As an adult non student , how can one develop better oral debating skills which include thinking on the feet skills ?

February 18, 2006 4:07 PM

As an adult non student , how can one develop better oral debating skills which include thinking on the feet skills ?

What I am looking for are tips about groups one can join as a non student and as an adult.

Those of you who are good at debating how do you keep up sharpening your skill once leaving school?

Is there a volunteer role or paid part time job that can help me develop my debating skills?

Should I go back to school and join in classroom discussions in subjects such as philosophy and psychology?

Can I just pretend to be a student and sneak into colleges and classrooms and debating clubs on campus and find a group of people to befriend and debate?

I am a member of two toastmaster clubs . They don't really give you a chance to develope debating skills in toastmasters.

I don't have much problems writing and giving persuasive speeches.

I have heard in France people sit around coffee shops and argue about philosophy and politics.


I have been to philosophical discussion groups in San Francisco. But the topics picked are often not ones I usually care about and have something to say.

Right now my debating skill is only limited to writing on paper and learning argument fallacies on paper.

I can argue my position quite well quite often. I can write pretty good toastmaster speeches.

I pay attention to well written arguments in law drama. Hence my favorite tv series are "The Practice" and "Ally McBeal" where a lot of dialog is in court arguing.

May be I should just get myself a girlfriend/wife who can argue well.

Have I missed out on anything?

posted by studentguru to education (8 comments total)

I have been to philosophical discussion groups in San Francisco. But the topics picked are often not ones I usually care about and have something to say.

The very best at debate can take any side to any issue and argue it well. In formal debate competition, you sometimes don't even get to pick the side you will argue -- it's a coin flip at the start of the debate. Think of an uninteresting topic as a personal challenge to hone skills.
posted by frogan at 4:21 PM on February 18, 2006

How about starting a debate club?

Call it a book discussion group or something, but make it clear that you'll be reading controversial subjects and studying them through debate.
posted by Hildago at 7:03 PM on February 18, 2006

There are Debate chapters of Toastmasters, perhaps you might consider finding or starting one in your area.
posted by jacquilynne at 8:59 PM on February 18, 2006

"Should I go back to school and join in classroom discussions in subjects such as philosophy and psychology?"

Yes. Look for classes employing the Socratic dialog method of instruction, or as close an analog of it as you can find. Don't miss class.

Failing that, you should read everything Plato wrote about the life of Socrates (all the dialogs, but especially the Phaedrus). Plan to spend a year or so mastering the Phaedrus, unless you plan to become a highly paid litigator, in which case, plan to spend 20 or 30 years mastering it.

The study of psychology prepares you primarily to understand others, not to persuade them. If you want to study persuasion, make rhetoric your field. As a topic, rhetoric gets little respect in academia, but don't let that dissuade you. Do not, however, allow yourself to be sidetracked into theatre, performing arts, law, or political science programs, all of which remain eager to suck up and pervert our most promising students of rhetoric.
posted by paulsc at 11:29 PM on February 18, 2006

If I recall correctly, you can enter at Worlds tournaments even if you're not a student.
posted by gd779 at 7:04 AM on February 19, 2006

You could also try http://www.toastmasters.org/ -- not always debating but they do impromptu stuff...
posted by skepticallypleased at 11:56 AM on February 19, 2006

If there's any way you can find a job teaching, especially sufficiently advanced students like undergrads, I recommend it. Someone always has a question you didn't anticipate.

But becoming a teacher obviously depends on how seriously you care about this. If you're thinking about going to grad school, sometimes you can teach classes as a TA.
posted by A dead Quaker at 4:54 PM on February 19, 2006

Recently I discovered that improv is likely to help somebody like me to become a faster thinker on my feet.
Improv teaches me a few things including "Look for the connections" and "Say yes to everything".

Give improv a shot.
posted by studentguru at 9:38 AM on April 15, 2006