GENERAL REMARKS
Discussion
All debaters, including Captain, 1st and 2nd speakers, floor speakers, should hold
regular meetings and exchange their ideas.
Evidence (Research)
A lot of useful information can be found on the Internet and in the books, such as
magazines, newspapers, etc. Please pay attention to the dates and sources when
collecting information
Brainstorming
Having meetings with all the members can help to develop ideas.
Awareness
Pay attention to current news issues so as to support your points with updated
information.
Team Work
All debaters have to collaborate with one another and promote team
work.
Eloquence
All debaters have to express their viewpoints clearly in order to draw the attention
of the audience.
AFFIRMATIVE
Captain
Greetings
+ Introducing the motion
e.g. Good afternoon, honourable adjudicators, members of the opposing team,
chairlady and audience. I'm the Captain of the affirmative side. Today, our
motion is 'Hong Kong is a world city'.
Definition
*Explain the key words/phrases in the motion.
*Use dictionaries or encyclopedias to define the terms.
e.g. Let me first define the motion. What is a world city? According to ... (quote the
reference to support the definition), World City (define the key words) means
a city that plays a leading role in the global economic system.
Quote reference to support the definition
*It would definitely be more convincing if you could define your motion with definitions
from various sources.
e.g. According to a book entitled Urban Development In Asia, the true meaning of
a World City is one that ...
Quote reference to support statements
*The audience would be more impressed if you could support your statements with
udpated evidence from various sources, e.g. current news issues.
e.g. Hong Kong does play a leading role in the global economic system. ... (quote
the source) claims that ...
Moreover,...
Introduce the 1st and 2nd speakers (their speeches should elaborate on the ideas of
the Captain)
*Introduce your team members and state clearly they will provide evidence to
prove what you have just mentioned.
e.g. ... My 1st speaker will prove to you ... My 2nd speaker will tell you more about
how Hong Kong ...
Conclusion
*Briefly recap your points and express firmly that the motion should stand.
e.g. With all the above points, I have certainly proved to you all that Hong Kong
is a world city and therefore today's motion should definitely stand.
Thank you.
AFFIRMATIVE
1st
speaker
Greetings
e.g. Good afternoon, honourable adjudicators, members of the opposing team,
chairlady and audience. I'm the 1st speaker of the affirmative side.
Making rebuttals with evidence
*You should rebut the major issues of the Captain from the negative side. Be precise
and concise. Remember to support your rebuttals with facts.
e.g. Just now, the Captain of the negative side said that...But...
(support your points with evidence)
Counter-attack the opponent
* Ask for evidence
e.g. Do you have any concrete evidence to prove ...?
Elaborate on the ideas of your Captain
*After rebutting, briefly explain how your speech will further elaborate on your
Captain's speech. Please note that coherence is significant in team work.
e.g. As my Captain has mentioned, Hong Kong plays a major role in...
Now, I would like to prove that...
Quote reference to support statements
*Remember to you put forward your statements, explain and support them with
examples.
e.g. The enormous inflow of capital into Hong Kong indicates... According to...
Conclusion
e.g. With all the above points, I have certainly proved to you all that Hong Kong
is a World City and therefore today's motion should definitely stand.
Thank you.
AFFIRMATIVE
2nd
speaker
Greetings
e.g. Good afternoon, honourable adjudicators, members of the opposing team,
chairlady and audience. I'm the 2nd speaker of the affirmative side.
Making rebuttals
*You should focus on making rebuttals.
*The 2nd speaker usually needs to spend most of the time making rebuttals.
*Highlight the main issues and express your points clearly.
Counter-attack the opponent
* Ask for evidence
e.g. Do you have any concrete evidence to prove ...?
Elaborate on the ideas of your Captain
*After rebutting, briefly explain how your speech will further elaborate on your
Captain's speech. Please note that coherence is significant in team work.
*If you don't have enough time to finish your points, you should make a brief
summary.
Conclusion
e.g. With all the above points, I have certainly proved to you all that Hong Kong
is a World City and therefore today's motion should definitely stand.
Thank you.
NEGATIVE
Captain
Greetings
+ Introducing the motion
e.g. Good afternoon, honourable adjudicators, members of the opposing team, chairlady
and audience. I'm the Captain of the negative side. Today, our motion is 'Hong Kong
is a world city'.
Definition
*State clearly if you reject your opponent's definition of the motion.
*Re-define the motion and explain why yours is better than your opponent's.
e.g. First, I would like to thank the affirmative side's captain for her points. However,
I would like to give our opinions on what she has said. Well, the affirmative side
may think that a world city plays a leading role in the global economic system,
however, this definition is obviously incorrect.
According to a book entitled Urban Development In Asia, the true meaning of a
World City is one that can be influenced by other countries and influence other
countries in a positive way. In other words, Hong Kong would have to fulfill all the
different aspects of a world city, these aspects include education, arts and culture,
social welfare, politics and economy just to name a fewˇK
Making rebuttals
*Be ready to rebut your opponent with relevant information. Focus on the
main ideas.
e.g. Hong Kong does lack its own culture and events related to arts. Even Chief
Executive, Mr. Tung Chee Hwa said in his policy address that 'Hong Kong should
improve to create its own culture and share of Arts in order to improve the standard
of living.'
Support your statements with evidence
*The audience would be more impressed if you could support your statements with
udpated evidence from various sources, e.g. current news issues.
e.g. Our team certainly disagree with the Captain of the affirmative side saying that...
At the APEC CEO Summit in Shanghai in 2001, Mr Tung Chee Hwa stated that
'our economy has also been affected by the cyclical downturn around the world'.
Use rhetorical questions
*You can attract the attention of the audience by asking rhetorical questions.
e.g. The affirmative side may think that the education system in Hong Kong is very good,
having nine years free education. However, have you ever considered the fact that
the current system just focuses on the academic side of education? What about
moral education or developing students' problem-solving skills? Yes, Hong Kong
may provide youngsters with a place to learn, but what about the learning environment?
Introduce the 1st and 2nd speakers (their speeches should elaborate on the ideas of
the Captain)
*Introduce your team members and state clearly they will provide evidence to
prove what you have just mentioned.
e.g. Let's face it, Hong Kong lags behind in terms of arts and culture. My 1st speaker
will tell you more about this a bit later. My 2nd speaker will tell you more about how
Hong Kong lags behind in terms of political freedom.
Conclusion
*Briefly recap your points and express firmly that the motion should stand.
e.g. With all the above points, I have certainly proved to you all that Hong Kong
is not a World City and therefore today's motion should definitely not stand.
Thank you.
NEGATIVE
1st speaker
Greetings
e.g. Good afternoon, honourable adjudicators, members of the opposing team, chairlady
and audience. I'm the 1st speaker of the negative side.
Making Rebuttals
*Focus on the points raised by the affirmative side and rebut clearly.
*Stress some important issues and support your points with evidence.
Counter-attack the opponents
* Ask for evidence
e.g. Do you have any concrete evidence to prove ...?
Elaborate on the ideas of your Captain
*After rebutting, briefly explain how your speech will further elaborate on your
Captain's speech. Please note that coherence is significant in team work.
*If you don't have enough time to finish your points, you should make a brief
summary.
Conclusion
e.g. With all the above points, I have certainly proved to you all that Hong Kong
is a World City and therefore today's motion should definitely stand.
Thank you.
NEGATIVE
2nd speaker
Greetings
e.g. Good afternoon, honourable adjudicators, members of the opposing team, chairlady
and audience. I'm the 2nd speaker of the negative side.
Making rebuttals
*You should focus on making rebuttals.
*The 2nd speaker usually needs to spend most of the time making rebuttals.
*Highlight the main issues and use new examples to support your rebuttals.
Counter-attack the opponent
* Ask for evidence
e.g. Do you have any concrete evidence to prove ...?
Elaborate on the ideas of your Captain
*After rebutting, briefly explain how your speech will further elaborate on your
Captain's speech. Please note that coherence is significant in team work.
*Please note that you should not have enough time to introduce new materials. Your
points should simply be evidence or examples to support your Captain's or 1st
speaker's ideas.
*If you don't have enough time to finish your points, you should make a brief
summary.
Conclusion
e.g. With all the above points, I have certainly proved to you all that Hong Kong
is a World City and therefore today's motion should definitely stand.
Thank you.
FINAL CONCLUSION
Affirmative and Negative Captains
Making rebuttals
A summary of the speeches of the 1st and 2nd speakers