《上海学生英文报》杯高中英语辩论邀请赛又跟大家见面了!  Debate的乐趣与魅力何在,让评委Larry给你说说看。

I was a judge at the Shanghai Students’ Post debate last year. It featured debate teams from schools all across Shanghai. Most of the students had never taken part in a debate before but here they were arguing such big issues such as Animal Rights and Internet Theft.
 All of the debaters performed well. Their arguments were strong whether they were arguing for or against the issue. They were cool and confident. They were passionate but respectful. And their English? It was terrific! But their improved English was only one of the advantages they got from being in the debate.
 Debating is an activity that makes you use your words and your voice to express an opinion and to convince other people to share that opinion. That’s a difficult thing to do but it’s something you can learn how to do. And, once you’ve learned this skill, it’s something you can use all your life.
 Debating forces you to think clearly. It forces you to think of both sides of an issue. And it forces you to express your ideas in a way that others can understand. This is what we call,“communication skill”. Throughout your life you will find that the ability to communicate is the most important skill you have. It will help you in school, it will help you in your job and it will help you in your personal life.
 Improving your communication skills and your language skills are certainly good reasons to get involved in debating but I think the best thing about debating is the fun you can have. It’s not basketball but it is a team sport. You get to be part of a team. You get to work with other students. You get to compete with other teams. And, win or lose, the experience is something that will stay with you for a lifetime.

Notes

convince /k=n'vIns/ v. 说服
例： The jury was convinced of his guilt. 陪审团确信他有罪。
We finally convinced Tom to have dinner with us. 我们最终说服汤姆和我们共进晚餐。
I cannot convince myself that he is dead. 我无法让自己相信他死了。
feature v. 以……为特色
issue n. 话题，议题
terrific adj. <口> 好极了，太棒了
例： I had a terrific vacation. 我过了个很棒的假期。
— I’ll come and give you a hand this afternoon. 今天下午我来帮你忙。
— Terrific! 好极了！
theft /0eft/ n. 失窃，偷盗
get involved in 参与
例： Lucy likes to get involved in everything.
露西事事都爱管。