Curriculum

In debate, it's important to understand how to deliver arguments clearly and confidently. We will teach:

• Speaking tone, projection, and how to speak at fast paces without sacrificing clarity

• Organization and "signposting," or labeling, arguments

• Word economy and delivering speeches efficiently

• Improvisation skills

• • Adaptation to the "common layperson" and being able to articulate and communicate arguments in a rhetorical, memorable and convincing way

To understand the different governmental policies that we debate, students need thorough background information on the state of the world today. Some of the topics we'll teach include:

• • Foreign policy (such as diplomacy, nuclear policy and international relations theory)

  • Economics (such as bonds, national debt, inflation and the impact of recessions)

  • The impact of global issues such as climate change and poverty

  • Tracking current events and using them to predict future scenarios

Debate involves heavy research to prepare arguments and gain an understanding of each new topic. We will teach:

• Research skills to prep for each new topic, including writing arguments and crafting responses

• Cutting cards, or finding evidence that is relevant to an argument

• • How to distinguish between credible and unreliable sources

  • Methods of comparing evidence in a debate round

Debate requires a lot of practice. Our lessons will include:

• Speaking drills 

• "Flowing" drills centered around taking in-round notes quickly and concisely

• Mini-tournaments such as impact weighing tournaments

• Analytical, on-the-fly rebuttal drills

• Speech re-dos where debaters will record their speeches to get personalized feedback

• Consistent practice rounds starting from the third week

At the end of the class, there will be a camp tournament where all debaters will compete against each other and practice their skills!

Debate is more than just persuasion-- a debate round is a game with its own rules, and requires unique strategies. To help students navigate this, we teach:

• Different types of responses such as Turns, Delinks and Non-uniques

• • Comparative analysis through methods of weighing different arguments

  • Advanced speech strategies leveraging both offense and defense in a debate round

  • General round-vision and understanding which arguments are the most strategic to win

Students will be able to choose between elective lectures given by our instructors about subjects they are experienced in. Example topics include: 

• U.S. Foreign Policy 101

• Niche, or "Squirrely" Arguments (and how to counter them)

• Deep dive into Rebuttal Strategy

• Improvising Analytical Arguments

• Lay Adaptation (how to win over a parent judge)

• Constructing a Narrative

Students will also be able to request lectures about their own topics of choosing!