In a structured, formal debate, the goal is to present the audience with compelling arguments backed up with facts, quotes and statistics in order to convinvce them that your opinion is correct. In fact, good debaters go in already having some idea of what arguments their opponents will use and have prepared thoughtful rebuttals.
Debate Structure
Each team is responsible for arguing the affirmative or the negative on a particular topic or position. A team must make brief, but convincing arguments throughout the debate. The structure of a debate typically follows this form:
Each team is given a certain amount of time to speak for each section. Teams may not interrupt each other and may only speak when it is their turn.
There are often three areas of judgement in a formal, team debate: matter, manner and methods. The two most important areas are methods and manner.
Debating Methods
There are a few methods to use when debating that can help you succeed.
Debating Manner
Remember that it's not just WHAT you say that is important, but HOW you say it and present yourself, too. It is very important to practice beforehand, especially if you have little experience or are nervous about speaking in front of groups. Practicing gives you the confidence you need to make and deliver a good argument.
Can you recognize the debating mistakes being made in this video?
Your school or local public library is always a great place to start when looking for resources to search for science and health information. Ask your local librarian for help!
All of the following links are to public, free, full-text resources. You do not need to belong to, or have access to a library to search these resources or download the articles. You are also welcome to search Google Scholar, but be aware that you may not be able to access the full-text of many of the items you find.
Expert
Consumer Health
Expert
Consumer Health
The BPL has some databases with full-text health information. To access these, you will need a BPL card and an electronic PIN. You can set these up at the BPL in Copley Square or any BPL Branch location.
You can see the list of electronic access resources they have from this web page. I recommend speaking with a librarian to get advice on which resources would be best for your particular topic, but you may want to try:
The MMLS also pays for specialized full-text resources. You will need proof of residency in any town with a library in the system (Newton, Somerville, Cambridge, and many more) in order to get a card with an access code on the back.
I recommend going to your specific library and speaking to a librarian, since some libraries have access to databases other libraries in the system do not. A brief list of some databases that all MMLS patrons can access include:
You can usually access these by going to the library homepage and finding the link for databases.