Debate
dəˈbāt/
noun
a formal discussion on a particular topic in a public meeting or legislative assembly, in which opposing arguments are put forward.
Recently we put on our very own class debates, on quite controversial topics surrounding our lives. My debate topic was “Be it resolved that zoos are essential for the preservation of endangered species”. I really enjoyed researching this subject because I’m really interested in animal abuse and captivity. We worked in groups of three to each write and rehearse a five minute argument and put it together to construct a structured debate to appose an affirmative or negative side.
Unfortunately I don’t have a video or clip from my debate, but I can tell you that it went pretty well. I spoke clearly and I paced myself well. I think that I had three well structured points and I made a strong argument. I could definitely work on my rebuttal, though. I feel like I was not comfortable with thinking of an argument off the top of my head because I was scared of messing up while I was speaking. For next time, I want to try harder at constructing a quick and effective rebuttal, and not being afraid to make a small mistake. I also want to try and not get myself so worked up about an in class debate, I mean come on, it’s an in class debate.
I did find this cool sketch that someone drew while watching a debate, and what they saw while they were there.
In the end, I learned a lot of useful skills during this project, that I will take with me in the future.
