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Anna Faszcza The Art of Debating

Have you ever had this awful feeling that no one listens to you or doesn’t have the clue what you are trying to communicate? It’s hard to convey the messageconvey the messageconvey the message so that everybody knows exactly what you mean, isn’t it? It turns out that listening to one person speaking  may result in a wide range of different conclusions drawn by the listeners. The question arises: how to communicate effectively? The Oxford debate might be the answer.

There are more and more so‑called debating societies whose purpose is to discuss current emerging public issues. The most prestigious one among them is the Oxford Union, which was founded in England in 1832. Every Thursday,  the Union holds debatesholds debates [hold a debate]holds debates. A. ... For this reason, among others, the speeches attract international media attention.

An Oxford debate is a widely acclaimed, highly formalised type of discussion which makes a debate an intelligent exchange of arguments and rebuttalsrebuttals [rebuttal]rebuttals of opposing sides of a topic. It requires strict rules concerning the order and length of speaking.  It’s more and more often introduced to schools as a useful communication tool. Everyone in the debate chamberdebate chamberdebate chamber has a well‑defined role. The chairchairchair runs the proceedingsruns the proceedings [run the proceedings]runs the proceedings, collects ballotscollects ballots [collect a ballot]collects ballots and announcesannounces [announce]announces the winning team. B. ... This person gives the speakers a one‑minute warning, ringing the bell once before their time is up, and averts exceeding the time allottedtime allottedtime allotted to the disputers by double bell ringing. The moderatormoderatormoderator reveals the motionmotionmotion of the debate and sees to it that the rules of proceedings are followed while the judgejudge (noun)judge listens to the teams and awards points. The audience may ask questions directed at both teams and also vote on the motion. Finally, there are two teams involved: the “affirmative” (arguing for the motion) and the “negative” one (arguing against it). Each team consists of four members, one substitutesubstitutesubstitute and the capitancapitancapitan among them.

Teams are given some time far in advance to prepare their for and against arguments concerning the topic to be discussed thoroughly at the debate. Just before the debate they draw lots to find out which team will be the affirmative and which the negative one. The first team presents persuasive argumentspersuasive arguments [persuasive argument]persuasive arguments in favour of the motion, while the other one refutesrefutes [refute]refutes the points made by the opponentsopponents [opponent]opponents. When the moderator announces the motion, quite controversial at times, the debate is started by the affirmative team. The first member introduces the main claim and presents key argumentskey arguments [key argument]key arguments. The second develops them and may rebutrebutrebut the opponents’ key claim while the third one  refutes the argumentsrefutes the arguments [refute the argument]refutes the arguments of the opposing team. C. ... Participants from the opposing teams take turnstake turnstake turns speaking. During the debate they are forbidden to use previously prepared notes or telecommunication devices. Each member is given four minutes for their speech.

There are strict rules when it comes to what and when is allowed to be said. D. ... The first speaker is obliged to welcome the chair, judges, opponents and audience before opening the debate. During each speech, only two interpellationsinterpellations [interpellation]interpellations are allowed to be asked by the opponents, indicated by the raised hand gesture. It is forbidden to use ad personam argumentsad personam arguments [ad persona argument]ad personam arguments or speak without permission.

During the debate, when it’s opened up to the floorit’s opened up to the floor [be opened up to the floor]it’s opened up to the floor, even members of the audience are allowed to challenge pointschallenge points [challenge point]challenge points and ask questions. After the debate, the jury adds up the points and determines the winners.

It is believed that the Oxford‑style method of debating improves decision‑making, develops a tactful way of disputing and sharpens the argumentssharpens the arguments [sharpen the argument]sharpens the arguments. And, above all, forces us to listen carefully to our opponent and comprehend the gistcomprehend the gistcomprehend the gist of what they are trying to say.

1 Źródło: Anna Faszcza, licencja: CC BY-SA 3.0.