DEBATE
Debate sequencing
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OPENING
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SPEECH (Mostly factual/teaching info)
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Affirmative Person 1
Negative Person 2
CLOSING
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Affirmative Person 2
Negative Person 1
SPEECH (Some factual + emotional)
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Affirmative Person 1
Negative Person 1
Affirmative Person 2
Negative Person 2
REFUTATION (Teams can address each other)
AUDIENCE QUESTIONS
Topics
We will pick topics on Wednesday, 2/22
 Round 1: Random draw of names
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Pick your debate topic
 Pick affirmative or negative
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Then line-up to choose additional topics
Order of Debates
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We will set debate schedule (order of debates)
on Thursday, 2/23.
I will choose first debate
We will then draw numbers
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Watch for back-to-back conflicts
Try to rotate tough/technical topics with silly/fun
topics.
For each day of debate, the next topic PLUS the
NEXT TWO topics should be prepared to
present.
Research
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Topics chosen & order set by 2/23, so
BEGIN YOUR RESEARCH!
Non-verbal Communication 2/24-2/28
We may have Library/Lab time 2/24-2/28???
I will be gone 2/29-3/2, debate video during
class.
Prep time Mon 3/5-Wed 3/7
Debates begin Thursday, 3/8
NOBODY MAY LEAVE CLASS OR RESEARCH
DURING CLASS ONCE DEBATES START
Assignments
Debate 1
 Debate 2
 Debate 3 & up
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Two highest scores will count as Deb 1 & 2
Questions
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100 pts
Questions worth 0-5 pts
Judging
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250 pts
250 pts
extra credit worth half
100 pts
Up to 20 pts per judging
Scoring
Citing Sources
 Vocal Tones
 Delivery style
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Eye contact, posture, etc
Content
 Appropriate Visuals
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Definitions
Negotiation: a cooperative relationship in
which both sides want to reach an
agreement.
 Debate: a more formal way of solving
problems; an important method of solving
problems in a democracy; from Latin word
meaning “to battle”
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Why Negotiate?
Best friend wants to borrow money from
you, but amount is more than you can
afford; friend gets angry.
 Father insists you wash the car every
Saturday, but older brother has no chores.
 Curfew is an hour earlier than any of your
friends.
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Techniques of Negotiation
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Be Positive
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Use Three-Part Messages
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When you (x), I feel (x) because (x)
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“Stop Talking so I can get a word in edgewise” VS.
“When you don’t do your homework, I feel disappointed because you don’t learn what you need to know.”
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Be Prepared
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Avoid negative words (from How to Say It at Work, list of 50
words to avoid on pg. 458)
Do the research; know the facts before opening your mouth
Talking “from the seat of your pants” or “off the top of your head”
rarely impresses anyone
Have alternatives in mind
Know as much as possible about the position of the other party.
Tell the Truth
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Your reputation is built on your integrity (you are true to yourself).
You should never sacrifice your values or standards to achieve
your negotiation goals.
Advantages of Debate
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Career
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Helping Others
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Learn to narrow issues so they can be examined and analyzed
one at a time.
Learn how to present logical, well-supported arguments and how
to find and oint out errors in other arguments.
As a Voter
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Moving to a position of higher responsibility often depends on
your ability to persuade people.
Managers and co-workers will challenge your opinions and you’ll
have to think quickly and improvise rather than rely solely on
prepared remarks.
Become a more effective evaluator of arguments, more
analytical listener
As a Citizen
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Feeling comfortable standing up at a school board or city council
meeting to offer solutions to problems.
Debate Terminology
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Proposition
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Resolution
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No, the statement is false
Status Quo
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Yes, the statement is true
Negative
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Formally statement of opinion introducing the proposition
Affirmative
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Statement of the point to be debated; a fact, belief, or a
recommendation to do something.
Very careful of wording as each word can have a major influence
The way things are now
Opposite is “Change”
Burden of Proof
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In formal debate, BoP is on the debater arguing the affirmative,
must prove there is a problem with the status quo
Debate Terminology
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Argument
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Evidence
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Information that helps you prove something
Facts, statements, reports, quotes, etc.
Refute
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A reason for favoring your side of the proposition.
The facts that support the reason
To show that something is wrong or false
Attacking your opponent’s argument
Rebuttal
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Speech that contradicts an earlier statement
Countering your opponent’s attacks on your
arguments so you can rebuild your argument.
Example on page. 472
Strategy pg. 474
Work Hard
 Anticipate
 Build a Sound Case
 Listen
 Take Notes
 Speak Clearly & Logically
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Test Your Evidence
Is your support recent?
 Is there corroborative support?
 Are the sources unbiased?
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Reasoning
Specific to Generalization
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Were enough specific instances examined?
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Were the specific instances examined
representative of the entire group?
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Larger the group covered by your conclusion, the
greater the number of specific instances you should
examine
To draw conclusions about the entire group, examine
specific instances from subgroups
Were there any significant exceptions?
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Hiding S.E. is dishonest and will cause audience to
discredit your p.o.v. since they probably know the
exception
Analogies
Provide a change of pace and build a
sense of suspense
 Can underline a basic truth with a
seemingly lighthearted moment
 Using an example from daily life puts
every member of the audience directly into
the story as well as humanizing yourself.
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Analogies
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Most effective when:
Cases used are alike in essential respects
 Cases used have differences which do not
make a significant difference
 Similarities in the cases are stressed
 Importance of differences are minimized
 Differences are confronted squarely
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Reasoning
Cause to Effect.or.Effect to Cause
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Example:
X results from Y
 And since X is undesirable
 Y should be eliminated
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OR
X results from Y
 And since X is desirable
 Y should be encouraged
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Test Reasoning from Causes and
Effects Before Using
Might other causes be producing the
observed effect?
 If two things occur together – what is the
cause and what is the effect?
 Is the evidence causal or merely a time
sequence?
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Recognizing Faulty Reasoning
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Emotionalism
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Unsupported Assertions
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Speakers may state a conclusion without
offering proof
Generalizing from insufficient evidence
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Speakers appeal to your feelings rather than
to your intellect
A general conclusion must be founded on a
sufficient number of typical instances
Begging the Question
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Speakers state as a conclusion that which
needs to be proven
Recognizing Faulty Reasoning
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Personal Attacks
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Scapegoats
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Speakers hold an individual or group responsible for
our troubles
Bandwagon
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Speakers attack opponents instead of responding to
the arguments
Speakers appeal to the tendency to “go along with the
crow” or “what is popular.”
Diversion or “the red herring device”
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Speakers do not respond to a charge, they launch an
attack of their own by leading our attention to
something different.
Recognizing Faulty Reasoning
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Straw Man
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Falsehoods
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Speaker restates only part of the opponents
case and dismantles that part, thereby
appearing to dismantle the whole case
Speakers use big lies, half-truths, distortions,
and the suppression of essential information
to deceive listeners.
Speaker’s personality may affect your
willingness or reluctance to accept what is
said.