The debate events at SWSDI follow an intensive curriculum of lessons and drills designed to instill in students the fundamental and more advanced skills to elevate them above the competition.  Curriculum at SWSDI will feature:

• Time for research and writing cases and blocks, with plenty of individual attention from coaches
• Lectures about specific skills and areas of your event, followed up with lab sessions to put those concepts into practice
• Fully-critiqued practice rounds
• Practice tournament at the end of camp
• Lab groups – working on skills and doing drills
• Watching and analyzing demonstration debates
• Lectures and drills tailored to students particular skill levels

.

Examples of topics planned in the curriculum, organized by event:

Lincoln Douglas Debate

Flowing
Analyzing the resolution
Strategic values and criteria
Research, including “Google Fu”
Argument structure: claim-warrant-impact, plus turns, brink, uniqueness, etc.
Case writing
Refutation
Each of the speeches: NC, 2AR, etc.
Writing and using blocks
Philosophy, Enlightenment to Post-modern
Theory, topicality, and kritikal argumentation

.

Public Forum Debate

Argumentation theory
Flowing
Research, including “Google Fu”
Crossfire
Speaking skills
Each of the speeches: Rebuttals, Summary, etc.
Appealing to the judge
In-round strategy

.