A person is more likely to have their opinion heard when calm, rational, and logical than if you were shouting, interrupting and speaking from emotion without citing a source, in essence that is what debating is.
Last year, we were given the debating title of “Should the NHS fund alternative medical treatments such as aromatherapy, acupuncture and osteopathy, etc?”. We then had to to build a case, understanding the “for” and “against” arguments around the topic question. You do this so you can prepare for either side of the argument as you don't know which side you will be debating until the coin toss on the day. However this is very important as you can argue both sides and you are able to understand your opponents argument well as they probably have they have researched the same argument. So you know the strengths and weaknesses for both sides.
The debates themselves only last for about 30 minutes. There are usually three people in a team but we only had two, and you only have to speak for 4 to 8 minutes, so you have to talk precisely and to argue your points logically to get all your points across. You then keep a “flow sheet”, with all the arguments your opponent has made, you are then more able to rebuttal your opponent in a more logical and formulaic way.
Debating is a useful skill, as it can help you in many ways, and is a great transition into higher education. It can help with, researching and using only the relevant information, working in a team, culling bad ideas from good ones, understanding your opponents argument so you can make a suitable rebuttal, it can help you formulate your thoughts into a well laid out and logical argument, it can develop patience - which most people need to work on, improve communication skills and debating itself is in an important skill, as it is needed for many aspects of life.
Even though we lost the debate in the end, - there might have been some debatable judgments made by the judges, we still had a great time and it was a great experience, and it has taught me a lot about approaching a subject and constantly listing and questioning your opponent and their argument.
Sam Hirons
Last year, we were given the debating title of “Should the NHS fund alternative medical treatments such as aromatherapy, acupuncture and osteopathy, etc?”. We then had to to build a case, understanding the “for” and “against” arguments around the topic question. You do this so you can prepare for either side of the argument as you don't know which side you will be debating until the coin toss on the day. However this is very important as you can argue both sides and you are able to understand your opponents argument well as they probably have they have researched the same argument. So you know the strengths and weaknesses for both sides.
The debates themselves only last for about 30 minutes. There are usually three people in a team but we only had two, and you only have to speak for 4 to 8 minutes, so you have to talk precisely and to argue your points logically to get all your points across. You then keep a “flow sheet”, with all the arguments your opponent has made, you are then more able to rebuttal your opponent in a more logical and formulaic way.
Debating is a useful skill, as it can help you in many ways, and is a great transition into higher education. It can help with, researching and using only the relevant information, working in a team, culling bad ideas from good ones, understanding your opponents argument so you can make a suitable rebuttal, it can help you formulate your thoughts into a well laid out and logical argument, it can develop patience - which most people need to work on, improve communication skills and debating itself is in an important skill, as it is needed for many aspects of life.
Even though we lost the debate in the end, - there might have been some debatable judgments made by the judges, we still had a great time and it was a great experience, and it has taught me a lot about approaching a subject and constantly listing and questioning your opponent and their argument.
Sam Hirons