CHAMPION STRATEGIES – PUBLIC SPEAKING WORKSHOP – JUNE 22, 2021
ATTENDING SUMMER CAMP
If you’re already involved with competitive debate & speech, attending our program should be an easy decision. Thousands of students attend debate camp to improve their skills (or to keep from regressing). Like learning an instrument, a language or sport, long breaks from practice will quickly lead to attrition.
Public Speaking and Argumentation skills are universally applicable. In a recent Pew Research Survey, respondents were asked which skill was most important for future success – 90% listed effective communication. More and more schools are cutting public speaking from their curriculum. And even where there are classes offered, many students don’t have time to fit it in their schedule.
This page will address four important issues:
- I don’t know if I want to continue competing in debate
- I don’t know if my Upper School/High School has debate, or what type of debate/speech they offer
- I never plan on competing in debate or speech
- We’ll take a look at how students hoping to be involved with debate through high school may use debate camp as their primary training.
Competitive debate is not necessarily for everyone. However, summer is the best time for you to decide if debate is something you wish to pursue during the school year.
Taking the summer off of debate will make joining the team even more difficult in the fall. It can also be time-consuming and stressful to learn how to do a new activity while starting a school year and even pursuing other interests.
Many teams rely on summer camp to teach students the skills they do not have time to work on during the school year. As specific tournament preparation becomes more pressing, those who have learned more discreet skills in debate and argumentation will accel – both in preparing efficiently, but also in executing strategies.
The first thing you should do is find out. You can also email Mike Bietz, the program director for debateLA and the head coach at Harvard-Westlake.
Even if the program is small or non-existent, there are many opportunities debaters have to participate without having a traditional team. Many debaters, with the permission of their school, will attend tournaments with parents. In Lincoln-Douglas debate, a few of the nation’s most successful debaters compete without a traditional team.
In addition to normal debate tournaments, there are many other debate-related activities that do not require regular team participation: trying-out for Team USA, competing in the International Public Policy Forum, competing in the Ronald Reagan Library Foundation Great Communicator Debate Series, to name a few.
