Debate question for english, tough one need help?

Question

The Debate is about allowing 10 year old or younger in the courtroom and i have to be against it. What questions could i use to ask my opponet whos for it. I really wanna stump them with my group but i can't even think of 5 haha...And could you think of any reasons why children shouldn't be allowed in the courtroom...Thanks so much

Answer 1

I assume you mean kids in a courtroom just to watch, and not because they have to testify?

The courtroom is an adult place to be and so not a place for children. Often things are said in a courtroom that might not be good or appropriate for kids to hear.

Some questions to ask your opponent::
Explain why it would be appropriate for young children to be in the courtroom? What would be the benefits to society? What would be the benefits to the children? How do you justify young children in the courtroom?

I hope this helps.

Answer 2

- The kid could be intimidated
- The parents might have taught to something else
- They may add a lot of feelings, not giving the account of what really happened
- The courtroom is a formal place, no point of risking letting a child in the make more noise
- Emotional outbursts would occurr more often, having to have a kid telling something they were scared of
Hope this helped, good luck with the debate! Hope you win, but personally, I don't really go against having a kid in the courtroom, so much that they are quiet and truthful.
Try and think of more points by thinking about what the other group would say, so that one, you'd be prepared for their arguements and two, think the opposite of what you think they might say and strike out arguements that are the total opposite. You might get more arguements.

Answer 3

1. Students should be in school
2. Young children could be a distraction to the proceedings, such as causing an adult to have to leave to escort to the restroom
3. Children can be a distraction to the jury, and can sway them unfairly in the case of a crime where if the offender or the victim has children, which is not a legal basis for deciding guilt or innocence or degree of punishment
4. Children may be emotionally upset by the proceedings. There are cases where surviving family of victims in murder cases have to be escorted out of the courtroom; so since children are sensitive and prone to express emotional reaction, this could be argued as too risky for the courtroom.
5. Content may be too mature for young audiences. If law shows on TV are considered adult in content, parental discretion may be advised for real life courtroom drama.

Note: I believe any issue sensitive enough to the family to involve children being there; or which is inconvenient to the family if they have children they cannot leave unattended; or which involves children as witnesses etc. should be mediated anyway and kept out of the courtroom as much as possible. I believe conflict resolution to be healthier, less stressful, less expensive, and more effective than court proceedings which too often distract or detract from the actual grievance and problem that needs to be addressed and resolved. So I wouldn't advise either adults or children or anybody to go to court if this can be avoided by solving the problem directly between the parties affected.

Answer 4

Have you ever attended a court hearing? It's not like you see on TV. Kids of 10 and younger have a different take on things than adults do, and letting kids sit through court hearings could be very confusing to them.
The bottom line is, what kind of court case is involved? If it's something in criminal court, then they are liable to be exposed to some pretty gritty details about crimes. If it is familycourt, they are again apt to be exposed to some battling parents, or hear some pretty devastating things about family members.
That's why, at present, children of tender years are interviewed by a judge, in chambers, without the pressure of being faced with cross examination. And some cross examinations can be brutal.
If you've never been to court, check the schedule at your local court house and sit in on a trial for a couple of hours, just to see what happens. It will give you a whole new insight into the question, and provide some telling points for your debate.

Answer 5

id do some research into psychological effects, development and reasoning. children are so easily influenced by others, dont have their own values and morals, dont have the same memory/brain functions can they testify etc etc
if u mean just to watch a case, then u can bring up things like graphic evidence and that

look into some scientific facts regarding this, if u can find them make them up with a quote, because unless the opposing side can prove u wrong, you are assummed to be rite! thats the number 1 rule in debating, its all on the spot, they cant go check you out and come back 2 days later and say u lied. its too late u've already won! ;)

Answer 6

Try different ways of thinking about this problem. I am going to suggest two: the first is think of all the reasons why they SHOULD be allowed. Then make the opposite argument. The second is to pick out an object randomly and compare that to your problem. For example, you see the clock on the wall? Hmm children in courts are like a clock because.... ..

This will force you to think and analyze the problem in new ways and stimulate your mind!

Answer 7

Children are considered to be "innocent", things that go on in the courtroom should not be heard from a child's ears.

What if their mother/father murdered someone....they don't need to hear that and scar them for the rest of there lives.

Some people use children as a "witness" well who's to say they weren't brainwashed into saying or doing somrthing.


lol...I dunno, hope that helps! ;)

Answer 8

hmmm....they could be exposed to societal conflicts that they are not yet prepared to face.

they could be intimidated by the courtroom

they could be psychologically scarred by the impact of seeing a friend or loved one accused of a crime and facing imprisonment

bias could easily lead to lies, because young minds are so easily molded.

they would not be fully able to comprehend courtroom rules.

hope this helps, i guess you'd have to rephrase them as questions but that wouldnt be too hard.

Answer 9

*be scary for the kid
*the chances of the kid acually telling the truth and not what some adult told them to is low
*kids brains are not developed enough to understand whats going on

that help? i dont kno if it will totally stump the other team, but its worth a try :-P good luck!

Answer 10

"brdc" is right on the money.