Spoken English, Year 9

opposition

提示Parliament uses the same name for the parties that face the government.

为什么Other debating formats call the side in favour the government or the affirmative. Speakers do not choose their side, so debaters learn to build the best case for a view they may not hold, which is part of the training.

The strongest

提示Ask which one you could least afford to lose if the bell went early.

为什么Time can run out, and judges and audiences remember what they hear early. Leading with your best point means it gets full attention and the most time for evidence.

Stick to the motion

提示Ask whether anything they said helps decide the question on the table.

为什么Every point has to bear on the statement being debated. However well made, an argument about something else wins nothing, and it uses up time the speaker needed.

Sum up their case

提示Ask what the judges will be left holding if the bell cuts a sentence in half.

为什么A point begun and abandoned leaves the audience with a loose end. A short summary reminds the judges of the arguments already made and lets the speaker finish on time and in control.

B

提示Only one of them deals with the emergency.

为什么Reply A is a new point for your own side; it leaves the emergency argument standing. Reply B answers the specific point that was made. A rebuttal has to meet the argument the other side actually used.

A concession in a debate

提示It often begins: 'My opponent is right that...'

为什么Granting a fair point costs little and makes you look reasonable, which makes your remaining disagreement more believable. The skill is to give up the detail and keep the case.

A point of information

提示The person offering it usually stands and says its three-word name aloud.

为什么It tests whether a speaker can think on their feet: accepting one and answering it well shows confidence, while refusing every one looks defensive. It must be short, and the speaker stays in charge of the floor.

The points they actually make

提示You cannot prepare this part the night before.

为什么A rebuttal written in advance answers the speech you expected, not the one that was given. Noting each claim as it is made, with a word or two of reply, is what lets you answer on your feet.

were; did

提示One verb must agree with a plural subject; the other needs the simple past, not the participle.

为什么These are the national curriculum's own two examples of Standard English verb forms. 'We was' and 'I done' are regular patterns in many dialects, not random slips, but formal speech and writing expect 'we were' and 'I did'.

Yes

提示Separate how her words sound from which words and verb forms she chooses.

为什么Standard English is defined by grammar and vocabulary and, as the national curriculum glossary puts it, is not limited to any particular accent. You can keep your own voice and still use it.

Code-switching

提示A speaker might do it between the playground and a job interview.

为什么Bilingual speakers do it between languages; most people do it between varieties without thinking, speaking one way at home and another in a formal setting. Doing it on purpose is the skill: you add Standard English for formal moments without giving up the way you speak elsewhere.

anything

提示Standard English allows only one negative here, and 'didn't' already supplies it.

为什么Two negatives in one clause are normal in many dialects and in many other languages, but Standard English uses one: 'I didn't see anything' or 'I saw nothing'. The national curriculum glossary gives 'I wasn't doing anything' as a Standard form.