The Arts Unit Unit Creative Teachers
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Affirmative team tips
Affirmative team tips
Learning intention: to identify the main purpose of your team's case if you are on the affirmative.
While both the affirmative and negative need to provide strong arguments, sound characterisation and smart mechanisms, there are a couple of things that the affirmative should also do to get themselves in a winning position from the outset.
Identify and make clear the imperative of the debate. Why are we debating this topic, and what is the fundamental problem that we are trying to solve?
This imperative could also be called the moral or ethical purpose of the debate, and the larger or more profound the problem is, the easier it will be to counter negative arguments that are superficial or fade into insignificance against the moral imperative you have identified.
The affirmative should also articulate the burden. Consider what you need to do to prove that this is worthwhile. You should aim to prove this change has more benefits than it has detriments but don't make the burden so high that you can't possibly make it happen. It is probably enough to show that even going part of the way towards that target will be more beneficial to society than doing nothing at all.
Tips for affirmative teams
Duration: 07:18Tips for affirmative teams
Negative team tips
Negative team tips
Learning intention: to create more effective and hard-hitting rebuttal through mitigation and the identification of harms in the affirmative team's case.
When responding to the affirmative team's plan, the negative team must present a clear stance on the problem that the affirmative is trying to solve. This may be:
there is not a real problem
the problem is fixing itself through organic change
acknowledge there is a problem but present a more effective way to solve it.
The affirmative is trying to prove the benefits of their plan, so it is the negative's job to:
mitigate those benefits
highlight the actual damage (the harms) that will occur as a consequence of the affirmative's plan.
Tips for negative teams
Duration: 07:01Tips for negative teams
Suggested activity
Suggested activity
Think about the following debate topics with the mindset of an affirmative team:
'That sports stars who are bad role models should be banned for life'
'That Australia should ban poker machines'
'That we should require all computer games to have a playable female character'.
For each of them:
Identify the imperative (What is the problem we are trying to solve here?).
Articulate the burden (What do we need to prove in order for the change in the topic to be worthwhile?).
Come up with a plan to do this.
Once you have done this, switch to the mindset of the negative team and do the following for each topic:
Is there a real problem?
If so, is it that big of a problem, and can you identify some ways that organic change is already addressing the problem?
If you agree it is a problem, come up with an alternative plan to fix it.
Identify any actual harms in the affirmative plan.
Advanced tips – first response
Advanced tips – first response
Learning intention: advanced students should develop an understanding of the specific structures of the first responsive positions on each team (first negative and second affirmative).
Overview of first response
Duration: 12:18Overview of first response
This video provides an overview of some of the skills which are useful for 'first response' speeches. Specifically, for those speakers who are early on in the debate.
Example of first affirmative
Duration: 9:47Example of first affirmative
In this video, Ellie gives an example of a first affirmative speech on the topic 'that we should allow people to opt in to experimental medical trials'.
Example of first negative
Duration: 9:31Example of first negative
In this video, Indigo gives an example of a first negative speech on the topic 'that we should allow people to opt in to experimental medical trials'.
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