1. What to prove and how do I do it
The Burdens of a Debate
What to prove and how do I do it

2. What is a burden?
A burden is one of the things you need to prove for your side of the motion to be true
It is NOT a specific argument – burdens are proved by them
Prop and Opp will have different burdens – Prop will often have to prove all these things, Opp may only need 1 or a couple
It is still a good idea on Opp to hit as many burdens as possible

3. Why are burdens important
That you prove all the things you set out to prove in your speech does not mean you will win
You will often be told another team beat you for fulfilling their “burdens” better
Teams will sometimes try to tell the judge what your burdens are, they often lie about this
Thinking about burdens in prep time keeps you relevant to the debate
List them during prep on your page and build arguments around proving them

4. Example: THW reintroduce corporal punishment to schools
Prop burdens:
Chosen educational outcome(s) (academic results, life skills) are important
Corporal punishment is more effective than current methods of punishment at furthering that/those outcome(s)
The violence will seldom if ever be excessive (potential for abuse is non- existent or low)
Hitting children is a justifiable way of instructing
Not Prop burdens:
Bad class control leads to bad outcomes in education
Bad educational outcomes lead to bad life prospects
Teachers want this power

5. Example: THW reintroduce corporal punishment to schools
Opp burdens:
Hitting children is never justified
Hitting children leads to poor educational outcomes
The system will be so open to abuse that good outcomes are outweighed by abusive ones
Not Opp burdens:
Most teachers will not use this
Parents will disagree with it