Writes Avi A. (4ths)
The recent debate competition against RMS was a brilliant experience, and even though it was my third time competing in a formal debate, it was completely different from anything I鈥檝e done before. Unlike the proposition and opposition setups I have experienced before, we were given a relevant topic which impacts most teenagers today: whether social media should be banned for under-16s. We had to argue the motion from specific stakeholder perspectives, like social media companies, governments, or parents, which made it way more interesting than a traditional debate.
Our team had to defend the parents’ point of view, which required two intense planning sessions over at RMS in mixed groups of six. It was honestly exhilarating trying to collaborate and condense so many strong arguments into a strict five-minute time limit.
The final debate took place back here at 吃瓜现场’, where everyone came together to present their cases. My absolute favourite part of the entire event was the rebuttal phase, because delivering spontaneous counter-arguments allowed us to back up our points even further and force the audience to see the issue from a totally different angle.
The competition was properly judged out of 50 points, using a thorough marking rubric that evaluated us on specific key areas like inclusivity, the depth of our research, and how well we developed our arguments rather than just our public speaking skills. Ultimately, this experience greatly developed my teamwork skills and gave me a much clearer understanding of how to refine my debating strategy for future competitions.
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