Meet our Topical Talk skills
During the Festival, we’d like you to demonstrate important skills in your discussions. Showing these in your responses will not only make your comments more interesting, but will also earn you stars, which might get you awards!
We’ll be looking for the following skills in your responses:
Listening
because good listeners learn more.
Speaking
because good speakers have discussions that help everyone to learn, including themselves.
Problem-solving
because good problem-solvers can work out what’s really going on and what should be done about it.
Creativity
because creative people can come up with ideas about what’s going on and what can be done about it.
We’ll also see if you can demonstrate your knowledge of the news, including:
- Knowledge of important news events and discussions – for example, the topics and discussions from your Topical Talk classroom lessons
- Knowledge of the how people find the news – for example, television, radio and social media
- Knowledge of the context of news stories – for example, understanding why people from different countries react differently to the same story
- Knowledge of the most common themes that shape the news – for example, power, justice and scarcity
In this discussion:
- Tell everyone which skill you think is the most important to use during the Festival
- Tell everyone why it is important for young people to have knowledge about the news
- Read other student comments and let them know what you think by replying directly to their comment
Comments (29)
I think listening is the most important skill because when you listen that's when you know 2hat to say and then be creative to solve problems.
I agree because... without listening, comprehension of the material becomes challenging. To grasp what we are learning, it is imperative to cultivate strong listening skills.
I don't LIKE AI because it can take over people's jobs, so how will they earn money???
I understand your worry about AI taking jobs. It's okay to feel concerned. But you know, people are working on making sure AI helps us and creates new kinds of jobs too. Think of AI as a really smart tool that can help us with tasks. By learning new things and using our imagination, we can work parallel with AI and even create cool jobs in the future. So, while AI might change some jobs, it also opens up exciting opportunities for us to learn and do different things! 😊
I agree with you, motivated elephant, because I think Attentive listening helps us learn a lot about others. Knowing more about people is helpful in your professional life as well as your personal life. Imagine the benefits when you get to understand your colleagues, customers, partners, friends, and family members better.Listening helps us to learn and understand knowledge from different sources. In conclusion, being a good listener is a valuable skill that can have a positive impact on our daily lives. It helps to build firm relationships, boost communication, and increase empathy and understanding. It creates a sense of trust and respect between us individuals. thank you
motivated_elephant, your perspective on listening as the most important skill is insightful. Active listening is a crucial component in gaining a deeper understanding of news stories and diverse viewpoints. It serves as a foundation for effective communication, fostering creativity in problem-solving. Understanding the nuances in information allows for more informed and constructive discussions. Well said!
I agree with you becabuse it is when you listen to understand that is when you can say you want to solve a problem or add to a discussion
I think is creative because in the people brain have many thinks and cannot expess it with speaking so with an action is very easy.
I agree... because individuals can discover their own simple way yet enjoyable approaches to problem-solving.
I believe that listening is very important when receiving information. We can't only pay attention to half of the conversation and expect to understand what happened properly. Miscommunication often leads to disasters. Fake news sometimes comes from miscommunication, or just gossip. I strongly disagree with posting something online that you simply just overheard. In order to transmit something to the whole world, you must check the sources. Some people's careers or reputations have been destroyed by fake news. Just imagine how horrible that must be! Because there have existed multiple such cases, many people have started being extra careful with what they share with different people. For instance, they are becoming more mysterious and start holding more secrets. Unfortunately, this so often leads to trust issues. People can also get anxious when hanging out with friends, because of constant worry. What will they think of me? Will they say things behind my back? - are questions they often ask themselves. Sometimes, we can cause so many bad things, without even meaning to do so. That is why I consider it is best to not write or comment on anything that you just overheard.
I think speaking and creativity is the most important skills because speaking and creativity empower individuals to effectively communicate ideas and solve problems. Effective speaking enables clear expression of thoughts, while creativity fosters innovative thinking and problem-solving, contributing to personal and professional success. Together, these skills enhance collaboration, leadership, and adaptability in various aspects of life.
I feel like the most important skill is listening. It helps us to understand matters more, giving us the ability of problem solving. If you are a counsellor, a very learned person and do your work perfectly. Now imagine you(as the counsellor) not listening to any of the things that your patients are telling. In such a case, how would you be able to solve others problem?
Listening develops your creativity. When you were born you would only know how to cry and a few other things. As time passes you start listening to your parents' conversation. This makes you to develop your vocabulary, and helps you to start talking. Just like this, when you start listening to the world outside, you will hear different ideas that are different to yours. It builds your creativity.
Listening helps you to to speak effectively. It helps you to analyse the situation and decide what is the most suitable to speak. What would you think would happen if your friend, who was present when you got a very low grade for your exam came and told you that they have got very low marks, when they have only lost 2 marks! You would feel offended. This is what happens when you don't listen.
Thus, I would like to conclude by telling that Listening is indeed the most important skill but I am open to any other opinions from anyone else.
I think listening and creativity are the most important skills because when we listen to something really carefully we can learn various new things and listening also develops communication skills and also when we are listening carefully we will know about the topic and we will know what to say about that topic
Creativity is also one of the important skill because it can expree one's thinking without talking as some people have social anxiety which makes it hard for them to express what they are thinking. It also allows us to solve any type of problem more openly.
I believe that speaking and listening skills is the most important to use during the festival. It improves the creativity of every individual and helps to learn new things. It can also develop our communication skills and helps to solve the different kind of problems that arrives in our mind.
I agree with you. Speaking and listening skills are crucial for effective communication. The ability to express ideas clearly through speaking facilitates effective sharing of information and ensures that your message is understood. On the other hand, strong listening skills enable you to comprehend and respond appropriately, fostering meaningful conversations and building rapport with others. Both skills are essential in various aspects of personal, professional, and social interactions. so I think that speaking and listening skills are most important.
In my opinion, critical thinking is one of the skills that students must have. As the questions provided to us are quite basic so I guess the answers of most of the students might be alike.
I think problem solving is very important, this is because after listening you have to make use of the information you have acquired, how you can connect this ideas and to produce a solution is what matters. And what make problem solving special Is that it makes one overcome obstacles and help make progress.
I think the listening skill and problem solving skill is very important . Because listening is a key to effective communication,not listening properly could lead to misinformation and it can be a threat to those around us. Evaluating the message and responding to it wisely can go beyond our expectations.
Problem solving skill:this is important because, recognizing problem without having a temporary or Permanent solution can instill fear in the mind of those in our society.
Let use the covid_19 pandemic as an example,if we were not told to use nose mask, Wash our hands and keep distance. We would not have been able to go to school,our place of work .but with problem solving skill,a temporary solution was produce,which saved a lot of life.
In conclusion,I think the problem solving skill is very important.
I think listening is the most important skill. Hearing is one of the five senses of the human body. Listening is very important in communicating with people. Proper understanding of a subject requires listening. If you don't understand a subject, it is not possible to work well on it.On the other hand,Newspaper is a set of large sheets containing printed news, stories, information, articles, advertisements, etc.Newspapers are of great importance for the young people especially as it gives them lots of general knowledge and current affairs of national and international level. It gives us information about all the happenings, developments, new technology, research, astrology, seasonal changes, natural calamities, etc.
I think creativity is the most important.Creativity refers to ideas that have some kind of subjective value
in personality types, mental and neurological processes, mental health or artificial intelligence; Creativity can be enhanced through education and training; Fostering creativity for national economic benefit and improving the effectiveness of teaching and learning requires creativity.
Creativity has been one of they skills that i really valued the most since i began this festival. To be candid, i feel creativity is best form of self-expression. There is nothing more satisfying and fulfilling for us as students than to be able to reveal ourselves openly and without judgment. The ability to be creative, to create something from personal feelings and experiences, can reflect and support students emotional health. Besides, a society that has lost touch with its creative side is an imprisoned society, in that, ages of people may be narrow minded.
To sum up all i have just said , certainly ''Creativity opens the mind''.
Thank you.
In my opinion creativity is the most important because it helps expand people's ideas and knowledge, especially young people and teenagers, and this thing leaves a positive impression and knowledge filled image of you when you discuss with some one. I also think that this is a sufficient reason for us to be creative
I actually think the best skill to have is, are creativity skills so as one can be enabled to have answers to different problems and also the solution and don't forget to also bring up new ideas for people to learn from.
Why it is important for young people to have knowledge about the news is because it educates us on the news story about what is going on locally and also international and one to be aware of his or her surroundings where by making the individual conscious of their environments. Thanks.
Hi, to me I think that all the skills are quite important and work hand in hand but if I was left to decision I would choose problem solving.
Problem solving is the ability of someone to reason out a solution to a problem. Problem solvers are sharp and intelligent. In this festival I think problem solving is the most important skill because... people in this festival bring about common problems while solvers bring about the solution/answer to that question.
Young people also having access to news makes it easier for solutions to be given. When young people have knowledge about news it creates awareness too, this awareness keeps everyone on their toes helping them to understand the situation at hand at all times.
For example in this festival has a lot of topics which have been given and my favorite is eco-anxiety. I personally got to know about it more through the festival and the internet, I found out that different people have different approach to eco-anxiety and the news was shaped mainly by compassion.
I just want us to understand that problem solving is very important.
Thankyou.
It is true that all are important in conversations, and I agree with you @glad_outcome, problem solving is also my decision, a conversation can't be concluded until it is solved and that is why I think people should choose problem solving skills, again all the skills are important and useful, but I think that problem solving is the best.
In conversation I have learnt from the topics that there will always be problems, but we need a mediator, I feel that problem solvers can fit in the role of these mediators, problem solvers are people that look for the best way to curb a problem, not for their own interest but for the interest of everyone.
Thank you for reading, and all of your points are smart and on point, way to go guys.
I agree with you because all skills are very vital to young ones but one of the most important is creativity. Problem solving goes along with creativity because one that wants to solve a problem has to be creative, examples are electric cars which help solve problems like less noise pollution, and less maintenance cost for owners.
I strongly believe that an individual that is creative can solve problems because creativity boosts productivity and promotes innovation. I believe that this festival helps young ones in mostly their creative skills because they are giving topics that is some way relating to them in one way or the other which they are meant to give their views about that topic which is the form of developing our creative skills towards problem solving.
Creativity is one of the facilitators of development in the world at large because as I earlier mentioned it promotes innovation to people . A major example is Artificial Intelligence (AI).
I think the most important skill is learning and speaking is the best skill to use in this festival but listening is more essential than every other skill in this festival because without listening, you won't be able to know what to speak of or about, we won't be always speak for our own but rather listen to your neighbour's opinion or his/her point of view.
I also believe that from listening, you will be Creative and be able to come up with ideals so that you can able to solve problems. so in that case, I believe that listening is the center point of all this skills because, you can't start speaking when you don't know or listen to understand to what they are talking about and also, you can't be creative where you don't listening to know what speech you are about to create and from there, you can be able to solve problems.
It is important to listen when receiving information because when you pay attention, you understand what the speaker is trying to say.
Misunderstanding leads to fake news, Improper explanation and might also lead to destruction sometimes in some cases.
Thanks.
I believe creativity is the most important skill, as it opens up endless possibilities and enables us to solve problems in innovative ways. Creativity is not just limited to artistic pursuits but also extends to critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making. It allows us to think outside the box, challenge conventional norms, and come up with novel solutions to complex issues.
In today's fast-paced and rapidly changing world, creativity is more important than ever before. With the rise of automation and artificial intelligence, many routine tasks are being automated, making creativity a valuable asset that cannot be easily replicated by machines. Therefore, cultivating creativity should be a top priority for individuals and organizations alike, as it can lead to breakthroughs in various fields and drive innovation forward.
I think listening is a very important skill to use during the festival because you cannot learn things without listening. You will not be able to follow instructions without listening to you teacher or parents at school or at home. You listen to other people so you will generate more ideas and get smarter.
It is important for young people to have knowledge about the news because by looking at the news reports, you will know what is happening at different areas of the world.
I think creativity is the most important skill to have. It allows us to bring unique ideas and experiences to the festival, making it even more special. As for young people like us, it's crucial for us to have knowledge about current events because it helps us stay informed, understand the world around us, and actively participate in shaping our future. So with creativity we can come up with ideas about what’s going on and what can be done about it which makes us become creative and open minded.
According to me it's speaking because without that skill we can't able to talk with each other and convey our messages during. Speaking skill provides you comfortable understanding and makem more interactive.
Thank you
Understanding skill: why I said so is because if you were given a topic to speak on or a question without the skill of understanding you would not be able to make a reasonable comment.
Listening skills : it helps to be able to calm down and analyze it.
All this helps us in developing our selves. So if we find our selves in a different situations like this we would be able to be ahead of others in every competition we find our selves.
Speaking is considered as the most important skill of the learner, most of the time the proficiency of this skill is which judges the knowledge of the learner of the second language. People have to many reasons to improve their ability of the skill such as expressing ideas, creating relationships, exchanging information etc .communication in the classroom promoting interactive and realistic activities in order to help students gain confidence and feel motivated, even though despite its importance, for many years, teaching speaking has been undervalued and English language teachers have continued to teach speaking just as a repetition of drills or memorization of dialogues. Fortunately, today's world requires that the goal of teaching speaking should improve students' communicative skills, because, only in that way, students can express themselves and learn how to follow the social and cultural rules appropriate in each communicative circumstance.
There is no doubt that students learn to speak in the second language .
It is essensial for the students to practice as much they can in the class and in daily life as well, simple activites such as share ideas about an event, or find solutions in their discussion groups are effective to improve the skill.
I think problem solving is the most important skill in this competition because bringing solutions and ideas is the main thing we do here. Problem solving involves:
1. Considering different perspectives. Here you listen to other people's views to come up with a solution.
2. Analysing evidences, this is when you look at information you have to see whether it is a fact or an opinion or even false.
Then I think that listening is the second most important skill because if you don't listen to the problem you won't know how to fix it. We listen in this competition by reading the posts and comments.
I think all the skills mentioned above are important because when it comes to this festival listening supports you with providing more information and perspectives. Speaking skills are important because it gives you confidence to put front your viewpoint. Through problem-solving skills you learn to explore more as you have to go in depth of topics to make your comment. And lastly creativity is important as you get to know how to be unique and meaningful. In my observation of myself I have developed these skills through this festival upto a point where it will help me in my life, so I am thankful for that.
For me all of them are equally important.
Listening to others mean that you are there for them, you respect them and you understand them.
Speaking is a difficult skill in my opinion and needs constant improvement.
Furthermore problem solving is a skill that nowadays will need it a.lot as we are faced with so many daily problems.
Lastly creativity can really expand our ideas and thoughts in many ways.
The most important skill during the festival is effective communication, as it fosters connection and understanding among diverse participants.
Knowledge about the news is crucial for young people as it promotes informed decision-making, critical thinking, and an active engagement with the world.
Listening is important but the most important part of it is being creative enough to create a hypothesis about any discussion. When you listen, you hear, ability for your to be creative enough to think about solutions to the problem announced, makes you a complete human. If you listen, and you are not able to be creative enough to make up a good discussion then your listening is in vain.
It is important to have the knowledge of the news because when they become aware of the news, if helps them to know what is going on and be able to think and know what to do about it. It also helps them to be creative in making things come to existence in order to solve some problems that brought the news.
I believe that the most important skill to be used in the Topical talks festival is problem-solving.
If you carefully analyse each topic and question ask you will observe that every topic has a main motive to find a solutions answers to problems which we are currently facing. For example:
On the topic of Eco-anxiety the main focus is on how people can solve the problem of climate change.
Likewise, the topic of prisons is based on how the Government can solve the problem of unsafe and ineffective prisons.
The reasons why these topics are brought up is mainly to find a solution to them.