Debate Introduction: How to Start A Debate (The Best Steps)

Are you preparing for a school competition and need the best guide on how to start a debate, including proper greetings and how to end your debate discussion? This unique article is for you. Just grab a seat and journey with me through this well-researched and written debate content for students in primary and secondary schools.

What is Debate?

Debate is an argumentative discussion involving people who express their different opinions. Debate discussion mostly has two sides, one side is the supporting and the other is the opposing side.

Debate is mostly done in primary and secondary schools, to help students do research, read, and express themselves through speaking, and this has helped to build children’s confidence in talking to people.

How to Start a Debate

To win in a debate or debate competition you need a good start, and your proper introduction shouldn’t be ignored because opening a debate the right way will keep your audience interested in listening to you, so you have to be bold and outspoken.

Before starting a debate, the introduction is needed in a proper way, which demands you study the various greeting structures in debate, and how you salute your judges and audience.

After greeting, you need to let them know about you by saying your name out loud because you must be audible, bold and smart to get more of your listeners’ attention on you.

Once done with your introduction, move straight to your point if you are the first speaker from your group. Ensure you start either with a question on your topic, then start an answer before giving more reasons.

For example, in “Why is Male Education Better Than Female Education”, you have to move straight to asking “What is Male Education”, speak on what male education is all about, you can include its benefits to men, which then will give you a stepping stone to why it’s important and why it’s better than female education.

Moving on to winning more points, you can talk about why female education should not be considered over male education, that should be if you still have time because some debates are time regulated so others can be given time to speak as well.

However, to keep your points high, make your reasons clear and understanding. Don’t repeat lines, words or sentences over again because it can make your listeners or audience get bored.

So talk about your reasons and summarize them in one piece, you need to work properly on your summary, as most people pick points from your summary.

Make sure your summary doesn’t give room for counter-attacking by your opponents because they might use your summary against you, and this will give them a winning point over you.

Debate Introduction

How to perfectly introduce a debate is simple and needs to be done the proper way so you can score good points because your introduction matters a lot.

In the debate introduction, there are basic things to consider, which include your audibility, how bold you are, composure and clear words.

First, you stand without rushing up, and you greet your audience, then your name, your debate topic and straight to defending your topics with clear points.

Secondly, ensure your points are clear and understandable to all persons in that room. Most times I advise you to use normal words rather than hard words that will make most people unable to understand your points.

Lastly, make sure you have points that suit the reasons you give to defend your topic. For example, if you are speaking on “Why Mothers Are Better Than Fathers”, then give points like, a Mother is a Child’s First Love, then start reasoning like from the first day of childbirth, it was the mother who has always been there to nurture and watch over that child, play with the child till he or she grows, so the mother is all the child sees and plays with more often, that why the mother is the child’s first love.

You can also add points like, the mother is the one who cares for the child, prepares food and makes sure the child stays happy, while the father goes out and comes back anytime without knowing much about the child.

You can also make your audience see more reasons why a mother is better than a father by saying, that women know more about their children than fathers because they are always there with them, with these points you have gained a higher level of winning, by making your points clear.

How to Start a Debate Greeting

A proper debate greeting will earn you good points, so you have to do it properly. So start by recognizing your judges, timekeeper, fellow debaters and audience.

Ensure your greeting is polite and fast. Also make sure you try to acknowledge everyone or every position there, like the chairman, judges if there is any, timekeeper, your audience and fellow debaters.

Example of Debate Greetings

1. Good Day Mr Chairman, my honourable listeners, accurate timekeeper, and fellow debaters.

2. I acknowledge you my able Chairman, distinguish listeners, timekeepers, my co debaters, I greet you all.

3. Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen, timekeeper, fellow debater, good morning to you all.

How to End a Debate

After you have properly given your reasons as to why you are supporting or opposing the given debate topic, then comes your debate conclusion, in which you have to summarize your points to make it more understandable to your audience.

Ensure your summary is clear and straight to the point as well. For example, if you are speaking on why “Teachers are Better Than Doctors”, then make sure you summarize with statements like, teachers made the doctors, so without the teachers, there will be no doctors, and there will be no one to save people, which makes the teachers important to the word.

Debate Closure Example:

With these few points of mine, I believe I have clearly convinced you and not confused you that “Female Education is Better Than Male Education”, Thank You.

How to Improve Your Debating Skills

Below are some helpful tips on how you can improve your debating skills.

1. Stay Calm and Positive

Your ability to be calm and positive will help you talk better and remember things rather than when you are scared. So I mostly advise my students to take a deep breath, twice or more, then say to themselves “I CAN DO THIS” or use the word “ALL IS WELL”, just like in a Bollywood movie titled “3 Idiots”, then you can stand up to starts.

2. Have Confidence In Your

Having confidence in yourself is a good way to boost your confidence, as you will see yourself doing things more than you can’t imagine. Self-confidence has helped a lot and will keep helping, and it will limit stage fear if you have one, so believe in yourself.

3. Be Bold and Outspoken

Boldness means a lot when talking to people, it matters so much that you should be very bold and audible because that’s the only way you can get your audience’s attention.

Ensure you use clear words so everyone listening to you can understand you easily and flow with you. You can use general examples everyone knows to state a point.

Best Debate Topics for Primary Schools in Nigeria

Below are some popular and still useful debate topics for primary schools in Nigeria and other countries.

1. Education is Better Than Money

Here we can have two sides, the opposing side and the proposing or supporting side. So there will be an argument between those supporting education and those supporting money with their different reasons and benefits.

2. Farmers Are Better Than Traders

This debate topic is another useful one for primary school students, as we will have those in support of farmers and those supporting the traders, stating their reasons as well.

3. Fathers Are Better Than Mothers

This topic gives room for more arguments on father and mother’s love, and which is more than the other.

4. Male Education Vs Female Education

In this topic, it’s either you are supporting that Male Education is Better Than Female Education or you are supporting female child education to be better than male child own.

5. Why Boarding School is Better Than Day School

This is another argumentative debate topic for primary schools, as they will be focused on talking about the benefits of boarding school and why it’s good for kids, and the opposing side will talk about day education.

6. Why Private school is better than Public school

Here students talk about private schools and public schools, comparing them to which is better.

7. Health Vs Wealth, Which is Better

Health is better than wealth, or wealth is better than health, this is another good debate topic for both primary and secondary school students.

8. Male Child is Better Than Female Child

We will have those supporting that bearing a male child is more beneficial to the family and community, while others also talk about the benefits of female children.

9. Why Students Should Wear Uniforms

Should uniforms be worn by students to school or not? Students discuss the cons and pros of school uniforms.

10. Why Cell phone usage Should Not Be Allowed in Schools

Both secondary and primary school students will do well with this topic, as they will support the use of phones in schools with advantages or disapprove of it with disadvantages.

Importance of Debate in Schools

Debate has been helpful to young students, and below are some benefits of debating.

1. Debate helps build children’s confidence and boldness.

2. Debating helps students to read, and do research.

3. Debate is also a form of education that helps educate other students as they listen to their fellow students.

4. It enhances students’ critical thinking and makes them think deeply to get points.

5. Debating in schools has helped many students who have stage fear to overcome it.

Conclusion

We hope after reading the above, you won’t find difficulties on how to start a debate, debate introduction, greeting and how to end debates. Thanks for your time and we plead if you have any questions, use the comment section below and we will give you more clarity.