Debating in English helps hone your power of persuasion
NUMATA Sadaaki / Chairman, The English-Speaking Union of Japan
October 29, 2015
In order to vie on a par with self-assertive people from Western as well as emerging countries, we Japanese need the ability to engage in intellectual dialogue. We need first to have our own opinions. We also need not just linguistic skills but intelligence, insight and human charm to persuade our interlocutors through logic, reason, passion and humor.
In Western countries, debate has been widely practiced as an intellectual game designed to hone these skills. There are two kinds of debate: academic debate, where the motion is given months in advance and well-constructed and elaborate argumentation is required as in a court of law, and impromptu parliamentary debate, modeled after the British Parliament, where the motion is given immediately before the debate. The latter debate takes place between the Government and Opposition sides, and can be as much fun as playing a game.
Since its foundation in 1998, The English-Speaking Union of Japan (ESUJ) has been promoting parliamentary debate in English in Japan, working in close tandem with the English-Speaking Union in the United Kingdom known for its nearly 100-year long tradition of public speaking and debating education. 32 teams (two persons per team) will participate in the 18th annual ESUJ University Debating Competition to be held in Tokyo on the 3rd and 4th this month to engage in an exciting series of debates, with student champion debaters invited from the U.K. joining the judges.
To be successful in impromptu debate, you need not only English language skills but also logical thinking and broad enough common sense to argue either the proposition or opposition side of varied and wide-ranging motions such as whether the statute of limitation should be abolished or whether society should become more tolerant toward divorce. You are judged also for your presentation skills to appeal to the audience, such as eye control, gestures, hand motions, voice control and humor. This may seem to pose too high hurdles for Japanese to clear, but some Japanese students have done quite well in international competitions. Further, parliamentary debate has been spreading to high school students as well over the past few years.
The English-Speaking Union of Japan has also been hosting its annual Shakaijin (Adult) Debating Competition since 2002. The participants comprise a diverse group, including businesspersons from trading, financial, IT and other companies, civil servants, teachers/professors, medical doctors and so forth, ranging from young to old generations. The veterans of these competitions have found their debating experience useful in the real world. They have learned to identify problems by looking at a topic from various angles and finding solutions, and have developed a flexible mind through approaching a motion both from the proposition (government) and opposition (opposition party) points of view. Further, the guts, the sense of speed and the reflex nurtured through arguing under pressure make them “battle-ready” for tough business negotiations.
In parliamentary debate, the government and the opposition have to engage with each other. You have to respond to each of the points made by your opponent and clearly analyze and explain what will happen if a certain policy is implemented or not implemented. You need to follow the manners of a two-way dialogue between the speaker and the listener. If you end up just making “one-way” declarations, you cannot win. In such a process, you also need to try to see how things might look and what you might think if you put yourself in the other person’s shoes. In short, you need empathy.
Impromptu debate in English is a highly effective means of not just improving English language skills but also nurturing appropriate powers of judgment, negotiation and persuasion. As such, I strongly recommend incorporating it into school curriculums. I also believe that it will be a highly useful tool for self-training for those who use English at the forefront of business transactions and negotiations.
Sadaaki Numata is former Japanese Ambassador to Pakistan and Canada. The article first appeared in the Yomiuri Shimbun dated October 1st , 2015.
In Western countries, debate has been widely practiced as an intellectual game designed to hone these skills. There are two kinds of debate: academic debate, where the motion is given months in advance and well-constructed and elaborate argumentation is required as in a court of law, and impromptu parliamentary debate, modeled after the British Parliament, where the motion is given immediately before the debate. The latter debate takes place between the Government and Opposition sides, and can be as much fun as playing a game.
Since its foundation in 1998, The English-Speaking Union of Japan (ESUJ) has been promoting parliamentary debate in English in Japan, working in close tandem with the English-Speaking Union in the United Kingdom known for its nearly 100-year long tradition of public speaking and debating education. 32 teams (two persons per team) will participate in the 18th annual ESUJ University Debating Competition to be held in Tokyo on the 3rd and 4th this month to engage in an exciting series of debates, with student champion debaters invited from the U.K. joining the judges.
To be successful in impromptu debate, you need not only English language skills but also logical thinking and broad enough common sense to argue either the proposition or opposition side of varied and wide-ranging motions such as whether the statute of limitation should be abolished or whether society should become more tolerant toward divorce. You are judged also for your presentation skills to appeal to the audience, such as eye control, gestures, hand motions, voice control and humor. This may seem to pose too high hurdles for Japanese to clear, but some Japanese students have done quite well in international competitions. Further, parliamentary debate has been spreading to high school students as well over the past few years.
The English-Speaking Union of Japan has also been hosting its annual Shakaijin (Adult) Debating Competition since 2002. The participants comprise a diverse group, including businesspersons from trading, financial, IT and other companies, civil servants, teachers/professors, medical doctors and so forth, ranging from young to old generations. The veterans of these competitions have found their debating experience useful in the real world. They have learned to identify problems by looking at a topic from various angles and finding solutions, and have developed a flexible mind through approaching a motion both from the proposition (government) and opposition (opposition party) points of view. Further, the guts, the sense of speed and the reflex nurtured through arguing under pressure make them “battle-ready” for tough business negotiations.
In parliamentary debate, the government and the opposition have to engage with each other. You have to respond to each of the points made by your opponent and clearly analyze and explain what will happen if a certain policy is implemented or not implemented. You need to follow the manners of a two-way dialogue between the speaker and the listener. If you end up just making “one-way” declarations, you cannot win. In such a process, you also need to try to see how things might look and what you might think if you put yourself in the other person’s shoes. In short, you need empathy.
Impromptu debate in English is a highly effective means of not just improving English language skills but also nurturing appropriate powers of judgment, negotiation and persuasion. As such, I strongly recommend incorporating it into school curriculums. I also believe that it will be a highly useful tool for self-training for those who use English at the forefront of business transactions and negotiations.
Sadaaki Numata is former Japanese Ambassador to Pakistan and Canada. The article first appeared in the Yomiuri Shimbun dated October 1st , 2015.
The English-Speaking Union of Japan
英語ディベート説得力磨く
沼田 貞昭 / 日本英語交流連盟会長
2015年 10月 29日
日本人が自己主張の強い欧米とか新興諸国の人たちと太刀打ちしていくためには、知的討論の能力が求められる。これは、まず自分の意見を持ち、語学力だけでなく知性、洞察力、人間的魅力を発揮し、筋道立って理が通り、しかも情熱が籠ってユーモアのある議論で相手を説得する能力を意味する。
欧米では、このような腕を磨く知的ゲームとしてのディベート（討論）が広く普及している。早くから論題が与えられて法廷のような精緻な議論を競うアカデミック・ディベートと、直前に論題が示される即興型のパーラメンタリー・ディベート（英国議会方式）がある．与野党の立場に分かれて討論する後者は特に、ゲーム感覚で楽しめる。
１９９８年に設立の日本英語交流連盟は、スピーチ・ディベート教育で１００年近い伝統を誇る英国英語交流連盟と連携し、日本でのパーラメンタリー・ディベート普及に努めている。今月３、４日に都内で開く第１８回大学対抗大会には、３２チーム（１チーム各２人）が参加し、英国から招いた学生ディベーターも審査員に加えて熱戦を繰り広げる。
英語力はもとより、「時効廃止の是非」「離婚に対して社会は寛容になるべきか」といった千差万別の論題に賛成、反対の論陣を張れるだけの論理的思考や一般常識が必要とされる．さらには聴衆に訴えるプレゼンテーション能力（目線、身振り、手振り、声の抑揚、ユーモア）も審査される。日本人にはハードルが高いと思われがちだが、国際大会で好成績を収める学生も出ている。ここ数年は高校生にも普及しつつある。
日本英語交流連盟は２００２年以来、社会人ディベート大会も主催している。商社、金融、IT（情報技術）分野の企業社員や公務員、教師、医師など幅広い年齢層の多彩な顔ぶれが出場している。一つのトピックを様々な角度から捉えて論点を見つける課題発見力、答えを導き出す問題解決力、賛成、反対のどちらの立場からも論じられる柔軟性などは実社会で大いに役立つと参加者は言う。プレッシャー下で堂々と論じる度胸と、スピード感や反射神経を身に付けることは、ビジネス交渉での即戦力につながるだろう。
議会方式のディベートでは、「与野党」のかみ合った議論が求められる。相手の主張にきちんと応えて、ある論題の政策を実行した場合、あるいはしなかった場合にどのような影響を与えるかを明確に分析し、説明する必要がある。話し手と聞き手の作法を守ることが求められ、一方通行の「言いっ放し」では勝てない。自分が相手の立場なら物事はどう見え、どう考えるだろうかとの感情移入（empathy）も必要とされる。
英語力の向上のみならず、適切な判断力、交渉力、説得力を習得する効果的な手段である即興ディベートを学校教育に取り入れて行くことを強く薦める。また、ビジネスなどの最前線で英語を使う立場にある社会人にとっても、ディベートは有用な自己訓練の手段となるものと信ずる。
（筆者は元駐カナダ、パキスタン大使．本稿は２０１５年１０月１日付読売新聞に掲載された。）
欧米では、このような腕を磨く知的ゲームとしてのディベート（討論）が広く普及している。早くから論題が与えられて法廷のような精緻な議論を競うアカデミック・ディベートと、直前に論題が示される即興型のパーラメンタリー・ディベート（英国議会方式）がある．与野党の立場に分かれて討論する後者は特に、ゲーム感覚で楽しめる。
１９９８年に設立の日本英語交流連盟は、スピーチ・ディベート教育で１００年近い伝統を誇る英国英語交流連盟と連携し、日本でのパーラメンタリー・ディベート普及に努めている。今月３、４日に都内で開く第１８回大学対抗大会には、３２チーム（１チーム各２人）が参加し、英国から招いた学生ディベーターも審査員に加えて熱戦を繰り広げる。
英語力はもとより、「時効廃止の是非」「離婚に対して社会は寛容になるべきか」といった千差万別の論題に賛成、反対の論陣を張れるだけの論理的思考や一般常識が必要とされる．さらには聴衆に訴えるプレゼンテーション能力（目線、身振り、手振り、声の抑揚、ユーモア）も審査される。日本人にはハードルが高いと思われがちだが、国際大会で好成績を収める学生も出ている。ここ数年は高校生にも普及しつつある。
日本英語交流連盟は２００２年以来、社会人ディベート大会も主催している。商社、金融、IT（情報技術）分野の企業社員や公務員、教師、医師など幅広い年齢層の多彩な顔ぶれが出場している。一つのトピックを様々な角度から捉えて論点を見つける課題発見力、答えを導き出す問題解決力、賛成、反対のどちらの立場からも論じられる柔軟性などは実社会で大いに役立つと参加者は言う。プレッシャー下で堂々と論じる度胸と、スピード感や反射神経を身に付けることは、ビジネス交渉での即戦力につながるだろう。
議会方式のディベートでは、「与野党」のかみ合った議論が求められる。相手の主張にきちんと応えて、ある論題の政策を実行した場合、あるいはしなかった場合にどのような影響を与えるかを明確に分析し、説明する必要がある。話し手と聞き手の作法を守ることが求められ、一方通行の「言いっ放し」では勝てない。自分が相手の立場なら物事はどう見え、どう考えるだろうかとの感情移入（empathy）も必要とされる。
英語力の向上のみならず、適切な判断力、交渉力、説得力を習得する効果的な手段である即興ディベートを学校教育に取り入れて行くことを強く薦める。また、ビジネスなどの最前線で英語を使う立場にある社会人にとっても、ディベートは有用な自己訓練の手段となるものと信ずる。
（筆者は元駐カナダ、パキスタン大使．本稿は２０１５年１０月１日付読売新聞に掲載された。）
一般社団法人 日本英語交流連盟