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Point of information (competitive debate)

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25: 148:, they take on an even greater importance, as teams are forced to use them in order to maintain their relevance during a debate. Furthermore, they allow speakers to demonstrate greater wit and presence of thought than is generally possible in a speech, as they are required to respond instantly to prepared points from their opposition in a logical way. 252:
my speech."), or to refer the entire point to another of their speakers (i.e., "This point is clearly incorrect. My second speaker will argue..."). While speakers are not explicitly marked for the quality of their points of information or responses to them, they often help to create the impression of skill and improve their overall mark.
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Similarly, there is no set way of dealing with a point of information. While a speaker would ideally refute or otherwise deal with it on the spot, it is also acceptable for them to refer the opposing member to another part of their speech (i.e., "I will be dealing with this in greater detail later in
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Points of Information, as with any other debating technique, are subject to each speaker's own personal style. For instance, while it is broadly accepted that a debater should stand when offering a point of information, there is no set wording or format for the offer itself. Examples of valid offers,
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The speaker then either accepts or declines the point, or else offers to accept it at the end of the sentence. The speaker is required to accept in a short statement such as "Taken", "Yes sir/ma'am", and so on. If the speaker wishes, they have the right to decline by saying "No, thank you", "Not
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for points of information is that each speaker should accept two during the course of their speech, and offer two to every opposing speaker. Taking fewer points may be interpreted as cowardice when plenty were offered, while speakers that accept too many risk losing control of their speech.
133:(POI) is when a member of the team opposing that of the current speaker gets to briefly interrupt the current speaker, offering a POI in the form of a question or a statement. This may be as a correction, asking for clarity, or just a plain question. As in some debating styles, such as 177:
In all competitions that allow points of information, their use is restricted by a number of rules to allow the speaker to maintain control of their speech. Generally, the procedure for offering a point of information is as follows:
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If accepted, the debater that offered the point may then briefly interject a point, question or statement. Generally, this must be done in fifteen seconds or less, and the speaker may cut the opposing offer off at any
277:. This point does not even require the speaker's acceptance, as the mere offer of a point of misrepresentation highlights that the speaker is unfairly treating their opposition. 144:
Points of information are an important part of any debate that includes them, as they offer a much greater degree of engagement between teams. In some styles of debate, such as
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or feasibility)" - however, inserting material like this is heavily frowned upon and often explicitly prohibited in many circuits and formats
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Points of information may be offered in several forms, depending on the style of debating being used. The two most common of these are:
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Similarly, it is generally frowned upon for speakers to offer excessive POIs in rapid succession, a practice known as
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You must not have a conversation with the member of the opposing team when asking or answering a point of information.
86: 46: 134: 50: 273:, which allow the opposing team to point out that the speaker is misrepresenting its argument or setting up a 145: 123: 157: 115: 141:), or during reply speeches. Points of information may never be offered to a member of the same team. 280:
Points of informations where you ask for clarification of a statement that is not clearly stated.
8: 317: 233: 137:, they often may not be offered in the first or last minute of any speech (known as 311: 202: 119: 267:, where a debater simply offers an argument or question to the speaker. 274: 214:
that usually results in the adjudicator calling the debate to order.
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The speaker must then immediately answer the point of information.
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The opposing team member stands, and offers the point.
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that may be combined with any of several common hand
309: 62:"Point of information" competitive debate 114:In competitive debate, most commonly in the 51:introducing citations to additional sources 165:, published in 2011, changes the name to 41:Relevant discussion may be found on the 310: 16:Type of argument in competitive debate 299:Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised 18: 13: 14: 329: 297:Robert, Henry M. (2011). 229:"May I have this point, sir/miss" 151:A point of information is also a 34:relies largely or entirely on a 23: 291: 1: 301:, 11th ed., p. 294–295 (RONR) 284: 155:from the current speaker, in 226:"On a point of information." 172: 7: 271:Points of misrepresentation 146:British Parliamentary Style 10: 334: 239:"On that point, sir/miss" 255: 169:to clarify its purpose. 167:request for information 161:. The 11th edition of 158:Robert's Rules of Order 153:request for information 265:Points of information 124:British Parliamentary 131:point of information 47:improve this article 135:World Schools Style 245:"Point, sir/ma'am" 242:"POI, sir/ma'am?" 234:political capital 186:taken", and so on 112: 111: 97: 325: 302: 295: 107: 104: 98: 96: 55: 27: 19: 333: 332: 328: 327: 326: 324: 323: 322: 308: 307: 306: 305: 296: 292: 287: 258: 200: 175: 108: 102: 99: 56: 54: 40: 28: 17: 12: 11: 5: 331: 321: 320: 304: 303: 289: 288: 286: 283: 282: 281: 278: 268: 257: 254: 249: 248: 246: 243: 240: 237: 230: 227: 198: 197: 194: 191: 187: 183: 174: 171: 163:Robert's Rules 139:protected time 110: 109: 45:. Please help 31: 29: 22: 15: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 330: 319: 316: 315: 313: 300: 294: 290: 279: 276: 272: 269: 266: 263: 262: 261: 253: 247: 244: 241: 238: 235: 231: 228: 225: 224: 223: 221: 215: 213: 209: 204: 203:rule of thumb 195: 192: 188: 184: 181: 180: 179: 170: 168: 164: 160: 159: 154: 149: 147: 142: 140: 136: 132: 128: 125: 121: 117: 116:World Schools 106: 95: 92: 88: 85: 81: 78: 74: 71: 67: 64: –  63: 59: 58:Find sources: 52: 48: 44: 38: 37: 36:single source 32:This article 30: 26: 21: 20: 298: 293: 270: 264: 259: 250: 232:"On (e.g., 216: 211: 207: 199: 176: 166: 162: 156: 150: 143: 138: 130: 113: 100: 90: 83: 76: 69: 57: 33: 120:Karl Popper 103:August 2021 285:References 212:barracking 129:styles, a 73:newspapers 275:straw man 208:badgering 173:Etiquette 43:talk page 318:Debating 312:Category 220:gestures 222:, are: 87:scholar 190:point. 127:debate 122:, and 89:  82:  75:  68:  60:  256:Types 94:JSTOR 80:books 66:news 210:or 49:by 314:: 201:A 118:, 105:) 101:( 91:· 84:· 77:· 70:· 53:. 39:.

Index


single source
talk page
improve this article
introducing citations to additional sources
"Point of information" competitive debate
news
newspapers
books
scholar
JSTOR
World Schools
Karl Popper
British Parliamentary
debate
World Schools Style
British Parliamentary Style
request for information
Robert's Rules of Order
rule of thumb
gestures
political capital
straw man
Category
Debating

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