HOW TO DEBATE

What is Debating?

A debate is a structured argument. Two sides speak alternately for and against a particular contention
usually based on a topical issue. Unlike the arguments you might have with your family or friends
however, each person is allocated a time they are allowed to speak for and any interjections are
carefully controlled. The subject of the dispute is often prearranged so you may find yourself having to
support opinions with which you do not normally agree. You also have to argue as part of a team, being
careful not to contradict what others on your side have said.

Why debate?

It is an excellent way of improving speaking skills and is particularly helpful in providing experience in
developing a convincing argument. Those of you who are forced to argue against your natural point of
view realize that arguments, like coins, always have at least two sides.

The Basic Debating Skills

Style

Style is the manner in which you communicate your arguments. This is the most basic part of debating
to master. Content and strategy are worth little unless you deliver your material in a confident and
persuasive way.
Speed

It is vital to talk at a pace which is fast enough to sound intelligent and allow you time to say what you
want, but slow enough to be easily understood.

Tone

Varying tone is what makes you sound interesting. Listening to one tone for an entire presentation is
boring.

Volume

Speaking quite loudly is sometimes a necessity, but it is by no means necessary to shout through every
debate regardless of context. There is absolutely no need speak any more loudly than the volume at
which everyone in the room can comfortably hear you. Shouting does not win debates. Speaking too
quietly is clearly disastrous since no one will be able to hear you.

Clarity

The ability to concisely and clearly express complex issues is what debating is all about. The main reason
people begin to sound unclear is usually because they lose the stream of thought which is keeping
them going. It is also important to keep it simple. While long words may make you sound clever, they
may also make you incomprehensible.

Use of notes and eye contact

Notes are essential, but they must be brief and well organized to be effective. There is absolutely no
point in trying to speak without notes. Of course, notes should never become obtrusive and damage
your contact with the audience, nor should they ever be read from verbatim. Most people sketch out
the main headings of their speech, with brief notes under each.

When writing notes for rebuttal during the debate, it is usually better to use a separate sheet of paper
so you can take down the details of what the other speakers have said and then transfer a rough outline
onto the notes you will actually be using.

Eye contact with the audience is very important, but keep shifting your gaze. No one likes to be stared
at.

Content

Content is what you actually say in the debate. The arguments used to develop your own sides case and
rebut the opposite sides. The information on content provided below is a general overview of what will
be expected when you debate. The final logistics of how long you will be debating, how many people
will be in your group, and how the debate will unfold (ie: which team speaks first etc.), will all be
decided by your tutorial leader.

Case (argument)- the whole

Introduction - The case your group is making must be outlined in the introduction. This involves stating
your main arguments and explaining the general thrust of your case. This must be done briefly since the
most important thing is to get on and actually argue it. It is also a good idea to indicate the aspects of
the subject to be discussed by each of the team members.

Conclusion - At the end, once everyone has spoken, it is useful to briefly summarize what your group has
said and why.
Case (argument)- the parts

Having outlined the whole of your argument, you must then begin to build a case (the parts). The best
way to do this is to divide your case into between two and four arguments (or divide your case based on
the number of people in your group). You must justify your arguments with basic logic, worked
examples, statistics, and quotes. Debating is all about the strategy of proof. Proof, or evidence,
supporting your assertion is what makes it an argument. There are a number of ways of dividing up
cases according to groups of arguments (eg political/economic/social or moral/practical or
international/regional etc.) or just according to individual arguments if you cant group any together.
Under each of these basic headings you should then explain the reasoning behind the argument and
justify it using the methods outlined above. It is usually best to put the most important arguments first.
Here is an example of a case outline:

The media exert more influence over what people think than the government does. This is true for
three reasons. Firstly, most people base their votes on what they see and hear in the media. Secondly,
the media can set the political agenda between elections by deciding what issues to report and in how
much detail. Thirdly, the media have successfully demonized politicians over the last ten years so that
now people are more likely to believe journalists than politicians.

All of the arguments in this case outline are debatable (almost immediately you can see the counter-
arguments), but they give the case a wide range which cover all kinds of issues. The trick is not to come
up with a watertight case, but a well argued one. Think: Can I argue that?

Rebuttal the parts

Arguments can be factually, morally or logically flawed. They may be misinterpretations or they may also
be unimportant or irrelevant. A team may also contradict one another or fail to complete the tasks they
set themselves. These are the basics of rebuttal and almost every argument can be found wanting in at
least one of these respects. Here are a few examples:
1. Compulsory euthanasia at age 70 would save the country money in pensions and healthcare. This
is true, but is morally flawed.

2. Banning cigarette product placement in films will cause more young people to smoke because it will
make smoking more mysterious and taboo. This is logically flawed, the ban would be more likely to
stop the steady stream of images which make smoking seem attractive and glamorous and actually
reduce the number of young people smoking.

3. My partner will then look at the economic issues... Blah..blah..blah...(5 minutes later and still no
mention of the economic issues) This is a clear failure to explain a major part of the case and attention
should be drawn to it. Even better is when a speaker starts with, to win this debate there are three
things I must do. If the speaker fails to do any of those things you can then hang her or him by the
noose by repeating their exact words by his or her own admission he or she cannot have won the
debate.

Rebuttal the whole:

It is very important to have a good perspective of the debate and to identify what the key arguments
are. It isnt enough to rebut a few random arguments here and there. Of course the techniques used
above are invaluable but they must be used appropriately. There are a number of things you should do
to systematically break down a teams case:

1. Ask yourself how the other side have approached the case. Is their methodology flawed?

2. Consider what tasks the other side set themselves (if any) and whether they have in fact addressed
these.

3. Consider what the general emphasis of the case is and what assumptions it makes. Try to refute
these.
4. Take the main arguments and do the same thing. It is not worth repeating a point of rebuttal that
has been used by someone else already, but you can refer to it to show that the argument has not stood
up. It is not necessary to correct every example used. You wont have time and your aim is to show the
other sides case to be flawed in the key areas.

Sources

The information included in the document How to Debate was adapted from:

Kidd, A. (2002). The oxford union rough guide to debating. The English Speaking Union. Retrieved August
26, 2002 from the World Wide Web: http://www.britishdebate.com/resources/hb_oxfordguide.htm

BACK TO INDEX

How to Conduct a Class Debate

Introduce the topic

All debates start with a topic, or resolution. Often, this resolution is a proposed course of action that one
team will argue for and another will argue against. Choose a topic to which your students can relate and
perhaps one with practical application. You can make the topic less serious (the cafeteria should include
more international dishes on the daily menu) or more serious (the U.S. government should reform its
visa application process). In any case, be sure that your students understand the issue and any
specialized vocabulary that goes with it.
2

Assign the Affirmative and the Negative

There are two sides to any debate. Naturally, one will argue for and another against the resolution. With
ESL students, it is best to group your students into teams to research and argue the issue rather than
expecting one student to do all the work. This way one student does not have all the pressure to
perform, and the other members of the group can help with comprehension and strategy. Ideally, break
your class into four groups (you will want at least three students in each group) and assign two groups to
each of two resolutions. Then assign one of each pair of student groups to the affirmative. This group
will argue for the issues being presented. The other two groups will be the negative and will argue
against the resolutions. During the debate, the other groups will serve as the judges and decide which
side presented a stronger case voting for the winners of the debate at its conclusion.

Give Time for Research

Your students will need time to research the issue. Not only that, they will also need additional
instruction on the specific vocabulary that may be involved. Make sure all of your students understand
any specialized vocabulary so the efficacy of their arguments does not depend on simple
comprehension. Encourage each group to form a strategy as to who will do most of the talking during
the debate though remind them that all of them are expected to participate in the research and strategy
of the debate. Then, during the preparation time in anticipation of the rebuttal, your students should
discuss with their teams the points the opposition made and decide how to refute them.

Keep Track of Time

If you are unfamiliar with formal debate, the speakers follow a set order. The following is the most basic
of debate structure.

First, the affirmative group receives two minutes to present their case to the audience.

The negative group then receives two minutes to present their case.
After both sides have a chance to speak, both teams receive two minutes to prepare a rebuttal and
summary. The order of speech is reversed now and the negative side presents their rebuttal and
summary for the first two minutes.

The last to speak is the affirmative team who then presents their rebuttal and summary for two
minutes. The debate is now concluded.

There are other structures that you can follow for debate, and they may be useful once your class is
familiar with the process and strategy of debate, but if this is the first time your students are formally
debating, keeping things simple is best.

Make a Judgment

Usually in debate, the winner is the one who has presented the strongest case. For ESL classes, the
overall purpose of speaking is more important than the specific outcome of the debate. Still, your
students will probably want to know who won. To determine the winner, have the audience vote on
which team they thought made the most convincing argument. With this, weigh your own opinion as to
who communicated clearly and refuted the opponents arguments best. This combination will identify
your winners.

Your grading process, on the other hand, does not have to name a winner and a loser. As long as your
students were able to communicate clearly, use good grammar, and have good pronunciation, the
debate was a success, and their grades should reflect that success.

Though debates are often formal and structured, do not let them intimidate you. Controversial issues
are always a great resource for ESL students speaking practice, and discussing the issues in a formal
manner is just as valuable as informal class discussions.

The next time your curriculum brings up a controversial issue, why not use it as an occasion for a class
debate and give your students a new and structured experience of spoken English!
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Essential Tips for Conducting a Class Debate

Susan Verner BY SUSAN VERNER aug11,2017

http://busyteacher.org/7245-conducting-class-debate-essential-tips.html

Benefits of Debating
http://www.qatardebate.org/debate-and-
debating/benefits-of-debating

Decades of academic research have proven that the benefits that accrue as a result of engaging in
debate are numerous. Debate provides experiences that are conducive to life-changing, cognitive, and
presentational skills. In addition, through debate debaters acquire unique educational benefits as they
learn and polish skills far beyond what can be learnt in any other setting.

At the very least, debate helps learners to see the power of deploying rational, reasoned arguments and
compelling evidence in action. It enables them to elucidate their standpoint through utilizing rhetorical
eloquence. It instills in debaters a great sense of poise and confidence. It teaches them the skills of
researching, organizing, and presenting information in a compelling fashion.

In general, the benefits of debate include:

Gaining broad, multi-faceted knowledge cutting across several disciplines outside the learner's normal
academic subjects.

Increasing learners confidence, poise, and self-esteem.

Providing an engaging, active, learner-centered activity.

Improving rigorous higher order and critical thinking skills.

Enhancing the ability to structure and organize thoughts.

Enhancing learners analytical, research and note-taking kills

Improving learners ability to form balanced, informed arguments and to use reasoning and evidence.

Developing effective speech composition and delivery.

Encouraging teamwork.

Rules of Debate

(condensed from Competitive Debate: Rules and Techniques,

by George McCoy Musgrave. New York: H.W. Wilson, 1957)

1. There are two teams, each consisting of two or three speakers.

2. Each team has two or three constructive speeches, and two to three rebuttal speeches. The
affirmative gives the first constructive speech, and the rebuttals alternate: negative, affirmative,
negative, affirmative. The affirmative has both the first and last speeches of the debate.

3. When worded as a proposition of policy, the topic requires the affirmative to support some specified
action by some particular individual or group. The affirmative has the right to make any reasonable
definition of each of the terms of the proposition. If the negative challenges the reasonableness of a
definition by the affirmative, the judge must accept the definition of the team that shows better
grounds for its interpretation of the term.

4. The affirmative must advocate everything required by the topic itself. No revision of position of a
team is permitted during the debate.

5. He who asserts must prove. In order to establish an assertion, the team must support it with enough
evidence and logic to convince an intelligent but previously uninformed person that it is more
reasonable to believe the assertion than to disbelieve it. Facts must be accurate. Visual materials are
permissible, and once introduced, they become available for the opponents' use if desired.
6. In the questioning period, the questioner may ask any fair, clear question that has a direct bearing on
the debate. The questioner may use the period to build up any part of his own case, to tear down any
part of his opposition's case, or to ascertain facts, such as the opposition's position on a certain issue,
that can be used later in the debate. The questioner must confine himself to questions and not make
statements, comments, or ask rhetorical questions.

7. Each speaker is questioned as soon as he concludes his constructive speech. The witness must answer
the questions without consulting his colleagues.

8. No new constructive arguments may be introduced in the rebuttal period. The affirmative must, if
possible, reply to the major negative arguments before the last rebuttal.

9. The judge must base his decision entirely on the material presented, without regard for other
material which he may happen to possess.

10. Any gains made outside of the established procedure are disallowed.