A Sample Debate

A full-length structured classroom debate: two teams, assigned positions, advance research, opening statements, counter-arguments, cross-examination, summary, and class vote. The capstone speaking format for B1+ learners.

Standard ESL debate format based on Krieger's Teaching Debate to ESL Students (2005) and widely adopted in IELTS Speaking and academic English courses.

Procedure

1. Announce topic 1–2 weeks ahead. Divide class into two teams. Each gets the pro or con position — typically not their own opinion. Steelmanning builds rigour.
2. Research phase (outside class): teams gather arguments, counterarguments, data, example cases. Share via a team Google Doc or Padlet.
3. Opening statements (5 min each): each team presents their prepared case. Main claims + supporting reasons.
4. Counter-arguments (15–20 min): teams alternate speakers, attacking specific points raised. No repetitions of the opening.
5. Cross-examination / Q&A (10–15 min): teams pose questions to each other based on what was said. Respondents must answer directly.
6. Summary statements (5 min each): each team crystallises their case and addresses the strongest opposing point.
7. Vote and reflect (10–15 min): non-debating students (or the whole class) vote on most persuasive team, not on the position they personally hold. Brief class discussion on what made arguments strong or weak.

Scoring Rubric (optional)

Criterion	Points
Clarity of argument	/10
Use of evidence / specific examples	/10
Quality of rebuttals	/10
Grammar range and accuracy	/10
Vocabulary range (advanced register)	/10
Teamwork and handover	/5
Speaking fluency and pronunciation	/5

Deduct points for L1 use during formal rounds. Reward varied grammar structures and discourse markers.

Debate Topic Types (Krieger)

Type	Example
Factual	Homework does / does not improve academic results.
Value	Honesty is always the best policy.
Policy	The government should ban single-use plastics.

Why It Works

• Forces steelmanning: students argue positions they don't personally hold — builds empathy and rigour.
• Extended language use: 40+ minutes of sustained English on one topic is rare in other activities.
• Multiple skills at once: research (reading), writing (prep), speaking, listening, note-taking, and improvisation.
• Genuine audience pressure: the vote at the end gives real stakes.
• Exam alignment: IELTS Speaking Part 3 and CAE Speaking Part 4 reward exactly the argumentation skills debate trains.

Variations

• Four-corners debate: four teams, four positions. Richer than binary; harder to coordinate.
• Surprise assignment: teams find out their position only 5 minutes before the debate. Tests genuine comprehension.
• Written lead-in: each team submits a one-page position paper before the debate. Reading-then-speaking integration.
• Reverse debate: at the halfway point, teams swap sides. Now they must argue against what they were arguing for.
• Shorter form: see 120-90-60 Fluency - Debate Edition for a 7-minute compressed version.

Tips

• Topic choice is 80% of success. Pick something students have opinions on but where both sides have real arguments. Avoid one-sided moral questions.
• Pre-teach functional language: "My point is that... / I'd like to challenge the claim that... / The evidence actually suggests... / With respect, that misrepresents our position..."
• Control the floor. One speaker at a time, strict turn-taking, moderator (can be a student) manages the clock.
• Deep preparation beats improvisation. Teams that research produce sharply better debates than teams who wing it.
• Video-record the best debate of the term — excellent artefact for the next cohort to watch as a model.

Source

Krieger, D. (2005) Teaching debate to ESL students: A six-class unit. The Internet TESL Journal, 11(2). Additional structure from ESL Debates teaching guides (esldebates.com). Cross-references to Kennedy (2007) on debate in language teaching.