Debate for teachers and students الحوار للمعلمين و الطلاب

[ESAL SPIRIT]

Why can Debate be useful for teachers?

1. Debate is an activity which can involve all the students in a class not only as speakers, but also as an active audience.
2. Students transfer structures, vocabulary and methods of argument that they have already used in speech into their written work.
3. Running debates is straightforward and after a little bit of preparation students quickly learn the necessary skills.
4. Debates allow exploration of curriculum issues as well as developing confidence in speech, and higher-order thinking skills.
5. Debate develops powers of argument, increases understanding, and boosts critical thinking – all essential higher-order thinking skills. Students who take part in debate are better communicators, more self-confident and are better at working in teams.

Why is Debate essential for students?

- Self-confidence. The ability to express your opinions (or even other people’s opinions) clearly, persuasively and in a way that will make other people want to listen to you is a very valuable skill. Whether you’re at a university interview, a job interview, discussing a business plan with a bank manager or trying to sell your company’s products, self-confidence and the ability to express yourself in front of strangers is a skill we all need to succeed in life.
- Critical thinking skills. Understanding and assessing other people’s arguments is essential in an information world. We are all bombarded with persuasive speech and writing everyday. Charity fund-raisers, politicians, journalists, authors, adverts and even teachers use sometimes use arguments to get their message across. Debating teaches you to spot flaws in these arguments and understand what assumptions or beliefs they are really based on. This skill is useful whether you’re deciding how to vote or how to spend your money.
- Broader knowledge. Debating frequently makes use of good evidence to support arguments, and that evidence is often topical- taken from the internet, television or newspapers. Keeping an eye on these things makes you better informed about the world so that you can make better decisions, and it may even help out in quizzes!

- Better grades. All the skills we’ve talked about above - making arguments, critically assessing them, learning new facts and words- will help to improve the marks you get at school and your performance in exams.
- Friends. People who get involved in debating tend to be out-going, friendly, tolerant and open-minded people who have a lot to say for themselves and are good listeners. We can’t make any promises, but in our experience, a lot of people make great friends with people they met through debating.