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Monday, August 19, 2013

Debate

"I may be wrong and you may be right and, by an effort, we may get nearer the truth."
Karl Popper
Debate is a formal contest of argumentation between two teams or individuals. More broadly,
and more importantly, debate is an essential tool for developing and maintaining democracy and open societies. More than a mere verbal or performance skill, debate embodies the ideals of reasoned argument, tolerance for divergent points of view and rigorous self-examination. Debate is, above all, a way for those who hold opposing views to discuss controversial issues without descending to insult, emotional appeals or personal bias. A key trademark of debate is that it rarely ends in agreement, but rather allows for a robust analysis of the question at hand. Perhaps this is what French philosopher Joseph Joubert meant when he said: “It is better to debate a question without settling it, than to settle a question without debating it.”
The Karl Popper Debate Format
At the secondary school level, IDEA debaters follow the Karl Popper debate format, which places students in two teams of three members. Teams are presented with a 'resolution', such as “Economic development should be valued above protection of the environment” or “Human genetic engineering is immoral". The team affirming the resolution speaks first. The opposing team then must refute the arguments offered by the affirming team and offer arguments rejecting the resolution. Both sides are given the opportunity to present their positions and to directly question the opposing team. Neutral judges - usually parents or teachers - evaluate the persuasiveness of the arguments and offer constructive feedback on such elements as faulty logic, insufficient evidence and arguments debaters may have overlooked. Debate teams are judged strictly on the merits of their arguments.
Debate and Democracy
Debate is not a forum for asserting absolute truths, but rather a means of making and evaluating arguments that allows debaters to better understand their own and others’ positions. This sense of a shared journey toward the truth brings debaters closer together, even when they represent opposing sides of an issue or come from vastly different cultures or social classes. In so doing, debate fosters the essential democratic values of free and open discussion.

Why Debate?

"Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress."
Mahatma Ghandi
The process of debate offers profound and lasting benefits for individuals, for societies and for the global community as a whole. With its emphasis on critical thinking, effective communication, independent research and teamwork, debate teaches skills that serve individuals well in school, in the workplace, in political life and in fulfilling their responsibilities as citizens of democratic societies. Once students have learned how to debate, they are better able to critically examine the pronouncements of their political representatives and to make informed judgments about crucial issues.
Debate and Society
The individual skills learned through debate have a broader impact on society as well. Debate can help fledgling democracies heal from the wounds inflicted by oppressive dictatorships and ethnic violence by providing a forum where these volatile issues can be openly discussed. Newly enfranchised citizens engaged in such debates learn first-hand how democracy works. Additionally, because it teaches the principles of tolerance, nonviolence and respect for different points of view, debate can close the gap between minority and majority cultures, and other groups divided by long-standing animosities.
Debate and the World
IDEA sees debate as a way to foster international understanding, cooperation, and a free and lively exchange of ideas. In bringing together students from around the world and from vastly different backgrounds, IDEA events offer much more than a mere contest of formal argumentation. By their very nature, IDEA debates break down national, economic, cultural and ethnic boundaries, showing that opposing views can be explored in a way that connects rather than divides people. As a process that both embodies and encourages peaceful discussion rather than aggressive confrontation, debate offers the world a tool that could not be more timely or more necessary.

Debate Formats

Different styles of debate offer their own distinct format and focus. The most widely used format at the university level is Parliamentary Debate, although certain regions of the world have their own, slightly different version of it. IDEA predominantly employs the Karl Popper Debate format with secondary school students and the Parliamentary format with secondary and university students.
New debate formats are created all the time; some of them stay, some of them do not. If you feel the following is not comprehensive or there are improvements you could make, please Contact Us.
Online Debate
Online debating formats are meant to allow debaters to engage in short debates using instant messaging or video conferencing software. These debates will have one debater representing the "affirmative" and another debater presenting the "negative". While online debates are not meant to replace face-to-face communication, they are a way to bridge geographic distances and to allow for discussion between people who might not otherwise have a chance to meet.
IDEA expects the opportunities for debating on the Internet to improve as technology improves and believes this format will be dynamic and open to change. Starting in January 2012, IDEA will host video and text debating competitions – visit DEBATE NOW to sign up and join in.
Team Debate
Karl Popper Debate
The Karl-Popper format focuses on relevant and often deeply divisive propositions, emphasizing the development of critical thinking skills and tolerance for differing viewpoints. Debaters work together in teams of three and must research both sides of each issue. Each team is given the opportunity to offer arguments and direct questions to the opposing team. Judges then offer constructive feedback, commenting on logical flaws, insufficient evidence or arguments that debaters may have overlooked.
This format was developed for use in secondary school programs and competitions.  It is popular in Central and Eastern Europe and in Russia. In Africa it is becoming increasingly popular in Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Liberia and Nigeria.  It is the format employed at the annual IDEA Youth Forum – a two week debate event for secondary school students from all over the world.
The distinguishing features of the format are: cross-examination, when four of the six debaters ask their opponents questions; and preparation time, when debaters can prepare before their speeches. This format emphasizes team work and is a good format for beginner debaters, because each speaker in this debate speaks once only and members of the team need to communicate with each other during the designated preparation time.
Parliamentary Debate
Many formats of debate are described as 'parliamentary'. This is really a catch-all term which simply means that they are loosely modeled on the practices of the British parliamentary system and other parliaments around the world that adopted those practices. In practice it means that the motion for debate is treated in much the same way as a legislative Bill placed before the UK House of Commons. The motion always stands in the name of the Government (also called 'the Proposition') and it is the job of the Opposition to demonstrate that the motion is either impractical or immoral.
The distinguishing factor of parliamentary formats, of which there are many, is the use of Points of Information (PoI). These points allow debaters to interrupts a speaker to ask a question or offer information which favors their side of the debate. Both Proposition and Opposition speakers can offer PoIs, but only to the other side. It is not compulsory to accept a PoI, but in competitive debate speakers are penalized if they fail to take any. Usually the first and last sections of a speech are 'protected time' during which PoIs may not be offered.
In many parliamentary formats the terminology of the House of Commons has also been adopted with the first proposition speaker being referred to as the Prime Minister and the first opposition speaker being known as the Leader of the Opposition. The chair or presiding adjudicator is usually referred to as Mister or Madam Speaker and all remarks are addressed to them not the other debaters.
British Parliamentary (BP)
This is the name of the format used for the World Universities Debating Championship and has, as a result, become the default format for many university societies, especially in the English speaking world. It is probably the most commonly used format in the World. In much the same way as many university societies debate in their native language as well as English, so they tend to use a regional or local format and also BP.
Debates comprise eight speakers: four speaking in favor of a motion and four against. Each side is made up of two teams of two individuals. They debate a motion (the idea to be discussed) which is usually framed with the wording This House Believes... or This House Would.... For example if the motion is This House Would Support Assisted Suicide, it is the role of the Proposition (or 'Government') speakers to explain why assisted suicide is a good idea and the opposition should demonstrate that it is not. As a form of parliamentary debate, in BP the government should propose a course of action and support it with philosophical, practical and consequential arguments. The burden of proof is on the government, but the opposition must also demonstrate the strength of their arguments.
Typically in BP, a motion is announced 15 minutes before the debate starts. Speeches are seven minutes in length, with the first and last minute protected (Points of Information cannot be offered in 'protected' time). The first proposition speaker is required to present a definition of the motion that places an idea in a real-world setting. Once a motion has been defined, all speakers are required to address the definition, not some other variant that might be easier for them.
Legislative Debate
Legislative Debate is based upon the notion of having representative student leaders consider some of the problems that actually confront lawmakers. In doing so, Legislative Debate provides unparalleled insight into the way legislation is drafted and establishes leadership and deliberation skills crucial to effective participation in democratic processes. Legislative Debate also offers a vehicle for teaching parliamentary procedure and helps students internalize the value of decision-making processes that draw on consensus building and majority rule.
Lincoln-Douglas Debate
In Lincoln-Douglas Debate, the motion is a statement, phrased as a sentence that focuses on an issue of philosophical or political concern and which will be analyzed from a moral perspective. Lincoln-Douglas Debate places primacy on the ability of debaters to make original, coherent and philosophically persuasive arguments on issues of ethics. Debaters should present a persuasive moral position that they can defend from criticism and use to argue against an opposing case, without falling into self-contradiction or denying the complexity of the issues at stake. Students should familiarize themselves with the work of major ethical philosophers and should inform their cases with real-world examples and analysis.
Middle School Debate
Fostering debate and speech activities on the middle school level is consistent with IDEA's commitment to empower young people as participants of the democratic processes. Middle school students can benefit uniquely from exposure to speech and debate. They are at an age, psychologically and socially, where they can make considerable strides in acquiring research competence, media and argument literacy, reading comprehension, evidence evaluation, and public speaking and civic skills. Finally, through cultivating middle school speech and debate activities, not only are young people and teachers empowered, but an appreciation of speech and debate is instilled in students who may well pursue it to higher levels.
Mock Trial
Mock Trial is an exercise in argumentation and legal procedure and the only educational trial format based on the International Criminal Court established by the Treaty of Rome. The IDEA Mock Trial hones both legal reasoning and courtroom technique, while it familiarizes participants with a vital arena of public debate. Teams representing the prosecution and defense take on the roles of all attorneys and witnesses. A judge, or judging panel, oversees the round, provides educational criticism and makes a decision based on each team's performance. Each case argued is an original scenario that the participants must master. Facts are presented through a variety of legal documents and through the testimony of witnesses. Although the underlying facts are the same, each round unfolds differently according to the actions, decisions and interactions of the participants. Teams contest the facts of the case through direct examination, cross-examination, re-direct and re-cross of both prosecution and defense witnesses.
Cross-Examination (Policy) Debate
Like other forms of debate, Cross-Examination Debate focuses on the core elements of a controversial issue. Cross-Examination Debate develops important skills, such as critical thinking, listening, argument construction, research, note-taking and advocacy skills. Cross-Examination Debate is distinct from other formats (with the exception of two team Parliamentary Debate) in is use of a two person team, along with an emphasis on cross-examination between constructive speeches. While specific practices vary, Cross Examination Debate typically rewards intensive use of evidence and is more focused on content than delivery.
Public Forum Debate
Public Forum Debate offers students a unique opportunity to develop on-their-feet critical thinking skills by situating them in contexts not unlike US political talk shows. Public Forum debaters must anticipate numerous contingencies in planning their cases and must learn to adapt to rapidly changing circumstances as discussions progress. Public Forum's open-ended cross-examination format encourages the development of unique rhetorical strategies. Public Forum debates should be transparent to lay audiences, while providing students with real-world public speaking skills, through the discussion of contentious ideas.
Public Debate
IDEA believes that debate should not be limited to the setting of competitive debate tournaments in which only students take part, but instead feels that debate should operate within a broader context of public participation and should embrace different segments of a community. IDEA strongly encourages its members to promote and support public access to debate through the organization of public debates and by inviting the public to debate competitions.
Speech Events
Limited Preparation Events
(i) Impromptu Speaking
In Impromptu Speaking, students learn to prepare and deliver an original speech immediately and without preparation. Impromptu Speaking topics range from the meaning of proverbs and abstract words to the significance of events and quotations by famous speakers.
(ii) Extemporaneous Speaking
In Extemporaneous Speaking, students must prepare and deliver an original speech on a current event, with a limited amount of preparation time. Extemporaneous topics are presented in the form of questions and contestants are expected to take a position on the question as well as to justify their stance.
Platform Speaking Events
(i) Informative Speaking
In Informative Speaking, students prepare and deliver an original speech whose primary purpose is to inform or educate the audience. The speech should describe, clarify, illustrate or define an object, idea, concept or process.
(ii) Persuasive Speaking/Original Oratory
In Persuasive Speaking/Original Oratory, students prepare and deliver an original speech designed to inspire, reinforce or change the beliefs, attitudes, values or actions of the audience.
Interpretative Events
(i) Prose Interpretation
In Prose Interpretation, students must select, analyze and share a cutting from literature (other than verse or plays) through the art of reading aloud. Prose Interpretation expresses thought through language recorded in sentences and paragraphs. Prose Interpretation includes fiction (short stories, novels) and non-fiction (articles, essays, journals, biographies). An effective Prose Interpretation consists of a selection or selections of materials with literary merit.
(ii) Poetry Interpretation
In Poetry Interpretation, students must find, analyze and share a cutting or rhyme through the art of reading aloud. Poetry selections express ideas, experiences or emotions through the creative arrangement of words according to their sound, rhythm and meaning. An effective Poetry Interpretation consists of a selection or selections of material with literary merit.
(iii) Dramatic Interpretation
In Dramatic Interpretation, a student must select, analyze and share a cutting from a play through the art of reading aloud. A Dramatic Interpretation consists of a selection or selections of literary merit that may be drawn from more than one source.
(iv) Duo Dramatic Interpretation
In Duo Dramatic Interpretation, two students must find, analyze and share a cutting from a play through the art of reading aloud. A Duo Dramatic Interpretation can be either humorous or serious. The cutting should represent the portrayal of one or more characters presented by the two individuals.
(v) Programmed Oral Interpretation
In Programmed Oral Interpretation students must find, analyze and share a program of thematically linked selections through the art of reading aloud. The selections should be of literary merit, and must be chosen from at least two of the three recognized genres (prose/poetry/drama). 'Different genres' here means that the material must appear in separate pieces of literature and that, for example, a poem included in a short story that appears only in that short story does not constitute a poetry genre.

Debate Clubs

Debate clubs are formed within schools, universities, youth clubs and community centers. Although they are usually initiated at the school level, they can also be formed in community and youth centers in countries where political conditions make it difficult to work within the school system. These clubs may then function as an educational program offered by the particular institution.
The debate club represents the heart of the IDEA mission. If successfully administered, these locally-based institutions will eventually flourish into independent national debate organizations, which hold membership in IDEA and are capable of upholding and promoting the principles of IDEA and of debate.
The Functions of the Debate Club
At the club level, debating teams, along with their coaches and other club members, prepare for tournaments and serve the broader school community. Parents, teachers, and community members are encouraged to participate as judges, fundraisers, and volunteers within the club program. Clubs sponsor local events such as public debates and strive to encourage the democratic exchange of ideas throughout the region. Debate clubs are as inclusive as possible (see starting a debate club for more on club composition), and students of differing ages, grades, and abilities are encouraged to participate and contribute to the club and its efforts.
Debate Clubs as the Foundation of Independent National Debate Organizations
The debate club serves as the starting point from which, ideally, an independent national debate organization will arise. IDEA works to initiate this process via a five-year program (program length may vary depending upon funding and other factors).
During the first year of the program, IDEA reaches out to secondary school teachers interested in debate. These initial trainees receive extensive instruction in the fundamentals of debate, along with information on how to create debate clubs in their schools. During the second year, a national training team is selected from those teachers first trained by IDEA; who are asked to begin developing a strategy for integrating debate into the curriculum of local schools.
Once a number of schools have successfully created debate clubs, IDEA provides support to help the schools establish a debate center – community centers for anyone interested in debate - which will eventually house the national debate association.
By the third year, teachers who have been active in the program are encouraged to organize and create a membership association for the school debate clubs. IDEA provides training to this end, with a focus on helping the association transition into an independent organization.
During the final two years of the IDEA program, it is expected that IDEA's direct financial support of the local debate programs will be replaced by funding via the local community: through membership fees and donations. By the end of the fifth year, the national debate association - started humbly from a group of debate clubs - will be self-sustaining and will take on the responsibility of finding the necessary in-country support.

Tournaments

Tournaments vary in size from small local competitions, which might take place after school, to large international tournaments, which can attract hundreds of debaters and coaches. Many IDEA member associations hold annual national tournaments for schools from the whole country, regional tournaments for schools from a given region and small local tournaments within communities. IDEA works with member associations that want to organize international tournaments, which are normally held at campsites or inexpensive conference centers. IDEA and its members promote education and not competition; and this philosophy defines the goals and objectives of IDEA debate tournaments.
Debate tournaments consist of a set of preliminary debates, a ‘round’, in which all teams participate. In this preliminary stage, teams debate each side of the topic in alternating rounds: a team that is affirmative in the first round will be negative in the second. The first round of a debate tournament normally pairs teams randomly. After the first round, teams are paired based on how well they have performed. With this system of pairing, tournaments ensure that teams encounter others at the same level.
After the preliminary rounds are complete, the teams with the best records proceed to an elimination stage. The goal of the elimination rounds is to have the top teams debating in the final round.
Tournaments involve a number of volunteers acting as judges, whose responsibility is to offer feedback to the teams and to decide who wins the debate. In major international university tournaments, judges are often very experienced debaters from universities around the world. In IDEA tournaments, judges are recruited from the local community and may include teachers or coaches of teams in the event, as well as parents, university students or other volunteers. Tournament organizers will provide judges with all the training they should need to evaluate a debate; judges are not expected to be experts either in debate or in the topic being debated.

Start a Debate Club

Debate clubs work best when there is a strong sense of group identity, when members feel that they are part of something. The individual debater should not feel that he or she is a soloist, meeting casually with other soloists for the sake of a competition, only to go off independently afterward. Rather, the debater should feel that the debate club is like a symphony orchestra, which exists as an on-going corporate entity. When this feeling exists, the reward is a broad sense of well-being. Everyone in the group shares the joys of victory; the disappointment of loss, when shared, is assuaged. A sense of group identity is not a mystical goal that can be achieved only through a lucky combination of people. Rather, it is something that can be created by concrete steps. These steps involve the management of space, the management of time, and the organization of the club structure.
Club Space 
It is important for a debate club to have a home: a room that is largely devoted to the club and its activities. The club room should be a place where serious work can be done; where issues can be discussed and speeches written. It should provide resources for debaters: dictionaries, reference books, periodicals - whatever the club's funds allow. It should also function as the repository of the club's history. It is a place to keep tournament records, both formal and anecdotal; it is a place to store copies of cases and notes; it is a place to display trophies and pictures. Ideally, the resources should be directly available to the debaters, without the intercession of a coach or teacher.
The club room should also be a place that permits the casual interaction of students on the team. A sense of camaraderie can be built on the experience of collaborative work, but it also needs an infusion of fun. Friendships cannot be manufactured by decree. They can, however, be encouraged; providing students with a friendly place to meet is one simple step. When they go to the debate room, debaters should feel that they are entering a space that belongs to them, where they will find friends who share their enthusiasm for debating.
Club Meetings and Working Sessions 
Needless to say, the club space is of little value if there are no activities to fill it. Debate clubs should meet regularly. One model is to have a mandatory weekly meeting for all club members. Even if members are not involved in an upcoming competition (or even if there is no competition in the immediate future), they join together with their partners on the team to find out what issues or events are affecting the team as a whole. But it should also go without saying that a significant amount of time must be devoted to regular working sessions. In the sporting world, there are varying practice-to-performance ratios. In some sports, teams practice very little but play constantly; in others, a week of practice will precede a single game. The routine of a good debate team is more like the latter model. Good cases cannot be thrown together at the last minute; they require thinking and discussion. Ideas must be mulled over and distilled; speeches must be drafted and revised. Of course, every school must operate within the constraints of its own schedule, but in some successful programs, debate clubs have daily working sessions involving at least some of the team members. Working sessions are devoted, in part, to preparation: that is, to constructing arguments and strategies for a particular competition. But they are also given, in part, to practice. Members of the team spend time debating each other, either with a pending resolution or with resolutions composed or selected for the occasion. We must emphasize that practice and preparation time are where most of the education involved in the activity of debate takes place. There is much to be learned in competition as well, but it is in the day-in and day-out business of practice and preparation that critical thinking and public speaking skills are developed and honed.
Club Leadership and Organization 
In its infancy, a new debate club will depend heavily on the leadership and expertise of adults acting as teachers and coaches. But after programs become established and grow, a fair amount of leadership can devolve upon the students themselves. Some successful teams seem to be self-perpetuating, although this is only truly possible when they are multi-generational. That is, such teams include younger as well as older students. In well-established programs, the older students joined when they, too, were young. In the last year of their careers as debaters, these students have had three or four years of experience and have developed some wisdom and expertise with that experience. As 17- or 18-year-olds, they meet 14-year-old neophytes who are starting where they started and must learn what they learned. They are positioned to be effective and sympathetic teachers. In practical terms, this means they can act as judges when younger debaters are practicing; they can watch them compete in actual competitions and share notes with them afterward. During preparation sessions, they can work with younger debaters as they craft their cases. What is more, the reverse is also profitable: as they start their careers as debaters, novices can benefit from listening to more seasoned debaters argue. With this kind of organization, team members naturally feel more involved with the organization as a whole. Specifically, older members come to take pride in the accomplishments of their younger peers and feel a sense of responsibility for them, and younger members follow the careers of their mentors with enhanced interest.
The team broadly shares the leadership roles described above. In addition, many teams have more carefully defined roles for individuals. In other words, they have students who are elected president, secretary, treasurer, director of recruitment and orientation, and so forth. The students who fill these roles are not necessarily the most successful debaters in competition. They are students who have shown significant commitment to the well-being of the team. In their various roles, they can be responsible for many of the administrative duties involved in running a team. For example, by preparing tournament registrations, keeping club records, collecting dues or travel payments, etc.
Recruitment and Retention 
The first task demanded in the recruitment of members for a debate club is education. Many students (and teachers) simply do not know what debate is. It is essential to inform them. Many people who don't really know about debate think that it is for students who are aggressive or naturally argumentative. They may associate it with slickness of style, rather than solidity of substance. They need to see that debate offers benefits to a broad range of personalities and draws its inspiration from political philosophers, not from smooth-talking politicians. One way to educate the public is to stage a debate demonstration. Students also need to know how the team operates and what opportunities are available for neophytes. Many students will be attracted by the thrill of competition and they must be assured that competition is not limited to seasoned veterans. But students should also be educated about the broad intellectual benefits gained from involvement. At its best, a debate program provides an intellectual experience comparable to that offered by the finest academic courses. In keeping with the principle of inclusion, team leaders must work at retaining debaters rather than cutting the team roster. This means providing club members with meaningful activities. If teams rarely compete or rarely practice, students will quickly lose interest. Teams that rarely practice will rarely win. Students will be quick to desert a losing enterprise. It also means, in some cases, designing special leadership roles for some students. The student who is a perennial loser may become disheartened and think of quitting the club, but will be more likely to stay if given special responsibility for training a cadre of new debaters. Sponsoring non-debate events for club members will also help keep students committed to the team. Ping-Pong matches, basketball games and entertainment outings can help to build the ties of a permanent community. Above all, students must understand that the only requirements for club membership are commitment and a willingness to work. Success in competition cannot, and will not, come to every member of the team. Debaters need to know that even if they fail, their places on the team are secure and their participation is valued.
The Role of Coaches and Teachers 
Any adult who has an abiding concern for the creative education of young people can serve as a debate coach. Coaches do not need to be specialists with extensive training in oratory or logic (although training is certainly a plus). A debate coach is not expected to pass along a body of knowledge to his or her students the way that a chemistry teacher might. The rules and procedures of debate that must be taught are comparatively few. The coach's job, actually, is to foster the development of thinking skills. The coach is there to draw things out of the students rather than to pour things in. The coach must listen, question and react. The coach may guide discussions and give them direction; she may help students focus on the appropriate issues, but she should not be regarded as the repository of ultimate truth. Indeed, students need to feel free to disagree with the coach and to engage with the coach in the same way they would with anyone else involved in the discussion. The coach must also provide moral leadership for the team. Team members must understand that debaters will behave honestly and ethically in competition. Moreover, the coach must set the moral tone for the regular activity of the team. Students will disagree in discussions. If they didn't, the discussions would not be terribly productive. But the coach must ensure that disagreements do not become personal and that comments do not become insulting or demeaning. Students need to be able to take risks and test ideas in discussions; they must feel that they can do so without being mocked or disregarded. The coach must create a climate of respect, not simply by offering a model in his or her personal behavior, but by articulating and enforcing standards. In the classroom, the relationship between students and teachers is sometimes formal and impersonal. Coaching, however, requires a degree of personal involvement. Coaches must encourage and monitor the development of each debater individually. In effect, this means that coaches must act as judges for intramural debates and comment on the performance of participants. They must review and criticize written work. And inevitably, coaches become involved with students on a casual basis not only on the home turf of the debate room but also during debate tournaments. Many coaches have come to know their students well as they wait in hallways for a round to begin or for results to be posted. Coaches have more mundane responsibilities as well. The coach has the ultimate responsibility for managing the internal affairs of the team: its schedule, its membership roster and its finances. Finances may involve raising money as well as managing a budget. The coach also must handle its operations on the road: the coach decides who will participate in a given tournament, makes travel arrangements and handles all the administrative paperwork. Coaches must also recruit and provide the requisite number of judges when the tournament arrives. The coach also serves as a judge. It is standard practice that coaches never judge their own debaters, however.
The Role of Parents 
Debate offers parents a unique opportunity for involvement in a school activity. Usually, parents are asked to perform the role of spectators at athletic events and artistic performances. In debate, they have the chance to become active participants by serving as judges. Judges do not need to have special expertise: they are meant to be the reasonable people of the political paradigm; they need simply to be good listeners and to say who offered them the best argument. Coaches inevitably recruit judges from a wide pool: family members, friends, former debaters, teachers, administrators, etc. It is, by the way, a good idea to involve teachers and administrators as a way to educate the school community. But in many programs, parents form the backbone of the judging pool. Parents who don't wish to serve as judges can be involved in other ways. They can provide transportation, meals and even housing to team members when tournaments are underway. They can also serve as spectators and sources of moral support for their children and their friends. Often, parents value debate not simply because of the benefits it provides their children, but because of the opportunity it offers them to become personally involved, in a supportive way, with their children's education. And, sometimes too, parents form their own communities around debate that parallel the communities formed by debaters. They, too, form lasting friendships as a result of the activity.
The Debate Club in the Community of the School and Beyond 
Obviously, the benefits of debate are enjoyed most by the people who actually do it. And yet, there is much to be said for listening to debates as well: spectators often learn a new way of thinking about a problem or an issue. It makes sense, then, to fashion a strong public profile for the debate team. Spectators can be invited both from within the school community and from outside of it. (For the uninitiated, the team can provide materials that outline the rules and procedures of debate.) As a matter of habit, the debate club should publicize its competitions. It should announce debate resolutions to the community in advance of the debate. And certainly, the debate club should publicize its results. A team that does well deserves the recognition of the school community. Sometimes this means making use of the school newspaper or announcement system. Some clubs also publish their own newsletters.

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