Incredible events at the BSPU Debate!

Traditionally, Friday, February 13, is an evening, but completely unusual activities. Guests from the Lviv Debate Union came to us with a lecture: the head of the center Vasyl Voloshyn and Ivan Vachilia. Our lecturers are debaters with many years of experience in the game and judging, organizers of all-Ukrainian tournaments (offline and online), finalists and winners of many debate tournaments.

We talked about:

• debate experience: “Experience is very important. It is very important not to give up. It is very important not to play once, twice and think that you have already understood it or you will never understand anything”;
• overcoming the fear of public speaking: “Be yourself, and even if you are afraid here and now, know that the absolute majority of debaters, judges want you to come back. They may not say it in words, but it is important for them that this culture continues, develops”;
• refereeing: “A judge should be a clean slate … but if you take away the most basic things, … then most things should not be questioned by a judge. … It is always important to write down everything they say and evaluate only what they say, in terms of the game. … This is relevance, provenness, impact”;
• choosing a game topic: “I would recommend having your own censorship always and to everyone, and to understand for yourself when it is worth it, when it is not worth it, but, usually, it is about an inner feeling after all. Yes, the inner censor does not go anywhere like that”;
• british parliamentary format: “There are second tables, which are very often accused of expansion, of creating an alternative argument, a new line of argumentation that is different from what the first speakers said”;
• on the interaction of speakers: “If you keep harping on what came to your mind, that you prepared for 15 minutes, without hearing your opponent, you will never be able to undermine him”;
• common mistakes: “First, what I call a case of corruption. Very often you can appeal to the fact that someone stole… Abuse in itself is not a reason to close the dialogue… We do not pay attention to it”;
• how to play not according to your direct beliefs: “It is not about changing your own views. It is about trying to understand the alternative. Why is this alternative needed? Because it is about erudition. It is about the ability to communicate. It is about the ability to empathize with other people”;
• we analyzed cases that will be useful in any game: “Politics, economics, social policy, technology, environment … shows the main areas where argumentation, polemics can take place, or where to look for these consequences … Sometimes you need to start with the consequences … It is also very important that we can often talk about some minorities or vulnerable groups of the population. Their suffering in the Western liberal world is considered a higher priority”.

We express our sincere gratitude to our lecturers for an incredibly interesting meeting! We are sincerely grateful to each and every one who joined and supported our initiative!

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See you at the next, no less interesting events!

The photos show frames of the presentation of representatives of the Lviv Debate Union.

Daria Kizilova