The journey through the debating process started out with much angst. I had absolutely no debating skills and didn’t have a full understanding of how this would unfold in the online learning environment. My first thought was if I’m assigned the pro side of an issue that I am passionately against how can I prepare an effective debate in support of that issue. Virginia very efficiently clarified that the debate should be based on reliable references and not on passion and debating on an assigned side forces you to look at issues from all perspectives as opposed to just your own perspective. I have to say preparing for the debate involved a huge amount of time in researching the topic from all angles and preparing your stance and supporting argument while at the same time anticipating your opponent’s arguments. As I posted my debate online I felt a little anxious and unsure if what I prepared was appropriate and acceptable.  I enjoyed preparing the rebuttal because I had an enormous amount of references to draw on including most of the references my opponent used which was helpful for refuting some of her supporting arguments. The feedback was welcomed and very rewarding, everyone was very professional and provided very constructive feedback which was helpful in preparing my closing arguments. In terms of debating in the future, I have to say I will approach it with much less angst and with the realization that it requires a huge amount of time and energy. Nonetheless the debating process in this course was a very effective teaching strategy in terms of learning debating skills, research skills and as well as learning the pros and cons to every issue presented.  I’ve learned so much about the issues facing nursing and health care in general in this process.  It has been a wonderful debating journey!