2. OPINIONS
BUILDING THE PILLARS OF YOUR DEBATE
CASE
SUPPORTING YOUR OPINION
ORGANIZING YOUR OPINION
REFUTING EXPLANATIONS
ORGANIZING YOUR REFUTATION
DEBATING AN OPINION
3. 1. OPINIONS
• The OPINION in a Debate is called:
a PROPOSITION or RESOLUTION
AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE
TEAM TEAM
4. 2. BUILDING THE PILLARS OF THE
DEBATE CASE
EXPLAINING YOUR OPINION:
• Opinions are based on reasons which
must be explained.
• Without explaining the reasons for an
opinion, COMMUNICATION breaks down.
• Provide reasons that other people find
reasonable and convincing.
5. a) GIVING REASONS:
We often : make a comparison.
show a contrast.
show a Cause-and-effect relation
b) LET’S PRACTICE GIVING REASONS:
- ‘Give me one reason why……
- Opinions: Teenagers should not smoke
Only police should have guns!
Drinking too much alcohol is not healthy
6. 2 IMPORTANT TOOLS FOR BUILDING A
STRONG CASE IN DEBATE ARE:
• BRAINSTORMING:
In groups brainstorm reasons for a resolution (opinion).
Write as many reasons as you can in 5 minutes.
• PRIORITIZING:
Look at the other team’s reasons.
Do they have the same reasons?
Do similar reasons have the same priority in all groups?
7. 3. SUPPORTING YOUR OPINION
• Once an opinion is given and the reasons for
holding that opinion are clearly explained, those
reasons need to be supported with evidence.
• EVIDENCE can be in the form of:
- an explanation.( If we don’t….., we will…..)
- an example (Let me give an example, for instance…)
- statistics (20% of all women…/ One out of 5 women….)
- expert opinion (According to Dr…/ A recent article in
….. stated that …..)
8. EXAMPLE:
• OPINION:
There should be no school uniforms.
• REASON:
Because school uniforms are not
comfortable.
• SUPPORT:
They are often too cold in the winter and
too hot in the summer.
9. 4. ORGANIZING YOUR OPINION
• The first speech in a debate is called:
THE AFFIRMATIVE CONSTRUCTIVE SPEECH
It has 3 parts:
introduction
affirmative points (2 or 3)
conclusion
10. EXAMPLE:
• INTRODUCTION:
‘Thank you, Ladies and Gentlemen. Today, we are debating the
resolution, ‘SMOKING SHOULD BE BANNED’. We, on the
affirmative team, strongly support this resolution. We have 3
reasons: health, hospital costs, and pollution.
• POINT 1:
Our first point is health.
Cigarettes fill your lungs with poisonous chemicals, causing cancer
and lung disease.
According to the American Cancer Society, every cigarette you
smoke shortens your life by approximately 7 minutes.
11. • POINT 2:
Our second point is hospital costs.
Smokers cost the country a lot of money.This is because smokers get
cancer and other diseases more than non-smokers. Smokers miss
more work, and spend more time in the hospital.
Also, according to the Ministry of Health, the average smoker requires
over $200,000 in hospital costs over the course of their lives.
• POINT 3:
Our third point is pollution.
Cigarettes make the air dirty. This is because when people smoke,
they blow many poisonous gases into the air.
This is a big problem on train platforms, where many people ignore the
No Smoking signs and blow smoke in your face.
12. • CONCLUSION:
We have talked about health, hospital costs and
pollution. We have shown clearly that cigarettes
should be banned. For these reasons, we beg to
propose.
13. 5. REFUTING EXPLANATIONS
• Examples of stating a refutation: (page 67)
• Signpost: Their first point was…./They talked about..
They mentioned….
• Rephrase: They said that…../The other team said…
3. Negation and why: This is not true. /The whole point
about….. Is not relevant…./ that is not important.
4. Rationale: There is no connection between…./the
difference is too small to be important.
14. 6. ORGANIZING YOUR REFUTATION
• INTRODUCTION:
Thank you, Ladies and Gentlemen. Today we are debating
the resolution. ‘All people should be vegetarians’. We,
on the negative team, strongly oppose this resolution. First,
I will refute the affirmative side; then I will give our points.
• REFUTATION 1:
Their first reason was health. They said that it is not healthy
to eat meat since it is high in fat and difficult to digest. We
have 2 responses. First, it is not true that meat is difficult to
digest. Our bodies are made to digest both meat and
vegetables and second, it is not always true that meat is
higher in fat than vegetables. Some fruits and vegetables,
such as bananas and avocados, have a lot of fat.
15. • REFUTATION 2:
Their second reason was animal rights.They said that
animals have a right not to suffer. We have 2 responses.
First, it is not true that animals have rights. Rights come
from our country’s Constitution, and it says nothing about
animals. Second, animal rights are not as important as
human rights, and if we stop fishing or raising animals,
millions of people in the food industry will lose their jobs.
• REFUTATION 3:
Their third reason was the environment. They said that
fishing and raising animals harm nature. We have one
response. It is not necessarily true. It is possible to raise
animals and catch fish without harming the environment.
16. • TRANSITION:
I have refuted the affirmative’s points. Now, I will give ours.
We have three points: health, the economy, and taste.
• NEGATIVE POINT 1:
Our first point is health. We must eat meat and fish in order
to stay healthy. Meat has a lot of protein, and fish has
both protein and iodine. It is difficult to get these
nutrients from vegetables.
• NEGATIVE POINT 2:
Our second point is the economy. Millions of men and
women work in agriculture, fishing and the food industry.
If we stop eating meat, they will lose their jobs.
17. • CONCLUSION:
We have talked about health, the economy and
taste, and have shown that we should not all be
vegetarian. For these reason we beg to oppose.
18. 7. DEBATING AN OPINION
• The last speeches in a debate are
called the REBUTTALS.
• The purpose of a rebuttal is to
summarize the debate and explain why
your side has won.
19. EXAMPLE:
• Thank you, Ladies and Gentlemen. We have been debating the
resolution, ‘……..’. We have clearly shown that this is (or is not) true.
Let’s look at the major points of this debate:
• Their only important points have been….
• They lose their point about ……. :
- because they never gave any reason or support.
- because it is not true/important since…..
- because they never showed that it was more important than our
point…
• We win this point because….
- they never talked about it.
- they never gave any reason why it’s not true or important.
• We win this debate because …
- their points have fallen, while our points still stand.
- the most important point in this debate is …. Which we have won.
20. How to Judge a Debate?
• Relax and follow your feelings.
• Compare the two teams in three areas:
- MATTER : refers to team’s logic and
reasoning.
- MANNER : refers to team’s speaking style.
- METHOD : refers to team’s organization.
• Flow the debate (take notes).
• Fill in a judging form.
