Debating

- Prepared Debates: You are given a topic and have weeks to brainstorm
- On-The-Spot Debates: You have a topic and have an hour to debate
- A debate is a controlled argument
- If there is someone of power in the debate – it isn’t a debate
- Being a debater will help with your ability to persuade
- Be able to convince the adjudicator that your team has a stronger case.
- You are a member of your team.
- You must work with your team
- You must think on your feet while you are sitting with your team
- If someone says something you disagree with, write it down immediately
to give to your speaker.
- Rebut everything someone else is saying
- Have Fun
- It will help with persuasive essays
- Debating will teach you how to contrast an argument
- Debating will help you with Public Speaking
- Two Teams: Affirmative team and the Negative team
- Affirmative sits on the stage left, provides a chair person to invite people
to talk.
- Chair Person doesn’t sit next to the team
- Chair Person doesn’t have a role in helping the team
- Negative team provides time-keeper and sits apart as well
- Affirmative goes first
- Adjudicator is the person you have to convince of the topic.
- You are marked in:
 Matter (Your Arguments, what you say) (/40)
 Manner (How you say it, projection, eye contact, confidence) (/40)
 Method (Following the structure that you should have as a particular
speaker) (/20)
- 30 is average for Matter and Manner, 15 is average for method. (75 is a
good score).
- Debates can be REALLY close
- There MUST be a winner
- Go in with an open mind, ready to be convinced
 - Matter is most important for adjudicators (If a tie, they will go with
Matter)
- MATTER:
A debate should be won on matter – it’s what convinces an adjudicator.
You have about 2 points per speaker, and they must be different (So 6 points
all up).
You need evidence for your point – something to back it up. Current affairs
(Topics can sometimes be taken from them), cite your sources and don’t use
personal affairs (or, if you do, make them IMAGINE a HYPOTHETICAL scenario).
Try to stay away from Ancient History and Religion (unless it is the same as the
topic)
First Affirmative Speaker is the first speaker – don’t have to rebut the other
speakers.
- Use peel in your debating arguments
- If you can use PEEL for your arguments, you will show the point more.
P: Point (Cats are better than dogs)
E: Explain (This means, a cat makes a far better pet then dogs ever will.)
E: Evidence or Example (Dogs are annoying)
L: Linking Sentence (This clearly shows that cats are better)
- Speak slowly… but don’t speak too slow.
- Don’t make fun of the other team (not allowed)
- ‘The opposition has tried to tell you this: It’s clearly wrong’
- Have PALM CARDS (THAT ACTUALLY FIT IN YOUR PALM)
- If you MUST use a piece of paper, you can get yourself a desk and put it
on the desk (You won’t get marked down, but most adjudicators don’t
agree)
- No notes on:
- MOBILE PHONE
- LAPTOPS
- TABLETS
- You probably will be nervous, but don’t worry (at this level, anyway!)
- You won’t get extra marks for memorising
- Have dot points on your palm cards
 - Adjudicators don’t like it if you talk to your team.
- You can sit in any order you want.
- You speak in the middle of the stage
- Adjudicators don’t want you to speak when someone else is speaking
- If you want to communicate, write it down on palm cards and slide it
over
- METHOD
Structure of your speech
REALLY important for the last few points
Each speaker has a definite role in the debate
The third speaker isn’t allowed any points.
Points supporting your case.
Keep it clear.
‘Sign Post’
Tell your audience what you’re going to tell them, then tell them, then tell
them what you told them. (Sign Posting)
Tonight I have 3 points,
These will be ________ (don’t start with PEEL yet)
I am moving on to my first point:
[Point 1]
Now, my second point:
[Point 2]
And finally, my last point:
[Point 3]
Tonight, I had three points [1], [2], and [3].

SIGN POSTING IS IMPORTANT!

- Do not speak for more than 6 minutes 30 seconds. (The adjudicator will
stop listening!)
- You may not have finished, had a summary or linked it back.
- It will downgrade your Method
- If you speak for less than 3 minutes, it shows you haven’t had enough to
talk about. It will affect your Matter
- You will know what you’re doing – you can change your stuff on the fly.
- Warning bell at 3 minutes
- There are 3 types of topics:
- The Statements ([X] is better than [Y] e.g. Ninjas are better than
pirates. Negative will be Ninjas ARENT better than pirates, not Pirates
are better than ninjas!)
- Comparison (AFL is more exciting than cricket)
- Should Debate (Every student Should learn a language other than
English)
- For Should’s, must argue a MORAL and a PRATICAL (money, cost, job
opportunities)
- You need to define a word a certain way (What is a ninja, what is a
pirate?)
- Don’t wander
- Have small gestures, but no massive ones
- PRACTISE, PRACTISE, PRACTISE!!!!!
- The first Affirmative should be for 4 minutes because they don’t need
Rebuttal.
- Other speakers, leave room for rebuttals
- Definitions:
- First Affirmative Speaker: DEFINE THE TOPIC. What does that mean?
- First Negative Speaker: Accept the definition, expand on the definition
- A definition is what a person on the street would say (Not what the
dictionary says)
- Go with the context of the debate
- We will have approx. 4-6 points a team (You can have 3 or 2 or even 4!)
- Try to group your points
- One speaker will be broad, the next will be narrowed.
- The two main speaker roles seem to be
Social: Person 1
Society: Person 2
- Little bits can be grouped (Society and Environmental)
 - Don’t make your speech a Cliché
- Use your case line sparingly
- Case Line: ‘Make America Great Again’, ‘Ease the Squeeze’, e.c.t
- You can survey
- First Affirmative
Sets the definition, comes out strong, makes a case line, introduces.
‘Tonight, we have split our points into Society and Economics’
[Argument]
- First Negative
May have a rebuttal
Gives a greeting, Accept/Reject Definition, Rebuttal, [Argument],
- You can put some light humour, but not a stand up routine. Be careful
with it.
- 4 minutes per person per team (12 minutes per team, 24 overall, 30
total)
- Attack the team, not the speaker
‘The negative team said…’
- Restate the points your first speaker said.
- Our first speaker took the social side, I am now taking the personal side
e.c.t
- Third Speaker (Positive and Negative)
Comes out, outlines where the debate is at,
‘This team has tried to say ______, whereas we have successfully shown that
_____’
Rebuttal
Tonight we found 4 flaws in the argument
1: They said ___
2: The fact that was spoken about _____ was incorrect as____
3: e.c.t
4:e.c.t.
Our speakers had these points:
- The third speaker is allowed palm cards 
- The team should have blank palm cards and pens/pencils
- Don’t write rebuttals on scraps of paper
- The third speaker is mainly rebuttals and recaps
- The rebuttals should last until the warning bell (maybe)
- You can repeat rebuttals
Korey: GET A
HANDOUT
ONCE YOU
LEAVE
REMEMBER
THAT