Debating

Entry

Representative, All Boys, All Girls, Mixed

Age

Under 16 / Over 6

Notes

  • Panel of 4; Team to consist of 3.
  • It’s at the discretion of the County how the representative team is selected.
  • All panel members present at National Festival should participate.

Additional Notes

This is a County Representative Event. There are no Regional or Provincial Finals in this event.

  1. Debating Titles – Choose one from the following five:
    • This house believes AI is having a negative impact on our society
    • This house believes the government is responsible for tackling climate change
    • This house believes zoos/sanctuaries are important for preserving wildlife
    • This house believes paying sportspeople has negatively impacted the sporting spirit
    • This house believes minimum wage should be increased
  2. Captain and 2 others to speak.
  3. The format for debates in the competition is three speakers per team, with two teams in each debate, a moderator and two adjudicators, one of whom will act as timekeeper.
  4. Speaking time for speeches:
    • Minimum for all speakers is 1 minute.
    • For Captains' opening and closing speeches, 2 minutes maximum.
    • All remaining teammates have 1½ minutes maximum.
    • A signal will be given when 30 seconds of the allotted time is left for the speaker to alert them to the time.
  5. It is the role of the Captain to inform the adjudicators of the names of their speakers, the order they will be speaking in, and the headings each will be covering.
  6. Speakers may use cue cards to refer to their notes but are not to rely solely upon them.
  7. Captain of Proposing Team speaks first, followed by Captain of Opposing Team. Second speaker from Team A, then second speaker from Team B, and so on until all speakers have concluded. The Captains then make their closing speeches.
  8. Teams and their supporters should treat their opponents, their peers, and the venue with respect. Speakers who resort to sarcasm, personal attacks, or criticism will be marked down.
  9. Time Penalties: Participants who exceed their allocated time will be penalised.
  10. Interruptions – any form of interruption during a speaker's contribution will be penalised.
  11. One point of clarification may be sought by the opposing Team Captain on the preceding speech.
  12. Marks are to be awarded for content and presentation. Each to be graded out of 5, giving an overall score of 10 per speech. Adjudicators may retire to consult on their decision.
  13. The decision of the adjudicators is final.
  14. Each team must be accompanied by their team manager.
  15. Teams will be given the motion for the debate 30 minutes prior to the commencement. The manager may accompany the team during this time.
  16. Marks for content and presentation based on research, introduction, closing sentence, vocabulary used, and rebuttal of opposition points.
  17. Marks for presentation based on role fulfillment, structure of points, voice projection, eye contact, holding their audience, appropriate tone of voice, use of the cue cards.
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