National Middle School Public Debate Workshop features top expert
PHOTO: Kate Shuster’s photo from the Middle School Public Debate Program’s website at http://middleschooldebate.com/ , a great place to get more information about middle school debating
Posted by: Alfred Snider
The National Middle School Public Debate Workshop is on here at the World Debate Institute taking place at the University of Vermont.
Leading the program is Kate Shuster of the Claremont Colleges in California. Kate was a debate national champion (First Place, National Debate Tournament) while a debater for Emory, now she is a leading parliamentary debate educator as well as director of one of the largest debate outreach efforts in the world in California. She has written two parliamentary debate textbooks as well as a speaking and debating textbook for middle school students. She is almost universally recognized as one of America’s finest debate teachers and most engaging lecturers. Her recent hughly successful work at middle school debate promotion in California has led to her becoming an advisor for programs in various parts of the nation and the world. Her work has been scrutinized at international conferences and copied by many, many programs. But, at WDI students are learning from the top global expert in middle school debate instruction. See http://middleschooldebate.com/ for more information about Kate’s work.
On Monday, the first day of the program, students learned about basic debate skills in the morning and then had an argumentation practicum where they analyzed arguments on an issue to get warmed up. After lunch that had additional skills training before being given time to prepare on the topic for their first practice debate. The first debates took place in the late afternoon and were quite a success. Stephanie Kimerer, who is assisting Kate, remarked that the debate she saw was excellent asnd very promising given than two of the students had never been in a debate before. On the way to dinner students seem motivated and excited, but there was some comment about the homework they had been given.
On Tuesday, today, the second day of the program, students were given a new topic and everyone will have two practice debates in the morning. After lunch there will be a workshop on refutation and note-taking before the students again prepare on a topic and then have another debate, which will already be their fourth.
I know that Kate believes in learning how to debate by debating, and the program certainly shows that. As WDI director I feel very lucky that we have Kate with us here at WDI. This is the tenth year since Kate started teaching here, and she has always made an amazing contribution.
WDI Blog 2006
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
