The Debate Project
Constructive Speech
Rebuttal
Cross-examination
Example of a Constructive Speech
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKNDZkE6
R5I&feature=results_main&playnext=1&list=P
L867A55169F0811D1
• Proposition: The Federal Government should
illegalize smoking.
• How does the first affirmative speech support
this proposition?
1) The debater mentions measures taken by the government to fight
other health threats:
• February 9th, 2010 - “Let's Move campaign” initiated by First Lady
Michelle Obama to end childhood obesity in the USA.
• April 22nd, 209 - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
activated its Emergency Operations Center to combat the H1N1
virus.
2) He shows that such measures are in accordance with the American
Constitution:
• “Our founding fathers wrote that they intended to provide for the
general Welfare”
3) He concludes that if smoking is one of the most serious threats to
public health, more serious than obesity or the swine flu, then
• “the United States Federal Government must take serious actions to
end that threat. It must illegalize smoking throughout the United
States.”
5) To support his statement about how harmful smoking is, he
provides some facts:
• According to the CDC, smoking causes approximately 443.000
deaths in the United States every year.
• Smoking increases the risk of heart diseases and stroke two to four
times, and increases the risk of lung cancer in men 23 times, and in
women 13 times.
• Smokers are more likely to die of chronic diseases
• Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body.
• Second-hand smoke increases the risk of heart diseases and lung
cancer.
• Second-hand smoke causes deaths among adults.
• Second-hand smoke cause serious diseases in innocent children
(bronchitis and pneumonia)
• Smoking is killing women, young and old.
6) To close his constructive speech, the debater:
a) Appeals to the audience: “You can stop it”.
b) Mentions the drop in smoking rates in states that have
adopted smoking bans.
c) Impacts his speech by making a comparison between
smoking related deaths and deaths cause by terrorist
attacks:
“If we illegalize smoking throughout the nation, our work
will come one step closer to stopping this health
menace that has killed more than any terrorist attack
ever could. Not only should we do this, but we must.”
Example of a Rebuttal
Discuss the effectiveness of the sample rebuttal
considering the steps of refutation and the
ways of refuting an argument learnt last class.
Steps of refutation
1) Identify your opponents argument.
2) State your team’s response.
3) Provide support.
4) Impact your response.
Ways of refuting an argument
1) OPPOSING - a debater contradicts a claim made by the opposition and
provides reasons.
2) MINIMAZING - a team does not deny the validity of the claim but reduces
the argument’s significance.
3) OUTWEIGHING- a debater agrees with the opposition but presents
arguments that outweigh the opponent’s argument.
4) TURN AROUND- a student uses the reasoning provided by the opposition
to prove his/her point.
5) EXPOSING IRRELEVENT ARGUMENTS
6) EXPOSING INCONSISTENCIES
7) QUESTIONING FACTS/EXAMPLES
8) QUESTIONING AUTHORITY