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School debate vocabulary Jan 23rd, 2007 3:31:08 am - Subscribe
Mood | sharing
education | high school English

SCHOOL DEBATES

General instructions

A debate is a kind of contest where you must support your argument and refute your opponent's argument with logical reasoning and rebuttals by giving facts and evidence.

Grouping
All of the participants will be divided into 2 groups, A and B and each group must decide which side of the argument to take: FOR or AGAINST the proposed topic of discussion.
Procedure
FOR and AGAINST sides will be seated opposite one another. It may be a good idea to prepare your side of the argument first:delegate a person in each group to take note of ideas (in summarized form) put forward by the group. Carry out a 'brainstorming session' beforehand if necessary. By consolidating ideas, your side of the argument will flow more easily. All relevant ideas and opinions can then be mentioned one by one during the debate.

The chairperson will start the debate by summarizing the situation. This is followed by:
1. a 3-minute constructive speech from each side
2. two or three 2-minute rebuttals from each side turn by turn
3. a 3-minute concluding speech from each side
4. questions from the floor - the audience can address questions to both sides after the debate.


The insertion of 'but' often enables you to disagree, diplomatically!


Vocabulary for debates

When you want to state an opinion:
INFORMAL
• In my opinion____
• I think that_____
• I feel that______
• I believe that______
• It seems to me that________
• If you ask me_____
• I'd say that_______
• The point is________
• As I see it_______
• I'd say that______
• The point is______
FORMAL
• You know what I think... I think that____
• Wouldn't you say that_______?
• Don't you agree that_______?
• I'd just like to say that______
• I'd like to point out that_______

When you want someone to repeat or explain:
• I don't understand what you mean
• Would you explain that, please?
• I'm sorry, but I didn't understand your point.
• Could you give an example?
• What do you mean by_____?
When you want to agree with someone (in ascending order of formality):
• You're right
• I think so, too
• I agree with you
• You could be right
• I couldn't agree more
• That's a good point
• I couldn't agree more
• I see what you mean
• That's just what I was thinking
• I agree entirely
• You know, that's exactly what I think

When you want to disagree with someone (in ascending order of formality):
• Yes, but_____
• I disagree
• That's not the point
• No, I think you're wrong
• Up to a point, but________
• Yes, that's quite true, but_____
• I'm not sure I quite agree
• Well, you have a point there, but_____
• Perhaps, but don't you think that_____
• I see what you mean, but________
• I tend to disagree with you there Informal disagreement (between people you know very well)
• I can't agree with you there
• You can't be serious!!
• Come off it!
• Don't be silly!
When you want to persuade someone:
• You must admit that___
• Do you really believe that_____?
• Don't you think that______?
• Don't you agree that____?

A useful example:

"Learning English is pointless".
A: I read in this article that learning English is pointless!
B: I don't really agree with you there. I'd say it was very useful
A: Why do you think that?
B: Well, English is now a world language - you need it communicate with people from other countries, to navigate on the Internet, and for international business.
A: Oh, I see what you mean.




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Big Brain & Tiny Token No. 1 Jan 22nd, 2007 7:24:35 am - Subscribe
Mood | diligent
education | high school

Get a hard copy of this exercise and fill in the required answers. If you are the first one to submit to me your all-correct answers, you will receive a Chinese reader.

Word forms

For each blank, fill in the correct form of the word given in brackets.

1 He got very ……………. (nerve) when he saw his creditor coming towards him.

2 If students are …………….. (find) bringing handphone to school, they will be punished.

3 If you save up enough, you will be able to live ……………… (comfortable) in your old age.

4 Although he is ………….. (old) than his wife, he looks much younger.

5 The teacher asked the naughty boy to stand in front of the class because he was too ………….. (talk).

6 You must pay full ........... (attend) to your teacher when he is teaching or explaining a certain subject matter.

7 Owing to her knowledge, experience and ability, she was given a ………….. (promote) and a pay rise last month.

8 Dr. Looi always reminded me that as far as sicknesses were concerned, ……………. (prevent) was better than cure.

9 …………… (send) letters at the post office is getting less popular because people today prefer to communicate by computer e-mail and handphone short messages.

10 The boss does not think too .......... (high) of him due to his past unfavourable records.

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PMR & SPM English Language Jan 19th, 2007 1:06:32 pm - Subscribe
Mood | joyful
education | high school


BAHASA INGGERIS PMR / SPM

1 Make friends and keep friendships by
a. introducing oneself;
b. taking part in conversation and engaging in correspondence on
personal matters;
c. talking about self, family and friends, interests, past events,
future plans, personal experiences, and feelings and
understanding others when they they talk about themselves;
d. exchanging ideas, information and opinions on topics of interest.
.
2 Take part in social interaction by
a. carrying out a variety of language functions in spoken and
written forms ranging from invitations to persuasion;
b. discussing plans and arrangements, solving problems, and
making decisions.
3 Obtain goods and services by
a. making enquiries and ordering goods and services;
b. making complaints and responding to complaints.
4 Obtain information for different purposes by
a. listening to spoken texts such as talks, speeches; and viewing
television documentaries and multimedia resources;
b. interviewing and using questionnaires;
c. reading materials in print such as reports and articles; and
articles and using other electronic media such as the Internet.
5 Process Information for various purposes by
a. skimming and scanning for gist and specific information;
b. extracting main ideas and supporting details from various audio,
audio-visual and print materials;
c. discerning cause-effect relationships, and sequence of ideas;
d. getting at the explicit and implicit meaning of various oral and
written texts;
e. predicting outcomes, and drawing conclusions;
f. deducing the meaning of unfamiliar words and metaphors by
applying word attack skills;
g. identifying different points of view and bias;
h. using print and electronic dictionaries;
i. interpreting non-linear texts such as maps, charts, diagrams,
tables,graphs;
j. making short notes and mapping out ideas.





6 Present the information to different audiences by
a. writing directions, instructions, recounts, descriptions,
explanations, messages, letters, speeches, reports and articles;
b. instructing, describing, narrating, explaining, and reporting orally;
c. responding to questions and comments orally and in writing;
d. presenting information in non-linear forms including tables,
graphs, diagrams, charts and vice-versa;
e. expanding notes and outlines;
f. composing, revising and editing drafts; and checking accuracy
of spelling, punctuation and grammar;
g. summarising information;
h. reading aloud written material such as instructions, directions,
reports clearly and fluently;
i. using appropriate format, conventions, and grammar when
presenting information.
7 Listen to, read, view and respond to literary works by
a. understanding and retelling in one’s own words the story, play,
poem and song heard and read and the film viewed and
giving one’s opinion of the text;
b. recognising elements in a story such as characters, events;
c. explaining the message the writer is trying to convey and
discussing how this relate to one’s life;
d. understanding other peoples’ cultures, traditions, customs and
beliefs;
e. reciting poems with feeling and expression.

8 Express themselves creatively and imaginatively by
a. dramatising texts and role-playing characters ;
b. retelling a story from a different point of view and presenting it
in another genre;
c. composing simple poems, stories and dialogues.

9 Grammar

Nouns
•
Kinds: Countable, Uncountable, Collective, Compound
•
Number: Plurals-Regular; Irregular; Foreign; Compound;
Concord (subject-verb agreement);
•
Nouns with no Singular/Plural Form; Plurals with different
meanings




Articles
•
Indefinite; Definite; Zero article.

Adjectives
•
Attributive and Predicative use;
•
Adjectives functioning as nouns
•
Nouns functioning as Adjectives
•
Comparison Adjectives

Pronouns
•
Personal
•
Relative
•
Possessive
•
Demonstrative
•
Reflexive
•
Interrogative

Verbs
•
Regular and Irregular; Transitive and Intransitive
•
Verbs â€" Tenses: Simple Past, Future, Continuous, Perfect
•
Verbs â€" Negative, Interrogative, Question phrases

•
Special finites (Modals): be; have, can, could, should, would,
may, might, must, need, ought
•
Infinitives: to, do
•
Gerunds



Adverbs
•
Formation
•
Types: Adverbs of manner, time, place, direction, agent
•
Comparison

Prepositions
•
Positions - e.g. time, place, direction, agent
•
Preposition in fixed phrases
Connectors
•
Conjunctions
•
Logical connectors
•
Sequence connectors

Sentences
•
Simple, Compound, Complex, Questions, Imperatives,
Exclamatives
•
Negation

Direct and Indirect Speech
•
Statements, Questions, Commands

Punctuation

10 The Sound System

•
Consonants, vowels, and diphthongs of English
•
Consonant clusters in different combinations
•




Past tense and plural forms
•
Stresses in two-, three-, and four-syllable words
•
Stresses in compound words

• Sentence stress and intonation
• Homonyms â€" homographs, homophones
• Contractions
• Words borrowed from other languages

LIST OF TEXTS FOR THE LITERATURE COMPONENT


FORM 1


POEMS

1. Life’s Brief Candle by William Shakespeare
2. The Dead Crow by A. Samad Said
3. The Lake Isle of Innisfree by W.B. Yeats
SHORT STORIES

1. The Pencil by Ali Majod
2. How Dalat Got Its Name by Heidi Munan
3. Of Bunga Telur and Bally Shoes by Che Husna Azhari
(Learners are to study all of the above poems and short stories)

FORM 2

NOVELS

1. Potato People by Angela Wright
2. Robinson Crusoe by Danial Defoe
3. Phantom of The Opera by Gaston Leroux
(Learners are to select one of the above novels for study)

FORM 3

NOVELS

1. The Prisoner of Zenda by Anthony Hope Hopkins
2. Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde by R.L Stevenson
(Learners are to select one of the above novels for study)



FORMS 4 & 5


POEMS

1. If by Rudyard Kipling
2. Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare
3. Si Tenggang’s Homecoming by Muhammad Hj. Salleh
4. Monsoon History by Shirley Lim
5. The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
6. There’s Been A Death in the Opposite House by Emily Dickinson

SHORT STORIES

1. The Lotus Eater by Somerset Maugham
2. The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant
3. The Drover’s Wife by Henry Lawson
4. The Sound Machine by Roald Dahl
5. Looking for a Rain God by Bessie Head
(Learners are to study all of the above poems and short stories)

NOVELS

1. Jungle of Hope by Keris Mas
2. The Return by K.S Maniam
3. The Pearl by John Steinbeck
(Learners are to select one of the above novels for study)

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Debate teams (Mr. Yong's classes) Jan 19th, 2007 6:30:29 am - Subscribe
Mood | courageous
education | High school English

English debate teams 2007
When word and action speak equally loud

S2A/E/Sn Chee Yoong Soon
Kong Teng Yik
Wong Man Hong
Lee Hoi Hing
Tham Wei Ning

S3A Marina Chin
Patricia Foo
Ricky Sang
Cho Kian Leong
Chee Carmen

S3S2 Loo Siew Theng
Josephine Lee
Chin Sook Huey
Chow Yiing
Shum Fee Jun

S3S1 Liew Jia Ling
Cheang Kar Yee
Wooi Jing Ru
Ong Chee Soon
Mak Yiing Yih

The willingness to participate is already half the battle won

Mr. Yong’s motivation to all his participants

19 Jan. 2007

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Functions of a debate Jan 18th, 2007 7:45:29 am - Subscribe
Mood | mature
education | High school

A school debate enables students to work cooperatively, brainstorm ideas,
develop vocabulary and to support or rebut an opinion.

By means of research students practice summarizing, questioning and clarifying information.

Students learn to identify the main idea, delete less important information, collapse,
categorize and label information. Questioning allows students to explain
and to explore additional facts. These comprehension skills are essential for students to become competent readers and writers.

A debate allows students to become more proficient in speaking, researching,
reading, and writing, and it promotes reasoning as well as communication
skills. A fact-filled and passionate debate is a vehicle for students to express their opinions assertively in a respectful manner on a relevant issue or topic.

A debate is a discussion in which participants articulate, justify, and clarify
their positions on an issue.

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