Debate

Debate 101

I. Debate Formats

A. American Parliamentary

This format is composed of 4 speakers; 2 on each side. For Government side (also known as the affirmative or Gov), you have the Prime Minister (PM) and Deputy Prime Minister (DPM). For side Opposition (Negative or Opp), you have the Leader of Opposition (LO) and Deputy Leader of Opposition (DLO).

This format is rarely used in official competitions. It’s more focused on who gives a better paradigm, and what are the last points standing at the end of the debate.

Scoring: Win or Lose

Preparation time: 20 mins

B. British Parliamentary

This format is composed of 4 houses. For side government you have Opening Government (OG) and Closing Government (CG). For side opposition you have Opening Opposition (OO) and Closing Opposition (CO). It’s like the longer version of American Parliamentary.

The first half of the debate is composed of the Opening Houses which is OG and OO, while the second half is made up of the Closing Houses, CG and CO. Each house is composed of 2 speakers. For OG, it’s the PM and DPM. For OO, it’s LO and DLO. In the closing houses we introduce two new speakers; member and whip. CG’s two speakers are; Member of Government (MG) and Government Whip (GW), while CO has Member of Opposition and Opposition Whip.

Even if you are the on the same side i.e. OG and CG, it does not mean you are allies with them. The goal of each out house in this format is to give out a lot of contributions in the debate and outshine the other houses.

Scoring: 3 – 0. 3 being the highest point you can get in a round, and 0 being the lowest.

Preparation time: 15 mins

C. Asian Parliamentary

Asian Parliamentary has 2 sides with 3 speakers for each side. You have side government and side opposition. Government side is comprised of PM, DPM and GW, while opposition side has LO, DLO and OW.

In this format, the debate is more centered on the proposal each side has to present. Which paradigm offers the better solution and which...