When students learn to debate, they gain valuable life skills. Debates teach kids to research their topic, make informed choices, and argue effectively using facts instead of emotion. This list of middle school debate topics encompasses both serious and lighthearted ideas for kids ages 10 to 14. Each topic includes a link to an article from a reliable source that provides pros and/or cons to help kids make their arguments.
- School and Education Debate Topics
- Technology and Entertainment Debate Topics
- Life and Ethics Debate Topics
- Fun and Funny Debate Topics
- Controversial Debate Topics
School and Education Debate Topics
- It’s better to be good at academics than to be good at sports.
- Homework should be banned.
- Schools should require all students to wear uniforms.
- We should punish students for using curse words.
- Year-round school is better for students.
- Schools should require physical education (gym class) through 12th grade.
- All students should be required to volunteer in their community.
- Junk food should be banned in schools.
- All middle school students should learn a foreign language.
- Single-gender schools are better for students.
- Math is the most important school subject.
- Letter grades should be abolished.
- Teachers should be replaced by computers.
- Students should be graded on their handwriting.
- Kids who get better grades in school will be more successful in life.
- Sometimes it’s OK to cheat on homework or a test.
- Students who fail a test should be given the chance to take it again.
- Students should be allowed to grade teachers.
- Kids should be able to bring their pets to school.
- Schools should give middle school students more recess time.
- The school day should be shorter.
- Schools should eliminate dress codes.
- College should be free for everyone who wants to attend.
- Schools should be allowed to ban some books from their libraries.
- Book smarts are better than street smarts.
Technology and Entertainment Debate Topics
- All people should have free internet access.
- Playing violent video games makes people more likely to be violent in real life.
- Reality television depicts real life.
- The minimum age to own a smartphone should be 16.
- Students should be allowed to use phones in class.
- Macs are better than PCs.
- Androids are better than iPhones.
- Kids under 13 should be allowed to use social media sites like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat.
- Students should not be allowed to watch TV on school nights.
- Social media does more harm than good.
- Video games are better than board games.
- Reading books is better than watching TV.
- All paper documents should be replaced with electronic versions.
- Books are always better than the movies that are made from them.
- Parents should use their kids’ cell phones to track where they are.
- Playing video games makes you smarter.
- Scientists should try to develop a way for everyone to live forever.
- Paper books are better than e-books.
- Schools should have surveillance cameras in classrooms and hallways.
- Movie ratings (G, PG, PG-13, and R) should be done away with.
Life and Ethics Debate Topics
- Professional athletes and celebrities deserve to make more money than the average person.
- People have a responsibility to help one another out.
- No one should ever tell a lie.
- Girls face more peer pressure than boys.
- We should lower the voting age to 12.
- Every member of a family should have daily chores.
- All museums and zoos should be free to everyone.
- All people should be vegetarians.
- Democracy is the best form of government.
- All Americans should be required to vote.
- Cigarette smoking and vaping should be banned entirely.
- Parents should be allowed to read their children’s private diaries.
- Giving is better than receiving.
- Receiving a regular allowance is good for kids.
- Parents should be punished for their children’s mistakes.
- Real Christmas trees are better than artificial ones.
- We should not keep animals in zoos.
- All kids should play on the same sports teams, regardless of gender.
- It is better to save some of your allowance than to spend it all.
- Kids should be allowed to stay up as late as they want.
- Happiness is more important than success.
- The driving age should be lowered to 14.
- We should completely ban plastic bottles.
- Parents should have to take a parenting class before having a child.
- If you find money on the ground, it’s automatically yours to keep.
- It is better to be kind than to be truthful.
- All kids should have a playground or park within walking distance of their home.
- Kids should be allowed to have credit cards.
- It’s important to spend money exploring space.
Fun and Funny Debate Topics
- All families should have a pet.
- Dogs are better pets than cats.
- Summer is better than winter.
- Pepperoni is the best pizza topping.
- Teachers shouldn’t give rewards and prizes in the classroom.
- Clowns are more scary than funny.
- Every home should have a robot.
- There is intelligent life on other planets.
- The egg came before the chicken.
- Pop music is better than classical music.
- Xbox is better than PlayStation.
- Peanut butter is better than Nutella.
- Football is better than soccer.
- Everyone should make their bed every day.
- It would be better to be able to fly than to be able to turn invisible.
- Harry Potter is better than The Lord of the Rings.
- Pluto should still be considered a planet.
- Santa Claus’ elves should be paid minimum wage.
- Hot chocolate is better than a chocolate milkshake.
- Fruit counts as dessert.
- People should be allowed to go barefoot anywhere if they want to.
- Fiction is better than nonfiction.
- Everyone should learn to play a musical instrument.
- Werewolves are more dangerous than vampires.
- Kids shouldn’t have to go to school on their birthdays.
Controversial Middle School Debate Topics
These middle school debate topics are pretty contentious and might not be appropriate for all students or every classroom. But if your middle schoolers are ready to take on more serious debates, try these important questions.
- We should abolish the death penalty.
- Stricter gun control laws help stop mass shootings.
- It’s necessary to continue building a wall between the United States and Mexico.
- Segregation still exist in the United States.
- Religion does more harm than good.
- We will never achieve world peace.
- We shouldn’t allow young children to play contact sports like football.
- Parents shouldn’t be allowed to pierce a baby’s ears.
- Beauty pageants are sexist.
- Kids shouldn’t get participation trophies for sports.
- It’s possible to be an ethical hunter.
- Some stereotypes are accurate.
- People have a responsibility to step in when they see a crime in action.
- War is sometimes necessary.
- There are times when we must limit freedom of speech.
- Security is more important than freedom.
- We should do away with gender-specific public bathrooms.
- Anyone over age 12 should be tried as an adult in court.
- Electric vehicles are better than gas-powered ones.
- Our society has a harmful “diet culture.”
- All countries should have to give up their nuclear weapons.
- We should ban testing on animals.
- We should ban the use of fossil fuels.
- Human cloning should be legal.
- Vaccines should be mandatory.
What are your favorite middle school debate topics? Come share in the We Are Teachers HELPLINE group on Facebook.
Plus, check out 75 Funny Debate Topics for Kids of All Ages.
