Friday, November 15, 2013
Nothing Better than a Good Argument!
First of all, congratulations! Your first debate was a HUGE success which we can attribute to your hard work and thorough preparation! That was SO MUCH FUN! So, let's hear some of your thoughts about it! What were the high points? What stands out to you as being successful? What was hardest about it? What would you do to improve the process?
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If you were to look up the word "debate", you would find something along the lines of: a discussion, as of a public question in an assembly, involving opposing viewpoints. However, that seems to be a bland, partial statement. The dictionary’s description fails to capture the atmosphere and emotions hovering around those participating and observing. It fails to convey the nerves and the excitement that seem to electrify the air, adding a sort of thrill that only good and in depth conversations can bring about. Certainly, a debate is a discussion with opposing viewpoints, but it is also a form of sharing ideas on a topic in the hopes of influencing what others think of it.
ReplyDeleteThe Obamacare debate was an incredible learning experience. Firstly, we were able to learn about the structure of debates and participate in a debate ourselves, and for many, if not all, this was our first official debate. Learning about debates was just part of the knowledge gained during this assignment. Beforehand I knew very little about Obamacare, but now I know many facts and opinions that have allowed me to make my own assessment of the program.
Personally, I really enjoyed the rebuttal. Ian’s rebuttal in particular was fantastic. Despite the fact that he was on the opposing team, I found what he was saying really interesting. That was the funny part about the debate. Someone would say something really good, and my first reaction was often to think how impressive or relevant what they said was. This was always quickly followed by a grudging admiration as I contemplated how to make null their statement. Despite the fact that we were meant to be opponents, we are all still classmates. And as classmates, it is hard not to marvel at how far we’ve come together.
I would say that the hardest part, for me at least, was staying calm. I hate, hate, hate talking in front of an audience. I start trembling and my mouth goes dry. My thoughts get jumbled up, and the easiest words are convinced that I’m not allowed to pronounce them. Which was why I was shocked today when I remained relatively composed. It was hard to keep from simply staring at my notes. It was hard to arrange the facts in a way that flowed. But, that made it all the more satisfying when I was finished.
There is very little I would have done to change the setup of the debate. The only thing I wish I would have done differently is becoming more familiar with my information. I had a lot of fun with the debate today, and it was nice to see it all come together. I hope that we are able to have more debates in the future. Although, I’d like to avoid an AP Lang v. AP Lit debate which my friends from AP Lit were expressing an interest in. Everyone put forth much effort to make this the best debate possible, and I believe we that succeeded.
Meaghan, you are so right about Ian's rebuttal. You also made good pouts about being nervous and how we should keep the setup mostly the same. Great work, and good job in the debate!
DeleteMeaghan, I agree, I think one of the hardest parts for me was also staying calm, cool, and collected when talking in public. I found myself at different points getting a little wordy with what I was saying, but I hope to improve on this in the future.
DeleteAlso, the AP Lang v. AP Lit debate sounds quite interesting!!
Great Job yesterday!
Meaghan, I also really enjoyed Ian's rebuttal. I also agree about being nervous--but I think we all did alright despite it! A debate between AP Lang and AP Lit would be pretty awesome!
DeleteGreat job as usual, teammate! ;)
Meaghan, I really enjoyed being on your team for this debate. You are a very smart student. Your idea about Lit vs. Lang is a really good one! I also agree with the rebuttal! It was very well done. Great blog Meaghan!
DeleteThe debate had some exciting points and and some that could have been more
ReplyDeletethrilling. In my opinion, the highest points were the rebuttals and the
responses because they were when most of the arguing was done. The thing that
really struck me as being successful was just how prepared everyone was. Both
sides knew what they were talking about and some even had so much preparation
that they needed notecards to remember all of it.
To me, the hardest thing was not being able to interrupt the opposing team when
they said something that I did not agree with. It was difficult for me to just
sit back and listen when all I wanted to do was shout out my opinion on what
they were saying. If I could improve anything, it would be to have a more open
debate where there are not set time slots for each theme or rebuttal. I believe
that the whole class would benefit from a debate such as that.
Jess, I like how you pointed out the difficulties of sitting passively while others argued. I also had a hard time with that. I agree that everyone was well prepared. Great job with both the debate and the blog!
DeleteJessica, I agree with you and Meaghan because I found it very difficult to not just blurt out what I was thinking when someone was making a point or an argument. Good job today ladies!
DeleteI agree. It was so hard to not put in my two cents. It was hard to sit there and keep calm. Great job!
DeleteJessica I agree with you on it being hard to not talk back in forth. I also think it would be hard to keep us all calm if it were an open debate and it might have taken to much time. Anyways Good work
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHello supporters and enemies of Obamacare!! First of all, before everyone starts tearing each other up on this blog post, I would just like to say Great Job to everyone on the debate today!! I though both teams had great points and were well prepared. To be honest, I was quite nervous and not really looking forward to this debate. I thought it was going to be a complete mess because none of us have ever been in that type of a situation before and knowing that Becky Polaski and the AP Lit students were going to be there just seemed to make it even more frightening. However, I was completely wrong! I actually had a lot of fun, (is this wrong to say when talking about AP Lang??) participating in the debate and watch it all go down.
ReplyDeleteBoth teams seemed very well prepared and knew their facts and points well. I felt like each team had their strong points and weaker times as well throughout the debate. I was in the first part of the debate where the themes were stated and although I was relieved that my speaking part was over, I had a difficult time keeping my mouth shut while the rest of the debate was taking place. I found myself just wanting to stand up and say something at the opposing team, and I also really wanted to say new ideas/thoughts that popped in my head to my teammates while they were at the stand as well. I felt myself getting more fired up about Obamacare as the debate went on. Just like when racing, I can get very competitive and this debate definitely brought that side of me today! I left class today on a little ‘high’, almost how I feel like after nailing a great running workout!!
I feel that the format of the debate worked out nicely. I liked how one team would say their point, and then the other team would have their chance. Then we would have time to recollect and arm our teammates for the next battle. At first, the length of each segment seemed very long, and I didn’t think we would need nearly that amount of time. However, after experiencing this first debate, I think each segment could really be a little longer.
Overall, I think the debate about Obamacare was a great first experience. I really enjoyed standing up for something and interacting with my team. Personally, I think we should have another debate sometime. It would be cool if we could keep the same teams because I think my team worked very well together. Even though my team lost by 1 point, we are the true winners in my eyes!
GO OBAMACARE!! haha ;-)
Tor, I like how you compared the debate to a competition. It definitely did seem that way. Your group did great, and you are right in saying everyone prepared well. Great job girl!
DeleteTori, I agree with your entire first paragraph. No matter how much preparing I did, I was really nervous because I had no idea what to expect. I could have failed, and there would have been an audience to witness it. Luckily, I do not think I did too badly. I also did not expect to have fun but was happily surprised. I think that we should have more debates in the future as well. Fantastic job today!
DeleteTori, I loved the way you began and ended this post! It made me smile. This is very well written. Good job!
DeleteTori, this blog is excellent. You were really funny in your introductory paragraph. I know it was shocking, we had fun! Haha great job!
DeleteP.S. NO OBAMACARE :P
Tori, I really liked your opening sentence along with your ending one about still supporting Obamacare even though the debate is over with. I also like how you referred to the rebutals as a "battle". Nice work!
DeleteDebating. I'll never understand how we can dread it so much when we do it in front if an audience, yet we do it every day. My lunch table, and they will all attest to this, has a debate daily. We argue about inconsequential things and life changing decisions. But it' snot something that makes me nervous. In fact I look forward to it, increasing my knowledge of certain subjects and learning to be able to articulate my point in a well planned and convincing way. I'll admit this debate was not something I looked forward to, not wanted to revisit anytime soon. But now that it is over and I do not have the rest of a stressful day looming over my head, I look back and realize I enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteBoth of our groups did so well figuring out rebuttals and responses to them. We learned how to research and make our points strongly, without having to make stuff up or sell our point through irrelevancies. I'll admit there might have been a little of this, but only because it was our first debate and nerves were pulled tight. But I think the best thing is that we became passionate about it. Maybe not necessarily for the topic we were arguing, but we became passionate about arguing intelligently and with sophistication. I have never felt so blessed to have a class full of smart, bright individuals like you guys. Everyone worked their hardest and contributed to the debate, adding richness in different ways. I think, really, that the whole debate had no ultimate high point. There were ups and downs, but they were all on a high, good level that contributed to our debate experience.
The pro team had some very strong rebuttal points. They were strong in arguing against the points that we made, while our opening was extremely strong. Each team had something that they were better at, but it all basically evened out in the end. I think we succeeded in having a good debate and not resorting to rude comments or irrelevant arguments. Everyone had really convincing arguments and I had issues remembering which side I was on.
The hardest part was keeping my thoughts straight. I am not a good orator. Sure, I can express myself during a normal conversation, but stick me in front of a crowd, even a one person crowd, and I get confused. Once there is any sort of pressure, I stop thinking straight and my words become jumbled. But once I got started I felt a little better. I know other people had a hard time too, so I didn't feel alone. It was also hard nor adding my comments when I new something was erroneous.
If I could improve anything, I would add an open debate in the middle, with final closing remarks. I feel like that would suit our class well, as long as we didn't get to rowdy. Other than that, the debate seemed very successful to me. We were all able to get good arguments in during the time allotted. Finally, I think this debate was just an awesome experience. I learned so much about Obamacare and about what I can do during a debate to be successful. I think it would be cool to have another one, with a little more practice, it made it even better that the scores were so close, showing how hard everyone worked.
Hannah, I love that we debate every single day at lunch, I think it is helpful for us! I definitely think that both sides were very prepared and had strong arguments. Great job today!
DeleteCongratulations everyone!! The debate today was extremely successful, this is shown through the fact that the winning team was only selected by one point! Everyone did very well overall. Debates are a unique learning experience, and this one was very helpful to our class. Anyone can argue a point that they believe in. That is just being able to create an argument. Being able to debate, is knowing what you are talking about. A good debater could argue from either side of the problem and I think many of us learned how to do that. Being a part of the pro side to Obamacare was difficult for me at first because I do not believe in it. Many people in my group shared the same feelings, so we really had to put forth a lot of extra effort. There was a lot of questioning what it was, so we had to research Obamacare to know what we were talking about in order to defend it.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I never thought I would enjoy being a part of a debate so much! It was extremely interesting to see other people's reactions to the tension. And I was impressed at how we worked together to solve problems so quickly. My favorite part was the rebuttal because it was the most exciting part, especially Ian's rebuttal. He did an awesome job of getting his point across. Another thing I liked about this whole process is that we do not just leave it at the door when we walk out of 2nd period. I heard and was involved in conversations about the debate all week long especially today after it happened, to me this is really neat.
I would like to know what people truly think about Obamacare. Having the sides actually believe what they are standing up for could make a big difference in the debate, I personally think. It may be a good idea for our next debate. Overall I really enjoyed the debate and I hope we do it again!
Erin, I agree that this was a hard topic to debate since most of us are against it, but I thought your team did a fantastic job! It was a lot of fun, especially listening to the intense rebuttal. Great job on the blog and the debate!
DeleteErin, I agree with you. I never thought being part of a debate would be so fun. Seeing the tension and almost anger in people's reaction was also an interesting thing to see. Good work my fellow responser!
DeleteErin, I agree, being apart of a debate was really interesting!! The rebuttals were definitely the height of the debate. Great job fellow teammate!
ReplyDeleteTo begin, I would like to applaud everyone for all of the hard-work and time put into this successful debate! I think it was really amazing that a single point determined the winner. I think that the highest points of the debate was the rebuttal and the response. It was really interesting to hear us argue without being able to interrupt each other. I also think that both opening comments were successful. Everyone got their points across extremely well.
ReplyDeleteThe hardest part of the whole debate, to me, was getting up in front of everyone and speaking. I was really nervous and could not stop shaking, but once I got up there and felt what I was saying, it became a lot easier.
Overall, I thought the debate was great since it was our very first, but for future debates, I would change the set-up. I believe it would be beneficial for both sides if we would switch who got to go first for each round. That way, everyone would have equal opportunities to have witty comments. Other than that, I would not change a thing. I really liked the work periods between rounds, and I thought the time lengths were perfect. This truly was a successful debate, and I look forward to another one!
Natalie, it's amazing how we can fight for the opposing sides and still agree on the same high points. Likewise I feel we should have rotated who went first to equal the playing field.
DeleteNatalie, I like how you took the time to applaud to everyone's dedication and contributions to the debate. If each person would not have put in the time that they did the debate would not have been possible. I enjoy you idea of alternating who goes first in each debate. This way different teams will have the opportunity to lead off and begin with a good start. Great job!
DeleteCongratulations fellow students of AP Lang! We successfully made it through our first debate! With a single point separating us, I think it's safe to say we all did a great job. To the team against obamacare, great job! You all did a great job presenting and you had a lot of great ideas and strategies. To everyone I worked with on the pro obamacare team, I'm so proud of us. We did good, honestly, a lot better than I thought we would have considering we weren't exactly for obamacare ourselves.
ReplyDeletePersonally I really enjoyed the debate. I love arguing with people. Just admit it, it's fun. This was my first time ever being in a real debate with planning and timing. I learned a lot and I'm excited to do it again. It would be cool if throughout the year during debates we could try all different types of styles and time layouts.
I was extremely nervous when I found out that the AP Lit class was going to judge us. I only got more anxious that Becky Polanski would be sitting in. However, when the debate was actually happening, I was actually kind of happy that they were all there. It made things seem a lot less casual, which I sort of liked. I hope that the AP Lit class had a good time and I hope they come to judge us again and get to take a part in all of our improvements.
Felicia, I am so proud of our group too! We did a great job for not knowing who was doing what part until the day before. I completely agree about the AP Lit class sitting in, it was a great experience and I look forward to debating again.
DeleteFelicia, I love how you mentioned congratulations to the con team, but then I like how you admitted that the pro team wasn't exactaly so pro... It really made the fact that we only lost by one point stand out. Great work!
DeleteWow, what a week? Congratulations AP Language we made it through our first debate. I will be honest; at the beginning of the week I was unsure how we were going to do during this debate. As the week progressed, my nerves increased. Then, we found out Becky Polaski was coming! I feel that all of our hard work truly made off at the end of the week.
ReplyDeleteI have friendly debates with my friends all of the time, but having to do this professionally and in front of judges was intense. I think our class did extremely well preparing. The highest point, in my opinion, was the rebuttal. I felt both sides were very well argued, but I would like to say Ian did an outstanding job. He was into it and I felt passion for what he was saying. I also feel that both of the openings were excellent. Drew was wonderful at grabbing the attention of the audience and really starting the debate. I felt Sam did a wonderful job with the prayer and presented the against side of ObamaCare also. I think everyone did a great job presenting there information to the class.
There were many hard parts of this assignment. The whole week was quite stressful. Looking up information, making notecards, and preparing to speak amongst everyone was quite challenging. ObamaCare is a big topic going on in the world, but most teenagers are not discussing it everyday at lunch. So discovering facts and opinions about this idea was the most complicated part. Also, speaking in front of all those people was nerve racking. I usually do well with public speaking, but this was different. There were many difficult and stressful events that made this week as successful as it was.
This class is very good at arguing. I find that even just in class we have healthy arguments about various topics. I wish we would have argued a little bit more to hear more opinions of people. I think as we continue to do debates we will get stronger and better. I do hope we continue to do debates periodically because it was very interesting to argue with some of my best friends.
Jolene, I think when we heard when Becky was coming it made the debate a bigger deal and more nerve racking. I think it made the debate harder to do and changed the outcome. Good job
DeleteJolene, I agree with your thought that having friendly debates is beneficial because each time you learn more about a certain topic. I would like to thank you for mentioning my opening in the debate. You did a great job too! Finally, I agree with how you stated that you would like to continue doing debates in the future. Good work!
DeleteJolene, I agree with you about how friendly arguments are not really like debates. Debates have structure and are more professional. I also agree with you about how we learned a lot during our debate. I only researched the pros, but on the day of the debate I learned a lot about the cons. It was quite interesting. By the way, nice job during the debate!
DeleteGood work!
For each of our sides of the debate I think we did good. We really got both of our points across well and congratulations to the winning team. The high points of the debate were definitely the rebutals. I believe the people who were debating them did a great job at combating what the opposition had said in their opening speech. Having a good rebutal is important because it makes the viewers think about their ideas and beliefs on the subject at hand.
ReplyDeleteGoing with what I previously said I feel the most successful part of the debate overall was Ian's speech. It was pretty obvious he did a ton of research and he knew the material very well, it showed in his presentation. After listening to the opening arguments, he knew exactly what he had to say to win the crowd back over. He was a focal point for our team. Another successful part was the opposition's opening prayer. It really hit home what they were fighting against and I applaud them for their ingenuity.
For me the hardest part of the process was not knowing the debate format until the day before. It was difficult because I didn't know what to research or do to prepare for my unknown part. For future debates I would like to change the order in which the two sides spoke. I believe it was an unfair advantage for the cons to always go second because they could feed off of the pros. Besides that one tweak I feel the debate went really well and we all should be proud of ourselves and our classmates.
Erin, I also think that both teams did a great job. It was interesting to see how close the score actually was! Thank you for liking our opening! I think both teams had really good rebuttals, and I, too, agree that Ian did an excellent job. I enjoyed your closing a lot because you summed up every point your team tried to get across throughout the debate very well. Good work, P!
DeleteThe debate that we participated in on Friday was a lot of fun. It was exciting to see our fellow students go up and talk about points on a national topic such as Obamacare. I also think that people may have not been on the side of the debate that they thought was right and looking up facts and preparing for the debate helped them understand the other side better. I also think the best part of the debate would have to be the closing statements because it is wrapping everything up and the teams are really just focusing on appealing to the judges which is cool.
ReplyDeleteI do not know if anything could really be changed in our debate process because of the short amount of time we have for a class period. I thought that with our current format everything flowed pretty well and were prepared well too. I think as our debates go on, students will be less nervous because we will understand them more. I look forward to doing more debates in our AP Language class.
I thought that the Obamacare debate in our AP Language class was phenomenal. Both sides prepared a lot and made some valid points. The entire experience was so much fun! At first when I heard we were going to do a debate, I thought that it would be sort of calm. Once the debate began I realized that it was going to be like a true debate when the intensity was off of the charts. I knew that the outcome of the debate was going to be close after we finished because each team gave 100% throughout the whole debate. I even learned more than I thought I would in the debate because it was possible to learn about the pros and cons of Obamacare.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the high points of the debate were the opening and rebuttals. The reasoning for this is that the opening is the opportunity for each team to get off to a great start. They can make certain points that the other team will struggle to fight back because they might not be prepared for it. The rebuttals are actually when each team argues back on points that were made in the opening. This may be the most essential part during the debate because it is important to argue some of the other team’s points, but at the same time it is crucial to continue to support your team’s points.
There is no doubt about it that this week was a major success. All the effort that was put forth to make this debate possible was outstanding. The research, notes, and finally speaking in front of the class made the debate happen. Every part of the debate was important because each person learned something new. I feel that the debate was successful in many diverse ways because I am confident that each student filled their brains with more knowledge than they had before the debate. This is awesome because at the end of the day, the goal is to be more intelligent than you were before. One thing that I realized was that if your team did not work together during this debate it would have been a struggle. Teamwork was a big part of the entire process, and I feel that both teams collaborated rather well.
I think that there were a couple adjustments that could have been made to improve the debate, but time with always be a complication with the schedule that our school runs on. The class worked hard and efficiently all week. I would like to thank the AP Literature class for making an appearance to judge because without them this debate would not have been possible. I am convinced that this was a successful week because not only was the debate close, it ended with a score of 73 to 72. This situation my friends, is what some people like to call a “nail biter”.
Drew, I also thought that the debate was going to be much calmer. However, once things started I realized the spirit and intensity people were putting into their words. I actually enjoy when arguments get heated. I also agree that teamwork is a huge part of a debate. I think it is important to feed off of each other's thoughts and ideas. Our class worked really hard this week, and the debate score showed it.
DeleteNice job Drew!
I had a lot of fun during the debate this week. I really enjoy a good argument. The back and forth jabs at one another and the emotions and feelings put into one's words makes arguing exciting and thrilling. I also learned a lot. I never really knew how a debate worked. I watched glimpses of presidential debates in the past, but I never really saw how a debate functioned. I learned that a debate is not like a lunch table argument, it is very structured. I always thought that you could interrupt your opponent, but I learned that you must keep your peace. I actually like this idea because it lets both sides get their points across. I also liked our debate format. I could not imagine not having those work periods. The work periods allowed you those precious minutes of regrouping and reorganizing your thoughts. I would not change a thing with our debate format.
ReplyDeleteA high point of the debate that stands out to me is Sam's opening prayer. I think it was a great way to introduce their points. The prayer seemed to flow right into their presentation. Prayers are also very compelling. They force the audience into a deep state of thought and belief, it sets up their minds, or in other words, the prayer sets the tone. I also enjoyed Drew's opening statement. Drew did not have a prayer or compelling opening statement, but Drew was confident. Everything that came out of his mouth was believable because he spoke with force and integrity. He also knew his information; he was not reading right off his note cards. Drew also has a lot of statistics, and as they say "numbers never lie". It is really hard to argue against figures, and it forces the opposing team to come at you with an emotional appeal.
I think the hardest part for me was how nervous I was. I was literally shaking the whole time. I do not mind talking in front of people; it really does not bother me at all. But I guess I thought I would forget something or screw up. My nervousness impacted my posture. I was so nervous I sort of had to lean on the podium which was a bad mistake. I failed to realize that posture and appearance is important. Take the Nixon, Kennedy debates for example. The folks listening on the radio were convinced Nixon won the debates, but the folks watching on the TV were convinced Kennedy won. On television, Nixon was sweaty and disheveled, while Kennedy was tall, confident, and organized. I do not know if appearance is scored during debates, but regardless I think if I can improve my posture I will do much better in the debates.
Our class shows a real talent for the art of arguing. Everyday we have heated, but respectable, arguments. I think next time it would be neat to choose the side you want to argue. While it is good to practice arguing things you do not believe in or just simply standing up to a challenge, I think we can have even more spirited debates if people were allowed to pick their own sides. I look forward to participating in more debates in the future.
Ian, I agree with you that the debate format worked perfectly. The work periods were essential to our successful debate. I, too, was very shocked to see how structured a debate actually is. I always thought it was just two parties yelling at each other without really listening to what the other side had to say.
DeleteI am glad you enjoyed our prayer! We thought it would be an excellent way to transition into Catholic views. Ian, I loved your rebuttal! You were so prepared and knew your information well. My favorite part was when you talked about the young lady's appendix bursting. It got a few laughs out of everyone, and really drove your point home. I, too, need to work on controlling my nerves.
I hope we have more debates in the future. Nice work!
For being our first debate, I think that it went rather smoothly. The format of the debate worked perfectly, and I loved the work periods. The entire argument was very intense, especially since Becky Polaski and the AP Literature class were present. It was a lot of hard work, but I thoroughly enjoyed it; furthermore, I cannot wait until our next debate! Also, I think our school should consider creating a debate team.
ReplyDeleteMany things stood out to me throughout Friday's debate. Both teams seemed very prepared and well-informed about their side of the argument. I was happy to be placed on the con's team because that is which side I originally wanted. However, it was very interesting to hear the situation from a different perspective. The pro's provided information that I would have never considered before. I now know so much more about Obamacare than I did before this debate.
The hardest part about the debate for me was to stand at the podium in front of everyone. I absolutely hate talking in front of people, it is my biggest fear! I tried to stay as calm and relaxed as possible, but I could hear my voice shaking and I could see my knees buckling. Hopefully I will get better at this as the year goes on and eventually conquer my fear. Also, I found it difficult not to interrupt others speaking. I really wanted to say the points that came to my mind when I didn't agree with someone.
I believe the openings were the high points in the presentation. The audience was able to hear both sides of the argument before any rebuttals took place. As the debate progressed, it became increasingly difficult to respond to the other team because they had very good points. That's one thing I would improve on for next time. We need to have a good start, but also finish strong.
Good work everyone!
Sam, I was really nervous too! You did a really good job, as did everyone else. I agree that the format of the debate was great. The work period were so important to us, I can't imagine what we would have done without them. Good work!
DeleteI thought our debate went wonderfully! I'm so proud of everyone and I had so much fun! I never thought that argueing about Obamacare could be so enlightening and interesting. Preparing for the debate did take a lot of work but I think we can all agree that it was well worth it.
ReplyDeleteFor me the hardest part, or should I say the most nerve wracking part, was going up against Ian. I don't know how Jolene felt, but I knew that he had been doing plenty of research and was sure to have a good rebutle. When I got up to the podium I was shaking and managed to forget half of the things I wanted to say. I think it went okay though.
What I really enjoyed was hearing the other sides argument. I knew that it would be harder for them to find good points because many people are against Obamacare, but they shocked me! Pro team, you guys did a great job, especially since I know so many of you do not agree with Obamacare. I also think that this debate taught us so much more than we could've learned by just watching and analyzing a debate.
Altogether both teams did a great job! The high points were definitely the the openings because everybody had to compose their thoughts into a structured and strong argument. I won't say that I agree with Obamacare any more than I did before, but it was nice to hear the other team defend it so well. Good job everyone and thank you previous AP Language students for coming and judging us! I can't wait for our next debate!