Affairs of the Nation
Senior 6 · English
Affairs of the Nation
Lesson 2 of 4
25 min
Let's begin
National development is usually reported as budgets, ministries and ribbon-cutting ceremonies. Much of it, though, happens on a hillside on a Saturday morning, in a cell office, or in a small workshop that has just hired its third employee. In this lesson you listen to a radio talk about what ordinary citizens contribute, and then you put the same ideas to work in a formal debate.
| Way to take part | What it involves | Example the speaker gives |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | ||
| 2. | ||
| 3. | ||
| 4. |
Important
Listening script: for a teacher or classmate to read aloud
Only the reader opens the script; everyone else keeps it closed until after the third listening. Read at a steady radio pace, about three minutes in all. The speaker, Ms Uwamahoro, is an imagined youth volunteer coordinator.
Presenter: Good evening and welcome back to Youth Forum. Tonight's guest works with young volunteers in Huye District. Ms Uwamahoro, the floor is yours.
Ms Uwamahoro: Thank you. When people hear the words "national development", they picture ministries, budgets and large construction projects. Tonight I want to persuade you that development is also something ordinary citizens do, week after week, and I will give you four examples.
The first is community work. On the last Saturday of every month, able adults between eighteen and sixty-five take part in umuganda. Residents are told at least seven days in advance what the work will be and which tools to bring. Last month, in my cell, we rebuilt a drainage channel that floods every rainy season. What surprised the young people was not the digging. It was the meeting afterwards, where neighbours raised problems, from a broken water tap to a family that needed help, and agreed who would deal with each one.
My second example is imihigo, the performance contracts. Leaders commit themselves to specific targets and are later evaluated against them. The point I want to stress is this: those targets are not secret. If your district has promised a new market or a water point, you have every right to ask, politely and in the right forum, how the work is going.
Third, settling disputes close to home. The abunzi committees are mediators drawn from the community. Two farmers who disagree about a boundary can often settle the matter there, quickly and cheaply, instead of spending a year in court.
And fourth, the one most often forgotten: paying your taxes honestly and, if you can, building a business. My cousin started a tailoring workshop with one sewing machine; today it employs three people, and all three pay tax. That, too, is national development.
Now, I must be honest. Not everyone is enthusiastic. Some people treat community work as a burden and arrive late, and meetings can run long. I understand that. But a drainage channel does not care whether we enjoyed digging it; it only cares whether it was dug.
So, to sum up: voting matters, and every citizen who is eligible should do it. But a nation is not built only on polling day. It is built in the months between elections, by people who turn up.
Presenter: Ms Uwamahoro, thank you.
Which title best sums up the talk? Give a reason.
A good speaker tells the audience where the talk is going. Listen for these signposts, and use them in your own speeches.
| Purpose | Signposts |
|---|---|
| Announcing the plan | I will give you four examples. · My speech has three parts. · First I will …, then I will … |
| Moving to the next point | My second point is … · Turning now to … · Let me move on to … |
| Emphasising | The point I want to stress is this. · Above all, … · What matters most is … |
| Conceding (admitting the other side) | I must be honest: … · Admittedly, … · It is true that … However, … |
| Giving an example | Take, for instance, … · A case in point is … · Last month, in my cell, … |
| Concluding | To sum up, … · In conclusion, … · So what does all this mean? It means … |
In a formal debate, two teams argue for and against a motion, under rules that a chairperson enforces. Many school competitions use the World Schools format: each team has three speakers, who speak in turn, and each team ends with a shorter reply speech. In class, give each main speaker about four minutes and each reply speaker two.
Definition
| Function | Phrases |
|---|---|
| Addressing the house | Madam Chairperson, honourable adjudicators, fellow debaters, ladies and gentlemen … |
| Stating your position | We firmly believe that … · Our team will prove that … · We stand in opposition to this motion because … |
| Defining the motion | By "national development" we mean … · The key word in this motion is … |
| Rebutting | The first speaker of the opposition claimed that … However, … · This argument ignores … · With respect, that is not the whole picture. |
| Offering a point of information | (standing) Point of information. · On that point, sir or madam … |
| Accepting or declining one | Yes, please, briefly. · No, thank you; I will come to that. |
| Summing up | Today we have shown three things … · For all these reasons, I beg to propose (or oppose). |
Worked example
A model first proposition speech (opening), with its structure
Motion: This house believes that young people contribute more to national development by volunteering than by voting.
Madam Chairperson, honourable adjudicators, fellow debaters: good afternoon. [addresses the house] Today my team will prove that a young person's hours of service change more lives than a single ballot. [states the position] By "volunteering" we mean unpaid work for the community, from umuganda to tutoring younger pupils. By "contribute more", we mean the difference a person can see and measure. [defines the key terms] I will present two arguments: first, that volunteering is continuous while voting is occasional; second, that volunteering builds skills the country needs. My second speaker will show how volunteering strengthens unity. [maps the team's case] Let me begin with my first argument …
Why it works: in under a minute the speaker has greeted the house, taken a clear side, defined the terms so the opposition cannot twist them, and told the audience exactly what is coming.
Tip
Rebut in four steps: They say, but, because, so. "They say voting is the highest duty of a citizen, but a vote is cast once in several years, because elections are periodic, so it cannot outweigh service given every month."
Warning
Debating skills: World Schools Style Debate Format, the nuts and bolts, from HUB Scuola (about 5 minutes). Watch for the order of speakers, what each speaker's job is, and when points of information may be offered.
Practice
Sources and credits
