1. Debate as a pedagogical tool
Advantages & Disadvantages
Nature of Debate
Components of Debating
Constructing Propositions
Designing Formats
Preparing Students to Debate

2. Debate as a pedagogical tool
Advantages
Promotes critical thinking
Promotes communication skills
Safe space for encountering controversy
Motivation: competition, anonymity
Disadvantages
Distributive model of conflict resolution
Requires public speaking

3. Nature of debate
Structured conflict: Clear expectations about roles and obligations
Explicit proposition: Clearly defined point of controversy
Specified mode of resolution: Clear end point for the dispute
Audience centered: Focus of persuasive efforts is not the opposition

4. Components of Debating
Development: Complete (prima facie) arguments (claim & support) offered in support of or in opposition to an agreed-upon point of dispute (proposition)
Clash: Engagement of the opposing side’s constructive material (refutation) on issues relevant to the proposition (stases)
Extension: Defense of arguments against refutation (rebuttal)
Perspective: Individual arguments of both/either side related to the support of or opposition to the proposition.

5. Constructing Propositions
Determining the Focus of the Proposition
Types of Propositions
Criteria for Successful Propositions

6. Constructing Propositions
Determining the Focus of the Proposition
“America’s energy policy should not be based on fossil fuels.”
“ANWR should opened to oil exploration and development.”
“The environmental risks of opening ANWR to oil exploration and development are too great.”
“Opening ANWR to oil exploration and development will harm the Porcupine caribou herd”

7. Constructing Propositions
Types of Propositions
Descriptive: concern the nature and definition of things
“Video games depict realistic violence.”
Relational: concern the relationships between things
“Mediated violence causes consumers to behave violently.”
Evaluative: assess the value of things
“Violent video games should be banned.”

8. Constructing Propositions
Criteria for Successful Propositions
Controversiality: the issue should be in dispute and should engage the audience.
Clarity: the proposition should be focused appropriately and should express a single concept as a declarative claim to be proved or disproved.
Balance: the proposition should be phrased in a way that present opportunities for both affirmative and negative arguments.
Challenge: the proposition should be phrased in a way that confronts the prevailing presumption.

9. Designing Formats
Objective: provide opportunities for constructive and deconstructive argumentation
Elements
Constructive Speeches
Rebuttal Speeches
Exchange

10. Designing Formats Constructive Speeches
At least one per side / speaker
Longer than rebuttals
Satisfy burden of proof and burden of rejoinder

11. Designing Formats Rebuttal Speeches
Focus, rather than expand, the information under consideration
No new lines of argument
Perspective: places arguments in context relative to the proposition

12. Designing Formats Exchange Cross Examination Points of Information
Discussion
Floor Speeches

13. Designing Formats Cross Examination (two debaters per side)
1st Affirmative Constructive 8 minutes
CX of 1st Aff by 2nd Neg 3 minutes
1st Negative Constructive 8 minutes
CX of 1st Neg by 1st Aff 3 minutes
2nd Affirmative Constructive 8 minutes
CX of 2nd Aff by 1st Neb 3 minutes
2nd Negative Constructive 8 minutes
CX of 2nd Neg by 2nd Aff 3 minutes
1st Negative Rebuttal minutes
1st Affirmative Rebuttal 5 minutes
2nd Negative Rebuttal minutes
2nd Affirmative Rebuttal 5 minutes
Prep time per side : minutes

14. Designing Formats Parliamentary Debate (two debaters per side)
1st Proposition Constructive 7 minutes
1st Opposition Constructive 8 minutes
2nd Proposition Constructive 8 minutes
2nd Opposition Constructive 8 minutes
(Points of Information allowed after the first and
before the last minute of each constructive speech)
Opposition Rebuttal minutes
Proposition Rebuttal minutes
Prep time: none

15. Designing Formats Lincoln/Douglas Debate (one debater per side)
Affirmative Constructive 6 minutes
CX of Aff by Neg 3 minutes
Negative Constructive 7 minutes
CX of Neg by Aff 3 minutes
1st Affirmative Rebuttal 4 minutes
Negative Rebuttal 6 minutes
2nd Affirmative Rebuttal 3 minutes
Prep time per side : 5 minutes

16. Preparing Students to Debate
Agreement is key to a successful debate
Agreement on Proposition
Agreement on Stases

17. Preparing Students to Debate
Assign partners / propositions / sides
Assign preliminary research
Negotiate Stases (stock issues or generic stases)
Write briefs
Debate!

18. Negotiating Stases Policy Stock Issues Policy Proposition Problem
Solution
Significance
Cause
Solvency
Advantages/
Disadvantages

19. Policy Stock Issues Should violent videogames be banned?
Is a ban desirable?
Does a problem of
violence exist?
Is the problem
Significant?
Do videogames
contribute to
violence?
Will a ban
significantly
reduce violence?
Will the advs of a
ban outweigh the
disadvantages?

20. Feasibility / Solvency
Negotiating Stases
Generic Stases
Political
Economic
Social
Cultural
Environmental
Individual Rights
Human Rights
Ethical
Legal
Technical
Feasibility / Solvency