Lesson video

Hello and welcome to the lesson.

My name's Mrs. Butterworth and I will be your English teacher for today.

Now this lesson is called Time to Debate and we've got lots to cover in it because we're gonna be thinking about how we can effectively plan before a debate, how we can evaluate a debate as it's happening and once it's happened, and also the all important participating in a debate.

So as I said, lots to get through.

So let's get started.

So in this lesson, you will effectively plan and confidently participate in a debate and you'll use the success criteria to evaluate your participation.

But before we delve into the lesson, let's look at those all important keywords, which today are initial, anticipate, and efficient.

Now initial is, in its simplest form, at the beginning or first.

So today we're gonna be talking about your initial ideas.

So we can think about this as your first ideas.

Now anticipate is to expect something to happen and prepare for it in advance.

So to anticipate something is to think about what could potentially happen in the future you will anticipate what the team will do next.

Now, efficient is, we're thinking about that word in relation to note taking today.

And in note taking, efficient means quickly capturing key information in a clear and organised way without wasting too, too much time or writing too much.

And we're going to be really thinking about how we can be efficient with our note taking today.

Now the outline of our lesson looks like this.

We're going to begin by planning for a debate before moving on to that confident participation in a debate.

So let's start with our planning for a debate.

So I'd like you to discuss first and think about some ideas.

What might you need to consider or prepare before participating in a debate? So what might you need to consider or prepare before participating in a debate? You'll need to pause the video to give yourself time to discuss your ideas, or if discussion's not available, you can think quietly to yourself.

Off you go.

Thank you everyone for your suggestions.

So you may have considered the following answers.

So in terms of what you may need to consider or prepare, you'll need to think about what your position is.

So are you arguing for or against the motion? And that's kind of quite an important place to start, isn't it? Are you for it or are you against it? Then you might want to consider researching the motion.

So what do you need to know to strengthen your argument? What you going to include in your opening argument? Now remember in a debate, your opening argument is really important because it sets you up.

It's shows what your position is, it shows what you are going to argue and it can really just cement your position in that debate.

And then finally, you might want to consider what could the opposing team be arguing, okay? And this is something that's quite tricky to do, but really important in terms of debating.

So can you anticipate some of their rebuttals and prepare some possibilities? So when you are planning for a debate, you are considering your own stance, but you also want to be considering the other side of the argument so you know how to challenge it.

So we're going to think about this motion.

So the motion for the debate is: This house believes there is no point in reading fiction; only real life stories matter.

So I'd like you to discuss please, considering this motion, are you the proposition or the opposition? So this may have been assigned to you or you may get to choose, but you need to know whether you are the proposition or the opposition and what are your initial thoughts about the motion, okay? So what are your initial thoughts about the motion? So you'll need to pause the video to discuss your answers to those questions or think quietly to yourself.

You may even want to jot some ideas down.

Off you go.

Oh great, there's already some really lively discussions happening and lots of great initial ideas, so that's fantastic.

So let's look at what our Oak pupils have said.

So Aisha's initial thoughts are that she definitely prefers stories that are real.

I like to learn something when I read.

And Jacob has said, "I disagree.

Fiction means a lot to me.

It stimulates my imagination." So perhaps there is something there that you agree with or something that you can use.

True or false time.

Before a debate, you should consider the opposing team's potential argument.

Is that true or false? Give me your answer now.

Okay, well done to everyone that said that's true.

But you now need to explain why that is true.

So come up with your answer now.

Okay, thank you everyone.

Shall I show you my answer? And then you can compare to your own.

So hopefully you have something similar to: Considering the opposing team's argument can help you anticipate their rebuttals or any potential flaws in their argument.

It will help to strengthen your own position.

So we can see there is a lot to think about before you even begin debating.

So before a debate, you may have time to research the motion and begin preparing key evidence.

So there are many ways that you can do this and there are many valid forms of evidence, but it may look something like this.

So you may consider facts and statistics, expert testimonials, and credible studies.

Now, once you have done your research, you will then need to ensure that they are transformed into effective notes, and you need to ensure that your planning or your notes are really efficient, okay? You don't want to be relying on a script.

So they will need to be in note form, okay? So it's really important that any research that you do or any evidence that you gather is transformed into really efficient notes.

So what might this look like? So you may only include key information, bullet points, no full sentences, 'cause remember we want this to be efficient and not a full script.

And finally, underline for clarity.

So these are the ways that you can lay out your notes.

So let's look at some examples here.

So here are some examples of research being transformed into effective debate notes.

So we have our research here.

So 83% of employees use mobile phones, this needs to be reflected in education to allow all to get ahead.

And something tax suggests that mobile phone, mobile learning improves productivity by 43%.

So it's quite wordy and there's quite a lot there.

But if we transform it, it becomes facts and statistics underline.

So if I was to quickly glance at those notes, I would know exactly where to find my facts and statistics.

83% of employees use need to be reflected in education, much easier to manage.

Think tanks, mobile learning improves productivity by 43%.

So you can see how that research has been turned into something much more manageable and much more easier to access when you are in a debate.

So let's look at this one.

We have our credible study here.

So you can see it's quite lengthy.

A study by Clayton and Murphy (2016) suggested that phones can lead to better educational performance, due to the amount of information that can be accessed.

So again, very wordy, lots to read, which we don't want in our debate notes.

So quite simply this becomes study underlined.

So again, I could glance down at my notes and see where that study is, the name, the date, and summarised exactly what that study is about.

More information = better education performance.

So when I'm debating, I can glance down at those notes and use them to help me in my argument.

And I can embellish on those notes a little bit more, but use my voice instead.

So I'd like you to discuss now, please.

What difference do you notice between the original research and the debate notes? Okay, pause the video.

You can discuss your answer to this question or think quietly to yourself.

Off you go.

Okay, thank you for your suggestions everyone.

Now we're going to move on to think and look at an opening statement.

So this is Aisha's opening statement in favour of the motion.

Okay, so if you remember, we are looking at that motion about non-fiction books and fiction books.

So let's look at Aisha's opening statement.

So non-fiction is more important and useful than fiction because it provides practical knowledge, real-life examples, and factual information that can be directly applied to everyday life.

Fiction, on the other hand, leads to escapism and may not prepare individuals for real-world challenges.

So thinking about that opening statement, I'd like you to discuss, please, what do you think Aisha's debate notes might look like? So what might Aisha's debate notes look like? So pause a video so you can discuss your answer to this question or think quietly to yourself.

You may even wish to jot some ideas down.

Pause a video and we'll feed back in a moment.

Off you go.

Okay, great, thank you for your suggestions everyone.

We're almost working backwards, aren't we? Thinking about that opening statement and what the notes could have looked like, but this is a really good practise to do.

So you may have said something like non-fiction: important.

So here we can see non-fiction is more important.

So the notes here, just kind of summarise the main idea, the importance of it.

Practical, underlined.

Real-life examples.

So again, I've just taken that, from that opening argument.

So practical application, useful in everyday life.

So you can see here that underlining is just highlighting those points that Aisha makes in her opening statement.

And fiction's limitations: escapism, less relevant for real-world challenges.

So you can see here in that those underlying words Aisha has in her notes, we can see that it really clearly shows those points and then what she could potentially say about them.

And again, she can embellish and develop those notes verbally and through her voice when she is debating.

Okay, so which of the following would not be useful for creating efficient debate notes, okay? Which of the following would not be useful for creating efficient debate notes? A, B, C, D.

Pick your answers now.

Who's feeling confident? Lots of you? Okay, fantastic.

Let's see, so, well done to everyone that said B, full sentences.

Well done to everyone that got that right because we know that full sentences could lead to an almost like writing a script and it isn't particularly efficient either.

We want these notes to include key information, bullet points and be really clear and accessible when you are debating.

We have reached our first practise task.

Now this is all about you preparing and planning for your debate.

So the motion is: This house believes that there is no point in reading fiction, only real life stories matter.

So I'd like you to plan your argument and prepare your debate notes and there are some planning boxes to help you.

So the first thing is, is your motion argue for or against.

So you can use that sentence starter, "I am arguing that," to summarise your argument into that sentence, are you for or against? Then we have your opening argument.

So you want to give two main reasons for your view, any further supporting arguments and list any facts and evidence that you may have in order to strengthen that argument, okay? So when you are ready, you can start to plan and prepare your debate notes.

You'll need to pause a video to give yourself time plenty.

Give yourself plenty of time to do this.

So pause the video and off you go.

Okay, well done.

So the first part of our preparation and planning has been done and now I need you to check your notes, please.

So use these questions to really make sure that you have created an effective plan and effectively prepared.

So are they efficient? So think about whether you have just written a script or whether they are really nice efficient notes.

So have you presented them in note form with bullet points and key information underlined? Will they help you to present your argument clearly? So really think about when you are in the middle of the debate, can you glance down to your notes and see exactly where the information is that you need? And also does it give you enough information that you would be able to develop or embellish what has been written? So give yourself time to really check those notes and this is an opportunity for you to add or take away anything you need to.

So pause the video to give yourself time to do this.

Off you go.

Okay, well done everyone.

We are at the second part of our lesson, so it is really important that we keep up the good work so far.

So we are thinking now about that all important participation in the debate.

So I'd like you to discuss, please, which spoken language skills do you need to use to confidently participate in a debate? So which key spoken language skills do you need to confidently participate in a debate? So you'll need to pause the video to give yourself time to discuss the question or if that's not available, you can think quietly to yourself.

So pause video and we'll feed back in a moment.

Off you go.

Okay, right, oh, I've given you the answer, one of the answers already, but let's just feed back.

Hopefully, you have something similar.

So is listening, okay, really, really important in a debate.

You will need to listen in order to respond in an effective way, okay? Such an important part of debating.

There's a lot that you need to do and that those ears listening, that listening are active listening is so important.

Standing to speak, okay? So if you are standing or sitting, you need to be upright and ready to go.

So standing to speak, this will help you to use gestures for emphasis if that's appropriate.

But also that positive body language will help you feel more confident.

So if you're standing tall, your posture and your body language is open, you're going to feel much more confident speaking clearly.

So this is obviously very important in a debate.

So you need to articulate yourself clearly using formal vocabulary because this is a debate.

So you'll need to project your voice.

So you may feel like you're speaking a little louder than you would do in everyday speech, but that's what you need to do, okay? So just project it slightly and that will help and also vary your tone and pace as well.

So your tone and pace need to match what it is you are saying, what it is you are debating.

And then finally that all important eye contact, eyes looking.

Try and avoid looking at your notes, okay? And if you do look at your notes, again, you've made very effective notes now, so you should just be able to glance at them and glance back up.

So you should try if you can to make or eye contact with your audience.

So that means just glancing generally out to your audience.

So debating can be a competitive activity that is judged by experts.

So how do you think a debate would be judged and what specific things might a judge be looking for? So pause a video so you can answer those questions.

How do you think a debate would be judged and what specific things might a judge be looking for? Tip, think back to those spoken language skills because they'll give you a bit of a hint as to what they might be looking for.

So pause a video so you can discuss your answers to this question.

Think quietly to yourself or jot down some ideas.

We'll feed back in a moment.

Off you go.

Okay, great, some very harsh debate judges out there, but lots of you coming up with some really specific things that a judge might be looking for.

So Andeep are Oak pupil has said that he thinks that definitely how the debate is presented.

So he thinks that judges will be looking for how the debate is presented.

So things like how you speak and your use of body language so that presentation of your debate.

Sam has says the content of your argument and rebuttals.

That's a really good point actually.

So yes, the presentation but also the content.

So for example, is it well researched? Do you have relevant points? Are you persuasive? So that's a really good point there from Sam.

So thank you.

And then finally, Izzy has said structure.

They would look for a well organised and logical argument.

So our Oak pupils here have picked up some really relevant things that judges might look for in a debate.

Competitive debate.

So we've got the presentation, we've got the content, and we're thinking about structure as well.

So those ideas can be turned into a success criteria for your debate.

So if we're thinking about your discussions and what our Oak pupil said, we can now turn this into a more specific success criteria.

So if we're thinking about presentation, we can think about speech and body language.

So speak loudly, clearly, and at a good pace, confident posture, and eye contact.

Okay, so that all comes under that presentation idea, that speech and body language.

And then strong content, we can think about is there.

Well-researched facts and examples.

Are arguments supported with relevant facts? And convince the audience with strong reasoning, okay? Then we're thinking about our structure.

Is there a logical structure? The other points presented in a clear and organised way.

And then finally, effective rebuttal, address and challenge the opponent's arguments.

So you can see the success criteria is really clear on the areas that you need to cover.

So speech and body language, strong content, logical structure, effective rebuttal.

And then those bullet points really break it down as to how you can be effective in those areas.

So let's see what you remember.

What is missing from this success criteria? Come up with your answer now.

Okay, so I'm hoping that most of us got strong content is missing from that success criteria.

If you didn't get that answer, that's absolutely fine.

Just make sure you look at that success criteria and you fully understand what is being asked of you.

So it's our second practise task and it's over to you.

It is time to debate.

So just remember that the motion is: This house believes that there is no point in reading fiction; only real-life stories matter.

Remember, you've got your planning and debate notes from task A, so they will help you.

And also remember those all important spoken language skills, those ears listening.

So you are active listening to your, the other person or people in your debate.

You are standing tall or with your posture nice and open and solid, so that you look confident.

You're speaking clearly, whether that's projecting your voice or articulating your ideas.

You are doing it clearly, and that all important eye contact.

Okay, so you have got everything you need to have a really effective debate and I cannot wait to hear what you come up with.

So pause the video and get debating.

Fantastic work everybody, well done.

There is nothing better than the sound of debate happening and I hope you really enjoyed being part of a debate.

And I hope it won't be the last debate that you get to take part in.

So what I would like us to do is now to spend a bit of time reflecting on those debates.

So I'd like you to discuss, please, the what went wells and the even better ifs of the debate using our success criteria, which is here, okay? So you'll need to pause the video to give yourself time to discuss those WWWs and those EBIs.

So pause the video and off you go.

Great, thank you everyone for those discussions.

Now I would like you to use those discussions to just reflect on your own participation in the debate.

So you've got some sentence starters here that you can use, and I'd just like you to use these to reflect on your own participation.

So I prepared by, I'm pleased with the way I, one thing I could have done better is, next time I would like, and I think the debate as a whole was because, okay? So you've got those sentence starters there, you've got all of that lovely discussion, that reflection discussion that you had to complete those sentences.

So pause the video so you have time to get that reflection task completed.

Off you go.

We have reached the end of the lesson and I want to thank you for such a lively and energetic debating lesson.

It was great to see all that preparation being put into practise.

So really well done to you all.

You should be proud.

Now let's just remind ourselves of what we have learned this lesson.

We know that planning is an important part of the debating process.

Being prepared will mean you can confidently deliver your arguments and rebuttals.

Positive body language can help if you feel nervous.

And it's important to reflect after a debate so you can understand what to improve next time.

Again, very well done and I look forward to seeing you all again soon in another lesson.

So I'll see you then, goodbye.