👥 Speaker Roles
Each member of a team has a different role to play.
🌱 First Speaker
The first speaker builds a foundation for their teammates to build on. They should raise their team’s most important points and give us a clear idea of what their team seeks to prove throughout the debate.
The first speakers of the proposition and opposition teams have slightly different tasks to complete.
| Task | 👍 Proposition 1st Speaker | 👎 Opposition 1st Speaker |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Defines the topic. | Accepts the definition provided. If the definition is grossly incorrect or unfair, Opposition 1 can provide an alternative. |
| Rebuttal | There is nothing to rebut. | Opposition 1 needs to rebut arguments made by Proposition 1. |
⚔️🔨 Second Speaker
The audience has heard conflicting views on the topic. The second speakers need to advance the discussion. They need to:
- Rebut ideas raised by the previous speaker.
- Defend their team’s points from attacks.
- Introduce new points that will extend the team’s arguments.
- Ensure their new points are distinct from the ones raised by their first speaker.
- Ensure their points aren’t in conflict with their first speaker.
⚔️🏁 Third Speaker
A third speaker should summarize the debate while rebutting their opponents and defending their own team’s case. They aren’t allowed to introduce new concepts to the debate. Doing so would be unfair – there isn’t time for anyone to engage with those ideas.