2nd Rou Round: nd: Pa Pare rents nts sh shoul ould d be hel held d re respo sponsi nsibl ble e for the their ir sc schoo hool-g l-goin oing g ch child ildre ren’ n’s s disciplinary problems
Government: 1st speaker
Thank Than k you you,, Miste Misterr / Mada Madam m Spe Speake aker. r. Salutatio Salutation n I bid to Mist Mister er / Mada Madam m Spe Speaker aker,, honourable panel of adjudicators, reliable timekeepers, fellow comrades fighting for the truth, worthy opponents and members of the house.
The mo motio tion n of to today day’s ’s de deba bate te is th this is ho house use be belie liees es th that at !"a !"aren rents ts sh shoul ould d be he held ld responsible for their school#going children’s disciplinary problems$. %efore I set the ball rolling, allow me to first define today’s motion. &e, the goernment team, define parent as the mother or father of a person. Someone who acts as a guardian, father figure or mother figure can also be considered as a parent because he or she does what a parent should do. !Should be held responsible$ is defined as to hae control and authority oer someone and the duty of taking care of them. School#going children, in Malaysian conte't, refer to children from the age of ( to )(. *isciplinary problems include misbehaiour, bullying, truancy, andalism, pornography and crime as stated by reports from a ministry official in +) claiming that ))),-- students were caught for the aforementioned disciplinary problems. In short, the definition of today’s motion reads as this house beliees anyone who acts as a parent to children of the age ( to )( has authority oer them and he or she is answera answerable ble for disciplinary problems caused by them. &e, the goernment team, could not agree more with today’s motion.
s "rime Minister, I will share with you the main reason why parents should be held responsible responsib le for their school#going children’s children’s disciplinary problems. It is simply because parents are ar e the one ones s res respon ponsib sible le to ra raise ise the their ir chi childr ldren en , he hence nce the they y are res respo ponsi nsible ble fo forr the their ir children’s eery action. *eputy prime minister will bring forth two more points in support of today’s motion. motion. 0irstly, parents have great influence on their children and secondly, most school#g scho ol#going oing children children with disciplinary disciplinary problems problems come from problematic families. families . 0or these reasons, parents should definitely be held responsible for the disciplinary problems caused by their the ir un unrul ruly y chi childr ldren. en. 1a 1ast st bu butt no nott lea least, st, thi third rd go goer ernm nmen entt spe speak aker er wil willl reb rebut ut,, ref refut ute e an and d inalidate all the flimsy arguments proided by the first and second speakers of the opposition team in their effort to cloud judgment and conceal the fact that no one but the parents should be held responsible for school#going children’s disciplinary problems.
1adies and gentlemen, two adults, who want to start a family and raise children together, are responsible for their children until their children are able to stand on their own two feet. Since parents are the ones who gae birth to their children, they shoulder the responsibility to raise them, take care of their needs and teach them what is right and what is wrong. s parents, they are also responsible for disciplining their children and training them to hae self#control. 2ence 2en ce,, pa paren rents ts sho shoul uld d be an answ swera erable ble for the their ir chi childr ldren en’s ’s ac actio tions ns whe when n th the e yo youn ung g on ones es misbehae in or out of school.
t the tender age from ( to )(, children are gullible. They do not hae the capability to parents s should assume responsibility to help their children to make the right right decisions. decisions. So parent make good decisions. They are liable for their children’s actions during school#going years. 0or e'ample, young children may lie because they are too young to understand the difference between the truth and a lie. Sometime Sometimes s they lie to get themseles out of trouble. This is normal. &hen they act this way all the time, or when this behaiour behaiour gets them into trouble all the time at home, at school, or with other kids in the neighbourhood, parents who raise them hae the responsibility to curb this disciplinary problem. &hen children focus on e'cuses, parents need to focus on responsibility. It is parents’ responsibility to watch oer them and to teach them good alues, so they are morally responsible.
1adies and gentlemen, t he disciplinary problems in school cannot be remedied
unless parents themselves who raise the children are acting at home to engender &hethe therr or no nott the ch child ildren ren are ta taug ught ht good good disc discip ipli lina nary ry habi habits ts in thei theirr chil childr dren en.. &he responsibility, integrity and moral alues is the duty of the parents. It is hoped that parents can insti in still a str stron ong g en enou ough gh se sense nse of rig right ht an and d wro wrong ng,, so tha thatt wh when en chi childr ldren en are e'pose e'posed d to disciplinary problems, their moral compass is secure. "arents must ensure that their children know right from wron wrong, g, and discipline discipline the child children ren when they misbeha misbehae. e. 3o one but the parents are responsible for school#go school#going ing children4s actions, because their children4 children4s s actions are largely reflectie of the upbringing they receie from their parents.
0or e'ample, some parents adopt indulgent parenting style in raising their children. They follow their children’s eery whim. These children grow up to be hardcore spoilt brats who cause trouble and wreak haoc in school. &ho should we blame in this case5 The young children who know nothing or the grown#up parents who should know better5
1adies and gentlemen, parents choose to hae children, so it is their responsibility to teach their children without giing up on them. 3o children who come from a good home become bullies or crack addicts or murdering thiees, unless their parents do not care much for the children or do not teach them the ways of a responsible adult. t the end of the day, the most important key to children’s good discipline is the positie inolement of parents in raising them. If they fail to raise their children well, then they fail as parents. Therefore, the blame for school#going children’s disciplinary problems, without any doubt, should be pinned on the parents.
Thank you.
2nd Round: Parents should be held responsible for their school-going children’s disciplinary problems
Government: 2nd speaker
Thank you, Mister / Madam Speaker. 6ood afternoon I bid to Mister / Madam Speaker, honourable panel of adjudicators, eer#precise timekeepers, my esteemed colleagues, worthy opponents and members of the house.
%efore I bring forth two substantial arguments in support of today’s motion that this house beliees parents should be held responsible for their school#going children’s disciplinary problems, allow me to first rebut a few points raised by my opponent.
The first speaker from opposition team tried to tell you that 77777777777777777777777. This is totally wrong because 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777. 2e/she also said that 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777. gain, I beg to differ because 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777.
8ur "rime Minister has already e'plained that parents are responsible to raise their children, therefore they are responsible for their children’s disciplinary problems. s parents, they should encourage good behaiours in their school#going children and curb the bad ones. 0ailure to do so is entirely parents’ fault.
1adies and gentlemen, there is no doubt that parents hae great influence in their children’s upbringing. They play a great role in moulding, nurturing and deeloping the young minds. If a parent has the bad habit of swearing, their children might follow their parents4 poor behaiour. "arents, are and will always be the most influential people in children4s lies, and ineitably they will pick up their parents’ mannerisms, habits and prejudices. 6ranted, there are seeral traits that are inherited from the parents, but most children learn right and wrong through obseration of others. Seeral studies in deelopmental psychology hae found that children are, essentially, a blank slate. 9ntil they are of schooling age, their parents are the dominant role models in children4s life.
Therefore, I beliee that parents are responsible for their children4s actions, as they are the root of their character. :hildren are born with brains eager to absorb information as they progress in life. They pick up habits, consciously and subconsciously, from their surroundings. ;erything children learn or do not learn is picked up primarily from parents. 2aing such a great influence on their children, it is parents’ responsibility to set a good e'ample to their school#going children, instil good discipline and nip any disciplinary problem in the bud.
1adies and gentlemen, there is growing concern for disciplinary problems among school# going children which could eole into juenile crimes. Malaysian :rime "reention 0oundation
to )?. Some of the cases were cheating, e'tortion, drug abuse, gang fights and kidnapping. The M:"0 @ice :hairman stated that one of the major contributing factors for juenile crimes is due to lack of parental superision of Internet use. t such young age, children still lack the capacity to understand morality. s parents, the adults should monitor their children’s daily actiities. If they know what their children do, where they are and who they are with, disciplinary problems can be curbed. They would not wait until when things get out of hand because that would be too late. This shows that parents’ attention, or lack of it, has great influence on their school#going children.
1adies and gentlemen, most students with a bad track record come from problematic families. 0indings of a research on disciplinary problems among secondary school students in Aohor %ahru, conducted by 0aculty of ;ducation in 9niersiti Teknologi Malaysia recently showed that students with family problems who prefer to hang out with friends caused more disciplinary problems compared to children with no such problems at home. This indicates that family problems are one of major contributing factors to persistent misbehaiour. Instead of looking up to their parents as role models, these children turn to their peers. There is clearly communication breakdown between the children and the parents. &ho should be held responsible5 gain, it comes down to it being the parents4 fault for not being a role model that their children see fit to put on the pedestal. They feel that their peers understand them better than their parents who raise them up since the day they were born. "arents, being the older and wiser ones, should find ways to be on the same waelength with their growing children, to patch things up at home, so that their children do not perceie home as hell and seek refuge elsewhere just like the case of a )?#year#old teenage girl from Aerantut who was reported missing in +)+, but was later found to hae oluntarily followed her boyfriend to Buantan. It
was the second time she had run away from home. The fact that her parents could allow such indiscipline to happen not once, but twice baffles me. &ho should we blame in this case if not the parents who fail to curb the disciplinary problem5 CThere were also many cases of newborn babies found dead, drowned and abandoned by their teenage mothers without the knowledge of their parents. 2ow could these parents fail to notice that their daughters were pregnant5 2ow could they not realise that for nine months5 2ow can we not blame the parents for not superising their children5 2ow can these so#called parents not be held responsible for the gross negligence of their responsibilities as parents5D
%efore I stand down, I would like to reiterate that we, the goernment team, strongly beliee that parents should be held responsible for their school#going children’s disciplinary problems.
Thank you for listening.
2nd Round: Parents should be held responsible for their school-going children’s disciplinary problems
Government: 3rd speaker
Thank you, Mister / Madam Speaker. Salutation I bid to Mister / Madam Speaker, fair adjudicators, reliable timekeepers, fellow comrades fighting for the truth, worthy opponents and members of the house.
My "rime Minister has said it. My deputy prime minister has said it. llow me to reiterate that this house beliees that parents should be held responsible for their school#going children’s disciplinary problems.
1adies and gentlemen, there are seeral glaring flaws in the 8pposition team’s argument. The first speaker of the 8pposition team said that 777777777777777777777777777 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777. I beg to differ because
The
second
speaker
of
the
8pposition
team
tried
to
conince
you
that
77777777777777777777777777777777777777 and 7777777777777777777777777777777777. 2is / 2er claims are sorely unfounded. 2is or her arguments are unacceptable because 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777
My esteemed colleagues and I hae gien you seeral solid arguments and e'amples why parents should shoulder all the blames for their school#going children’s disciplinary
problems. School#going children are their parents’ responsibilities, therefore no one but the parents should be held responsible for disciplinary problems caused by their children.
&ith that, I thank you.
2nd Round: Parents should be held responsible for their school-going children’s disciplinary problems
Government: Reply peech
Thank you, Mister / Madam Speaker. 8nce again, salutation I bid to eeryone present here.
This debate can be likened to a chess match. The opposition team has made their final moe and they are unable to go any further. I, as the 77777777777777777777, hae been entrusted to delier the reply speech on behalf on my comrades. 0or the umpteenth time, allow me to state that this house beliees that parents should be held responsible for their school# going children’s disciplinary problems.
The opposition team has tried to conince you that 77777777777777777777777777777 are accountable for the disciplinary problems among school#going children. %ut their arguments are based on assumptions and hearsays with little reliable eidence.
Their first argument is 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777. 3ow, ladies and gentlemen, we all know that is far#fetched because it is impossible to 77777777 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777.
Their second argument has seeral holes in it. They said that 777777777777777777777 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777. gain, it is not true because 77777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777.
The third argument brought forth by the second speaker of the opposition team is riddled with errors as 7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777.
In contrast, we, the goernment team, hae presented a strong case for the motion. &e beliee that parents should be held responsible for these three r easons. 0irstly, parents are the ones who raise the school#going children, therefore they are responsible for their disciplinary problems. Two adults who chose to be a family and raise children together should bear the full
responsibilities to teach them what is right and what is wrong, to discipline them and to train them to hae self#control. These are parents’ duties in raising their school#going children to ensure they steer clear from disciplinary problems in and out of the school. 3o children who come from a good family with caring parents become a rotten apple unless they are spoilt rotten by their parents.
Secondly, parents hae great influence on their children since they are the ones who mould, nurture and deelop their characters since the day they were born. "arents should be the greatest role models in the lies of their children. Sadly, this is not the case for many unfortunate children. :hildren learn through obseration and they pick up habits from their immediate surroundings from a young age. "arents, are and will always be the most influential people in children4s lies, and ineitably they will pick up their parents’ mannerisms, habits and prejudices. ;erything children learn or do not learn is picked up primarily from parents. 2aing such a great influence on their children, it is parents’ responsibility to set a good e'ample to their school#going children, instil good discipline and nip any disciplinary problem in the bud. M:"0 chairman stated that parental superision of Internet use is important in raising well#disciplined and morally upright children that steer clear from disciplinary problems and crimes.
Thirdly, most school#going children with disciplinary problems come from problematic families. Some are stuck in home of Fuarrelling parents, abusie fathers, alcoholic mothers who neglect their children and stare them of attention that they truly desere. research on disciplinary problems among secondary school students in Aohor %ahru, conducted by 0aculty of ;ducation in 9niersiti Teknologi Malaysia recently supports the idea that family problems are one of major contributing factors to persistent misbehaiour as the findings showed that students with family problems who prefer to hang out with friends caused more disciplinary problems compared to children with no such problems at home. &ho should we blame in this case5 The poor children who are caught in the middle of two fighting parents5 8r the adults who should hae thought of ways to patch up and make things better at home5 The children did not ask to be born into that family. The adults are the one who choose to start a family together. &hen things go sour, they should mend things up. :hildren should not be the pawns in their bitter Fuarrels.
%efore I step down, let me reaffirm the 6oernment’s stand that parents should be held responsible for their school#going children’s disciplinary problems. My dear opposition team, I
regret to inform you that your rooks and your bishops hae been captured. Gour Fueen is nowhere to be found. Gour king has been successfully cornered. :heckmate.
&ith that, I gladly rest my case. Thank you.
P!" from !pposition
R#$%&&'(
:hildren are raised by
If that is the case, then we should definitely blame the parents. They
someone who is not
should be the ones responsible to instil good alues in their children.
their biological parent.
%ut where are they5 &hy are they not the ones who raise their own children5 2ow would the children learn good alues in the absence of role models5 Therefore, parents should definitely be blamed.
Many students who hae disciplinary problems come from broken families. Their parents fail to proide them with loe and attention. Some of them are ictims of domestic iolence too. s a result, these students ent their anger on weaker students, play truant and andalise school properties. Their parents stare them of loe and attention that they desere. Those misbehaiours and disciplinary problems are actually ways of seeking attention that they crae for from their parents. :hildren
are
Is it acceptable that parents close their eyes to the fact that their
responsible for their children misbehae in school5 &hen they know that their children are own actions.
causing problems in school, they should take full responsibility and e'ercise their responsibility as parents to interene.
Students who commit crimes in or out of school are called juenile offenders or minor. They are too young to hae the legal responsibilities as an adult. They lack capacity to understand responsibilities and the probable conseFuences of any actions.
It is parents’ job to proide their children with guidance, so as to build maturity
and
responsibility.
;ducation
starts
from
homeH
any
behaiours of the parents directly affect the children psychologically and in terms of deelopment. There is an action and a reaction. :hildren4s actions are stimulated by their personality and behaiour, which is undoubtedly shaped from their parents and their parents’ behaiour. ;en when the child is an adult, they hae their parents to
thank for their upbringing. Therefore 0911 responsibility goes to the parents of the behaioural and ethical construction of their children. %esides families are the building blocks of society and the generations perpetuate a circle of similar family traits and behaiours. :hildren
from
bad
:hildren see their parents as bad e'ample and they do not want to end
family background but
up like their parents. Their parents hae failed to be good role models
succeed anyway
for their children.
"arents who are out
This can be categorised as negligence. It is the parents4 responsibility
at work most of the
to keep an eye on their children. There should be a balance between
time
work time and family time. "arents should hae come home to superise when their children are home, or hire a caretaker, or find an after#school programme.
Malaysian couple who
Spare the rod and spoil the child.
were guilty of hurting their children
Tell me who has neer been spanked, pinched or yelled at by their parents before5 I beliee there is none. It is a norm in sian culture to spank the children to teach them a lesson when they misbehae. It is a way of educating the children. *id the children suffer from broken ribs5 *id they lose an arm and a leg5 re they traumatised or scarred for life5 The answers to all of the Fuestions are 38. Then it cannot be considered as abuse.
Teachers responsible
for
are
If the children are in school, are they not their parents’ children5 If they
the
are still their parents’ children, shouldn’t parents be responsible for the
disciplinary problems
problems caused by them.
Teachers are paid to
Teachers’ job is to teach, not to act a parent and manage unruly
educate.
students. Moreoer, teachers are not allowed to punish students. They would call parents if there is any disciplinary problem. This shows that parents play more important role in curbing disciplinary problems.
Teachers are second
There are hundreds of students in school, it is impossible for teachers
parents
to manage all of them and to be responsible for all of the problematic students.
Students
can
see
:an you imagine one counsellor managing hundreds of problematic
counsellors
students5 2ow many students can one counsellor see in one day5
:lassmates/
%lood is thicker than water. "arents need to superise who their
"eers in school hae
children are mi'ing with. If parents fail to do so, then they fail as
more
parents.
influence
on
them
Students
choose s parents, they should hae the greatest influence on their children.
wrong
models/
They should set good e'amples for their children to emulate. :hildren
Some parents are bad
would put them on a pedestal if they fulfil their responsibilities as
role models.
parents and take care of their needs. If their children do not see them
role
as their role models, that means they are bad parents and they are not fit as role models. &ho should we blame if not the parents themseles5
Students spend more
"arents should be aware with the fact that young minds can be easily
time at school / with
influenced, so they should be e'tra igilant about their children’s
friends than at home
whereabouts and who they are with. So if parents fail to do so and their children mi' with the wrong crowd, then parents only hae themseles to blame.
Technology
/ s mentioned by the *eputy "rime Minister, parents are responsible to
;ntertainment contributes disciplinary problem
monitor their children’s usage of technology and guide them as the to
young ones are not old enough to understand the conseFuences of their behaiours.
Possible P!" to ask !pposition
!pposition’s
Possible P!" to ask !pposition
Point
:hildren
). &hy do we need parents if children are capable of thinking on their own5
+.
>.
Teachers
). &hy should we held teachers accountable when teachers are supposed to teacher and it is parents’ job to discipline their own children5
+.
>.
"eers
). "arents should monitor their children’s peers and the people they are with to aoid the young ones from mi'ing with the wrong crowd.
+.
>.
Technology
).
+.
>.
;ntertainment
).
+.
>.
Reply peech: Rebuttal
Government’s
Reply peech
Point
:hildren
If children can think on their own, there would not be so many cases of disciplinary problems, would there5 School#going children are too young to hae the legal responsibilities as an adult. They lack capacity to understand responsibilities and the probable conseFuences of their own actions. It is parents’ duty to proide their children with guidance as to build maturity and responsibility. ;ducation starts from homeH any behaiours of the parents directly affect the children psychologically and in terms of deelopment. There is an action and a reaction. :hildren4s actions are stimulated by their personality and behaiour, which is undoubtedly shaped from their parents and their parents’ behaiour ;en when the child is an adult, they hae their parents to thank for their upbringing. Therefore 0911 responsibility goes to the parents of the behaioural and ethical construction of their children. %esides families are the building blocks of society and the generations perpetuate a circle of similar family traits and behaiours.
Teachers
Teachers’ core business in school is teaching. They are not babysitters. They are not the school#going children’s fathers or mothers. They are supposed to teach, not to act as parent, not to manage unruly behaiour.
"eers
"arents should keep an eye on their children’s peers who are their
young ones mingling with. Goung minds are ulnerable. They can be easily infected with ideas. So parents should be e'tra igilant about their children’s whereabouts and who they are with. If parents fail to do so and their children mi' with the wrong crowd, who can be blamed in this case if not the parents5
Technology
It is parents’ responsibility to guide the young ones. :hildren may not hae the capacity to differentiate what is right and what is wrong, but their parents are old enough to know better. Therefore, they are responsible to superise their children’s usage of technology and guide them.
;ntertainment
"arents, parents, parents. gain, it is parents’ responsibility to guide the young ones. %ad behaiours and iolence are glamoriJed on the screens and on the streets. :hildren may not hae the capacity to differentiate what is right and what is wrong, but their parents are old enough to know better. Therefore, they are responsible to monitor their children watch and gie them appropriate guidance.
