DEBATE

SMS SEMBERONG, KLUANG

21-25 SEPTEMBER 2011

Why DEBATE?
a way to facilitate research and discussion of an issue in the curriculum. Whether it is used for the latter purpose or not, the recipients will benefit from developing

public speaking skills, critical thinking skills, research skills and teamwork skills.

Format of the Debate

A debate will consist of two teams; one to propose the motion and one to oppose it. The team proposing may be known as 'The Proposition', 'The Affirmative' or 'The Government'. The team opposing may be known as 'The Opposition' or 'The Negative'.

DEBATE that we know

often involve two teams of two people speaking in a specific order THE AFFIRMATIVE/GOVERNEMNT a) Prime Minister, or Leader of the Affirmative. b) Deputy Prime Minister or Second Affirmative. c) Government Whip, or Third Affirmative. THE NEGATIVE/OPPOSITION a) Leader of the Opposition, or Negative. b) Deputy Leader of the Opposition / Second Negative. c) Opposition Whip, or Third Negative.

Debaters (or members) will speak in the following order:

i) Prime Minister, or 1st Affirmative. ii) Leader of Opposition, or 1st Negative. iii) Deputy Prime Minister or 2nd Affirmative. iv) Deputy Leader of Opposition, or 2nd Negative. v) Government Rebate, or 3rd Affirmative. vi) Opposition Whip, or 3rd Negative. vii) Negative Reply (given by 1st or 2nd Negative). viii) Affirmative Reply (given by 1st or 2nd Affirmative).

 A debate shall be run under the auspices of a 'Speaker' who shall be referred to as 'The Speaker of the House' or 'Mister/Madam Speaker'. A debate shall be adjudicated by a panel comprising an odd number of adjudicators. A debate shall be timed by a timekeeper. Speakers not 'holding the floor' may not raise during speech unless it is to offer a 'Point of Information also known as P.O.I.

P.O.I
Points of Information may be offered during constructive speeches, after the first single knock of the gavel and up to the second single knock of the gavel. Points of Information may not be offered during the first and last minutes of constructive speeches. Points of Information may not be offered during reply speeches.

How to P.O.I?
A 'Point of Information' must be indicated by a member of an opposing team rising from his/her seat, placing one hand on top of his/her head and extending the other towards the member holding the floor. A member offering a Point of Information may draw attention to the offer by saying "on that point Sir/Madam," or similar. A member holding the floor must respond to an opposing member, or members offering Points of Information, in one of the following ways. A clear gesture rejecting the offer. A verbal rejection of the offer, or A verbal acceptance of the offer.

A TYPICAL ROOM LAYOUT FOR A DEBATE

Remember, the format is flexible.

The Affirmative / The Government Opening speech

THE MOTION: THE INTERNET BRINGS MORE HARM THAN GOOD TO TODAYS YOUTH

The Motion: The Internet Brings More Harm Than Good to Todays Youth The Opposition / The Negative speech

The Internet Brings More Harm Than Good to Todays Youth

REBUT

DEBATE Topics
Should violent video games be banned? The influence of television on budding minds - good or bad. Use of cell phones in school. Should grading system in schools be abolished? Is law a bit too soft on the celebrities? Are humans responsible for extinction of animal species from the planet? Media cencorship pros and cons. Are school uniforms good or bad Are video games good for you Justin Bieber vs Britney Spears

An Overview of the Pros and Cons of Social Networking

Social networking sites are rapidly gaining popularity among the youth today and are now a great source of communication. It also serve the purpose of bringing long lost friends and families together. There are now many such social networking sites around, that have laid down a platform for people of different parts of the world to come together. Also, these sites are treated as a stage to set up small businesses or even promote brands to gain some potential clients. However, the trend of being a part of these social networking sites is more visible among teenagers and youth. These youngsters are at all times engrossed in the world of networking, without really knowing its benefits as well as dangers. As social networking comes with many advantages, it also has its own bad side to it. Read further to get an overview of the various pros and cons of social networking.

Pros of Social Networking

There are so many ways in which social networking has changed our lives for the better. Let us have a look at the most important ones. The role and future of social networking sites is to maintain simple and easy interaction among people. Friends who have lost touch can again connect with each other always stay in touch. Also, with the various privacy settings, one can customize their profiles and categorize their friends and family accordingly, and make groups to make chatting easy. These sites always help people to stay connected most of the times, and makes sharing and talking easy.

 Other than only connecting with friends, many people can even meet and talk to other people who come from different countries, and get to know their culture and way of living. It is good platform for getting to know different people. Also, it provides us with cheaper communication. Through social networking sites, promoting your business idea is simple, as one can find potential clients by just sitting at home. Sharing pictures and videos is also possible through these sites. They give the opportunity to create your albums and videos, and post them in your profile. With the facility of sharing pictures and also chatting, the distance between people has reduced too.

Cons of Social Networking

Though these sites bring a lot of benefits to people all around, the basic purpose of them is being abused too. Let us take a look at the various disadvantages of social networking sites too. Social networking sites require people to create their own profile on the site. These profiles are created out of revealing one's personal details, which could be misused by other unknown people. The profile demands the certain interests and contact details that could cause a problem for youngsters. There are certain social networking sites that provide privacy settings, by which one can hide all their personal information to strangers, and keep it visible to only known friends. However, many are not aware of these privacy settings and do not use them correctly.

 Also, some youngsters are willing to abuse someone else's space or privacy, and even create a fake profile to cause them problems. In this case, the person must immediately block such a profile, which will stop such kind of disturbances to their privacy. Online scams, stalking, identity theft, etc., are other huge and stressful problems that are caused under these social networking sites. There is also a possibility of your account being hacked. This could be a huge problem as the hacker might tend to forward obscene pictures or send messages through your account to your social network. To avoid this, one must keep a check on the privacy settings, and the password must be renewed from time to time. Last but not the least, millions of people around the world are addicted to these networking mediums, and for no constructive purposes, which results in a lot of waste of productive time that could be used for something better.

To conclude
People of all ages can be a part of the social network. However, maintaining strict privacy and not intruding into anyone else's space is essential to avoid any sort of bad practices. These sites are brought up for the purpose of bringing people of similar interests together, and to even promote an idea of business to reach out to people all around the world. When the authenticity of such sites is maintained, then one can realize the actual purpose and potential of social networking websites.