Debate. What would be the first thing that pops in our minds when we think of that? To some, it is an intellectual argument on about almost anything. From various concepts such as love and the reason of living in the first place to something serious such as political views of a person. Merriam-Webster defines debate as a contention by words or arguments. In terms of law or government, it is the formal discussion of a motion before a deliberative body according to the rules of parliamentary procedure. A debate can also serve as a regulated discussion of a proposition between two matched sides.
Although the concept of a debate is that it does not always have to be so formal and that the exchange of ideas can be casually done, there are occasions that it will have to be formal especially when representing your school for a inter-school competition or simply for a debate class. You may also see motovational speech.
Considering that the topic has already been assigned to you and your group mates, it is important that you begin preparing for your debate with the opposing party. Here are some examples listed down.
1. Preparing for the Debate Speech
It is important to understand on how a debate works. The team will be given a topic which is called a “resolution” and your team will have to decide whether to take the affirmative or negative stance to the resolution. Whether you will be assigned to a certain stance or asked to choose, you will have to be ready for every possibility. You may also see farewell speech
Normally, there will be four people in a team and the positions for each member are as follows: first speaker, second speaker, third speaker, and the person assigned to summarize all of the points made by your teammates. Each speaker is generally given four minutes.You may also see leadership speech
If you are the first speaker of the round, you will have to state your facts about the said resolution and wait for the rebuttal to be given by the opposing first speaker. For example, if person A is assigned to the positive stance, person 1 may note key points that person A has said to be used during the rebuttal while he or she waits for his or her turn. You are only given two minutes to give counter arguments to whatever points the speaker made earlier.You may also see persuasive speech
Once the rebuttal of person A and person 1 are done respectively, person B and person 2 repeats the same process until all speakers have stated their points as the format normally ends with the the final speakers of each stance giving a summary of all the points their party has made earlier. A panel of judges or the instructor grades each member per party accordingly and decides who the winning team and the best speaker of the day is. You may also see special occasion speech
2. Research the topic very thoroughly with credible information.
Research will always be a critical aspect, especially since you cannot defend something on baseless grounds. Even if you will be giving a speech of your own, you must spend time thoroughly understanding all aspects of the resolution since almost every person will be presenting counterarguments for each party.You may also see appreciation speech
- Brainstorm the topic and research before you sit down to write. Write out a pro and con list. If you are on a debate team, do this together. Each member could discuss the pro and con lists, and then strike the weaker reasons until you are left with three or four reasons that seem strongest in support or opposition.You may also see self introduction speech.
- It also helps to spend time in the library since not every resource material can be found on the internet.
- You and the team would also want to deal with the strongest arguments on the other side in your speech as ignoring the other side’s best arguments can weaken your rhetorical appeal.You may also see informative speech.
3. Write an outline of your speech.
After you have finished researching your topic, like every good speech, it should contain an outline
that serves as a guide to assist you on the points that you want to be delivered in order.
- A simple debate outline should at least contain these four parts: An introduction, your thesis argument, your key points to back your stance up, and a conclusion. For unknown terminologies, prepare a definition in advance so that you can have an answer when the judges ask you may also see presentation speech.
- You can break each of those four part into subcategories. It’s often a good idea to write the introduction and conclusion last, focusing on the thesis argument and the evidence to back it up first.
Writing the Debate Speech
1. Write an introduction that is catchy and interesting.
Who does not love a good and catchy introduction? But for these kinds of situations, it is best to stay mindful as the whole point of this debate lies in the formality sense which is something to be taken seriously.
- For instance, a simple good morning to all parties involved and witnessing the said debate will suffice. There is no need for extra remarks or commentaries if not asked.You may also see orientation speech
- its critical to always make a good impression, especially to the judges as this will make them think that the debater is persuasive speech. In order to achieve this, one technique in writing a strong introduction is to contextualize the topic, especially when the topic depicts a present situation.
- Some introduction speech can also focus on prominent examples, quotations, or on a personal anecdote that can help establish a rapport with the audience and judges. Be mindful when using humor though as it involves risks that can eventually lead to awkward silences if not done right. Find a relevant specific that illustrates the underlying point.
2. Outline where you stand very clearly.
Make sure that you point out which stance your team belongs to. Since this is a debate, being part of the positive or negative stance does not serve as an advantage for as long as you are able make your points get through the judges and the audience, then it is enough.You may also see speech examples for students.
- Don’t muddle on your assigned stance. It needs to be extremely clear whether you affirm or negate the resolution, so don’t try to confuse and eventually contradict yourself in the middle of the debate. The audience also should not have to wait until the end to find out. Make your stance very clear, and do it early on. You may also see declamation speech.
3. Make key points to back up your stance.
As early as possible, you have to identify the main key points found in your speech.
- One good way to do this is to back up your position with three to four strong points of supporting argumentation. More than one to two key points are required to back up your stance.
- In every speech, the body or the “meat” of the speech is always the most important part. But keep in mind that you will only be given a short span of time for you to say your piece before time runs out (perhaps 3 ½ minutes to 30 seconds for an opening and for a conclusion, depending on the given rules of the debate).
4. Develop your key points.
Even as you deliver your key points in the said debate, it still cannot be without substance. Back every single one of your key points up with examples, statistics and other resources that can be found during your research.
Focus on the causes of the problem, the effects of the problem, expert opinion, examples, and statistics. Then after that, present a solution. In a debate, you are not given the opportunity to use a PowerPoint Presentation, so as you continue discussing the points of your stance, allow your audience to visualize on what you are saying. You may also see debate speech. You may also see graduation speech.
Do not only attempt to appeal to the motives and emotions of the listener, but also to their sense of fair play, desire to save, to be helpful, to care about the community, and others with a light touch.Try using rhetorical questions which make your opponents consider the validity of their point. Consider irony which undermines their point and makes you seem more mature and intelligent, simile which gives them something to relate to, humor which gets the audience on your side when done well, and repetition which reinforces your point. You may also see inspirational speech.
5. Understand the art of persuasion.
Finally, what is a debate with persuasion? Ancient philosophers such as Aristotle studied the art of persuasion, and by understanding their techniques will further help your debate speech. You may also tribute speech.
Aristotle believed that speakers are more persuasive writing if they combined elements of logos (persuasion by reasoning) with pathos (having an element of emotional appeal) and ethos (an appeal based on the character of the speaker) – for example, that they seem intelligent or of good will.
There are two ways to use logic – inductive (the premises are viewed as supplying strong evidence for the truth of the conclusion) and deductive (if all premises are true, the terms are clear, and the rules of deductive logic are followed, then the conclusion is necessarily true). You may also see wedding speech.
We hope you enjoyed browsing through our debate speech examples. Debating is both an entertaining an serious activity especially when tackling issues on humanity and the natural environment. Despite what topics you choose, there is a standard forma. You may also see youth speech.