TORRES, Anne Beatrice E.

Argumentation and Debate

LM-5A

M1: Activity 1 (Prelims)

1. Differentiate Persuasion from Conviction.
Persuasion is the process by which a person’s attitudes or behavior are, without duress,
influenced by communications from other people. For example, good sales people use
persuasion to get people to buy things. On the other hand, conviction is the act of
convincing a person of error or of compelling the admission of a truth. For example, a
person being found guilty of driving while intoxicated. An example of conviction is
someone completely believing they are right about something.

In short, conviction concerns the end of influencing mental states by the means of reason.
Whereas persuasion concerns the end of influencing behavior by the means of emotion.

2. Why do some people / students afraid of engaging in a debate?

Some people and/or students are afraid of engaging in a debate because of:
- Anxiety
- Afraid to be criticized and
- Afraid of losses
These are the only few reasons why students and/or people are afraid of engaging in a
debate. Anxiety is when we feel self-conscious in front of other people, most of us feel this
way that’s why we thought its normal, but for some, this can be extreme. Speaking in front
of others specially critics, judges and people you don’t know basically builds up this
anxiety and as a result that person who suffers anxiety feels uncomfortable participating in
social situations, in a debate for example. When this anxiety builds up, this can ruin the
ability of a person to speak for themselves and build walls between two people.
Aside from personal reasons, being afraid to be criticized is one of the common reason why
students avoid debates. Debate is a formal discussion about a particular topic, meaning in
debates we open up the two sides of the subject matter and of course we wouldn’t be able
to avoid being criticized by the opponent because of our stand point, but most people don’t
like the feeling of being wrong in the eyes of other people which results them not
participating in a debate anymore.

3. What are the benefits of a debate?

Benefits of debating are as follows:
- Improved critical thinking skills. Debating can sharpen our critical thinking skills.
Instead of passively accepting information, we are forced to hone our thoughts and
 discard concepts and theories that don’t make sense and adopt once that do. It helps us
question our beliefs and justify why we think of a certain way.
- For better poise, speech deliver and public speaking skills. When debating, we learn
to have confidence, confidence in what we’re saying and confidence about our self.
Having these confidence makes us effective speaker as it reflects what we are saying
and what we are doing. Having confidence increases one’s team chance of winning.
- Improved listening skills and self-confidence. In debating, it is not just about
speaking and arguing facts and points. We also have to listen and process, this way we
can comprehend what the other team is saying and we can defend our side without
losing track and for us to have a better structure of thoughts.
- More confidence to stand up for the truth when a discussion is promoting
falsehoods or inaccuracies. The importance of debate in education comes into its own
when you step into the real world. Especially now in the midst of pandemic, a lot of
news are circulating through online, with this, a lot of fake news are also circulating.
The most important benefit of debating is that you can confidently stand up for the truth
when pushed. Standing up for the truth when a discussion in our workplace or family
or friend life is promoting falsehoods or inaccuracies.

4. What are the technical rules in a debate?

THE RULES OF DEBATE
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.

REFERENCES:
Conviction. 2021. In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved from https://www.merriam-
webster.com/dictionary/conviction
Britannica. (n.d). Persuasion Psychology. https://www.britannica.com/science/persuasion-
psychology
Devitt, R. (n.d). 10 Benefits of Debating in Classrooms: Importance of Debate in Education. How
Do I Homeschool?. Retrieved from https://howdoihomeschool.com/classical-
homeschooling/benefits-debating-education-importance/
Hasan, S. (2018, August). Social Phobia. Teens Health from Nemours. Retrieved from
https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/social-phobia.html
Musgrave, G.M. (n.d). Rules of Debate. Retrieved from
http://homepage.ntu.edu.tw/~karchung/debate1.htm