonies. This quote explains the benefits of
mercantilism. By Philipp Wilhelm von Hornick - Austria Over All if Only She Will
“If the might and eminence [fame] of a country consist in its surplus of gold, silver, and all other things
necessary or convenient for its subsistence, derived, so far as possible, from its own resources (colonies
and conquered territories included) , without dependence upon other countries, and in the proper
fostering, use, and application of these, then it follows that a general national economy (LandesOeconomie) should consider how such a surplus, fostering, and enjoyment can be brought about,
without dependence upon others, or where this is not feasible in every respect, with as little dependence
as possible upon foreign countries, and sparing use of the country's own cash.”
The Columbian Exchange was BAD.
The most significant effects of the Columbian
Exchange were felt by the Native Americans.
These first inhabitants of the Americas enjoyed the
freedom from most infectious diseases. At the time
of Columbus’ arrival in 1492 it is believed that as
many as 40 to 60 million natives lived in the
Americas. With the arrival of European Explorers,
came the introduction of disease. With no
immunities (the body’s ability to resist infection) to
these diseases, millions died. On some islands
entire populations were wiped out. One of the most
deadly diseases was smallpox.
This photograph of a smallpox victim appeared in the
Baltimore Health News in 1939 as a warning to people
who had not been vaccinated. (“This Man Was Never
Vaccinated Against Smallpox,” Baltimore Health
News 16, no. 2 (Nov. 1939). Image provided by Chapin
Library of Rare Books, Williams College.)
The introduction of new crops and domesticated
animals also upset the biological, economic, and
social balance in the Americas. While many of
the European crops grew poorly at first, it did
not take long for the crops to flourish. Sugar,
rice, wheat, and cotton became mainstays of the
economies in the Americas. This also formed
the need for slave labor to meet the demand
from European societies for these crops. The
transfer of slaves is part of what is known as the
Triangular Trade where slaves, sugar, and other
goods were traded.
The drastic change in the human population also
had an impact on the ecological and economic
balance. Ecologically, forest regrew and
previously hunted animals increased in numbers.
Economically, there was a shortage of labor which
created a need that slavery would have to fill. With
the introduction of slaves came other diseases and
thus the Native Americans suffered even more. It
is estimated that 90 to 95 percent of the Native
population died between the arrival of Columbus in
the 1492 and the end of the 1700s.