Congrats on getting your papers completed. Isn't it a relief?
The debate process was certainly interesting!  When I first found out we would be doing a debate, I admit I wasn't thrilled but thought I'd ride it out and see what would happen. As I started my own research on my topic, I started to enjoy having to figure out what material I would use to challenge my opponent. I loved reading everyone's debate and found that I learned a lot from them. 
In the end, I really enjoyed the debate process. Even though it lasted a week and was a lot of work, I thought it was worthwhile. I think that I get into a rut with just writing papers. It was nice to shake things up and stretch my brain into thinking in a different way. 
I have really appreciated getting to "know" everyone in this course. It is obvious that you are all so smart!  
So I think that this was an effective teaching/learning strategy in that it made me think about breaking down my opponent's argument and figure out where the fallacies may lie. 
Have a great day, everyone!