Police brutality as oral topic: thoughts? :)

[g2gsofast]

Hey guys,
So I've been spending the last couple of days trying to figure out what I should do for my English oral. I initially wanted to do it on Asylum seekers, but I have already done that topic (multiple times) in previous years and my teacher asked me if I was okay to do it on another topic (I think she was hinting that she wanted me to do it on another topic). So I thought about doing it on Polic Brutality, as it's becoming such a widespread problem around the world. But I'm not too sure how to structure it or what my main ideas should be. I'm not the best at English so I'm really struggling to come up with something that will really leave an impact on the audience. Does anyone have any interesting things they think I should include in my speech or talk about?
Thank youuu, I really would appreciate any sort of help

[vceme]

For your intro, you can do something like 'Could everyone please close your eyes.... Imagine if you were coming home from a great party with your group of friends, you guys are laughing and making jokes but all of a sudden you are filled with fear, anxiety and stress when you see a gang near by. But you see something neon and green its the vest of police officers. You breathe in relief because you know that they are meant to protect you, be there for you but this comes crashing down. The police are attacking YOU'

Make sure you have a purpose for your speech so 'we need to fix the justice system by encouraging the government to make reviews'
Use a lot of emotive languages, rhetorical comments, cases etc.
Hope this helps

[g2gsofast]

For your intro, you can do something like 'Could everyone please close your eyes.... Imagine if you were coming home from a great party with your group of friends, you guys are laughing and making jokes but all of a sudden you are filled with fear, anxiety and stress when you see a gang near by. But you see something neon and green its the vest of police officers. You breathe in relief because you know that they are meant to protect you, be there for you but this comes crashing down. The police are attacking YOU'

Make sure you have a purpose for your speech so 'we need to fix the justice system by encouraging the government to make reviews'
Use a lot of emotive languages, rhetorical comments, cases etc.
Hope this helps

Thank you so much for your reply!! That sounds a really good idea for the intro, I was trying to come up with a engaging intro and this is perfect!!!

[meganrobyn]

I think you need to find your angle first. It's not really enough to just have 'police brutality is bad' - it's too broad, and who really would argue with that? I think you need a much more specific angle, and one that legitimately has an opposing PoV.

[24lover]

Hi g2gsofast!

I hope you don't mind me adding in my 2 cents

Police brutality is a great idea, but I believe it's important to really think about your position before you leap ahead with your introduction/writing. For example, the topic itself already indicates which POV you'll take - brutality in ANY situation is bad (police brutality, animal brutality, human brutality). It's a bit too simplistic and obvious just to argue that 'police brutality is bad' (as meganrobyn mentioned above). The obvious answer is that police need to stop being so brutal. So, how can you move beyond this and offer a more insightful contention?

Here are a few more specific contentions you could take:
Police need to take responsibility for police brutality
There needs to be repercussions for police who behave brutally
Police brutality harms mental health
Police brutality exists because of racism


In terms of the structure:
Introduction - the one suggested earlier sounds great, just make sure you really deliver it during your speech through tone and body language!

1st body paragraph (only a few sentences) - explain the what police brutality is, and why it’s an issue. I know that it might seem SUPER obvious, but reality is, everyone will need a brush up. People might’ve ‘heard’ about police brutality, but not know exactly what it means. If you clarify and define this, it’ll help ensure everyone is on board with what you’re saying, so you don’t lose your audience as you speak. The best speakers are the ones that are engaging, and the only way to stay engaging is to discuss a topic that they understand.

2nd body paragraph - argument 1

3rd body paragraph - argument 2

4rd body paragraph - argument 3

Conclusion - revisit the situation you began with in your introduction. Perhaps you could rewrite the scenario, potentially a different world where police brutality doesn’t exist. You could focus on how people feel safe and don’t live in a world of fear! To cycle back to the idea you start with is a fantastic way to wrap up your oral 😄

Best of luck, and I hope that helps!

[OZLexico]

I think its possible for "police brutality" to take different forms, rather than seeing it as a physical confrontation like your introductory/anecdote. People might experience these weaknesses in police relationships with the community in different ways. You might be watching media reports and video footage of police misbehaviour on the news and feel disgusted but a bit remote from it. Sometimes "police brutality" might occur through misogyny - like when domestic violence used to be referred to as "just a domestic" - as if there wasn't a need for police to intervene to protect people from harm. 

[g2gsofast]

I think you need to find your angle first. It's not really enough to just have 'police brutality is bad' - it's too broad, and who really would argue with that? I think you need a much more specific angle and one that legitimately has an opposing PoV.

Thank you for your reply ))
That's exactly the advice my teacher gave me, and I completely agree with both of you guys. I think I need to research the issue a bit more so I can find an interesting and specific angle.
thank you

Hi g2gsofast!

I hope you don't mind me adding in my 2 cents

Police brutality is a great idea, but I believe it's important to really think about your position before you leap ahead with your introduction/writing. For example, the topic itself already indicates which POV you'll take - brutality in ANY situation is bad (police brutality, animal brutality, human brutality). It's a bit too simplistic and obvious just to argue that 'police brutality is bad' (as meganrobyn mentioned above). The obvious answer is that police need to stop being so brutal. So, how can you move beyond this and offer a more insightful contention?

Here are a few more specific contentions you could take:
Police need to take responsibility for police brutality
There needs to be repercussions for police who behave brutally
Police brutality harms mental health
Police brutality exists because of racism


In terms of the structure:
Introduction - the one suggested earlier sounds great, just make sure you really deliver it during your speech through tone and body language!

1st body paragraph (only a few sentences) - explain the what police brutality is, and why it’s an issue. I know that it might seem SUPER obvious, but reality is, everyone will need a brush up. People might’ve ‘heard’ about police brutality, but not know exactly what it means. If you clarify and define this, it’ll help ensure everyone is on board with what you’re saying, so you don’t lose your audience as you speak. The best speakers are the ones that are engaging, and the only way to stay engaging is to discuss a topic that they understand.

2nd body paragraph - argument 1

3rd body paragraph - argument 2

4rd body paragraph - argument 3

Conclusion - revisit the situation you began with in your introduction. Perhaps you could rewrite the scenario, potentially a different world where police brutality doesn’t exist. You could focus on how people feel safe and don’t live in a world of fear! To cycle back to the idea you start with is a fantastic way to wrap up your oral 😄

Best of luck, and I hope that helps!

Omggg Lisa, I can’t believe you replied!! I feel like a fangirl right now since I religiously watch your youtube videos and never fail to read your weekly blogs that you send to email subscribers. your channel has helped me so much, not only with english, but with VCE in general. It has honestly motivated me and helped me gain so much more confidence, also it has realllyyyy helped relieve my post-sac nerves, SO THANK YOUUUUUU.
Anyway, in terms of the speech:
I really like your idea with linking the intro and conclusion, I will definitely include it.
And yeah, I think I need a more specific contention. I like the idea of talking about “Police brutality exists because of racism” as no doubt it is an issue that has a trend of especially affecting minority groups like in Australia, indigenous australians are common victims of such abuse, and in america, African americans are targets.
But what do you think about also including something about offending officers having harsher consequences and penalties ( as many officers are only penalised after multiple cases of them using excessive and unnecessary force). Also wanted to talk about how the government need to re-construct the training Police officers are given as this may be a way of reducing the rates of police brutality.
What do you think?? Do you think I should add anything else??
Thanks Lisa )

Mod edit: merged double post --Calebark

[24lover]

Hi g2gsofast!

Aw, thank you so much for your kind words! I’m so glad my newsletter and YouTube videos have been help and most importantly - helped to boost your confidence 😄 It is my absolute pleasure to help students like you!

"But what do you think about also including something about offending officers having harsher consequences and penalties ( as many officers are only penalised after multiple cases of them using excessive and unnecessary force).”

Yes, you can definitely incorporate this into your solution. There’s no use just arguing why something is bad without offering a solution to fix it.

Also wanted to talk about how the government need to re-construct the training Police officers are given as this may be a way of reducing the rates of police brutality.

Yes! Again, I feel like this would be part of the solution. Perhaps a consideration would be including training where police develop empathy for people across any culture? If you’re going to talk about racism, a solution that nails “culture” and “acceptance” on the head would be a good choice too!

Although I offered you this structure earlier:

2nd body paragraph - argument 1
3rd body paragraph - argument 2
4rd body paragraph - argument 3

…I would also recommend you an alternate structure (it definitely requires more thinking, is slightly more complex to put together, and one that I personally used to get 20/20 in my own oral in Year 12), especially if you’re starting to think more about your solution to the issue. I wrote this out just then for you!!!! It's a detailed explanation about a more solid essay structure that can really show off your skills: here.

Let me know if this helps or if you have any questions! 🙂

Good luck!