Preparing for and attending debate competitions is an incredibly powerful way to develop intellectual stamina, collaboration skills, and the core skills targeted in debate training. There is a range of competitions in Shanghai in which students can participate. As students develop, they can also participate in tournaments throughout China and even internationally. The rigor and intensity of competitions build intellectual stamina, provides additional contexts to receive feedback, and allows an opportunity to reflect on and adjust the learning process. Cognitive engagement occurs at all levels of competition participation. The mental effort students put into learning and mastering content, negotiating, and engaging with their partner about strategic decisions is a powerful boost to education. We enable students to participate and succeed in competitions, but we do not restrict the training program to competition participation.
Competition Training Method
Teachers need to handle competition training and preparation with great care. We do not want students to become overly focused on competitive success against the importance of dialogue and collaboration. Still, we want to take advantage of the unique learning opportunities provided by competitions. We approach competition training in a way that supports and empowers students to develop their ideas and arguments and take ownership of them. We also engage in a careful process after competitions to assess and reflect on thinking. We always return to the importance of dialogue and metacognition. Dialogue | Debate | Dialogue.
Competitive Opportunities
-World Scholars Cup in Shanghai, China, and international.
-Model UN in Shanghai, China, and worldwide.
-Public Forum Debate in and around Shanghai: NSDA & NHSDLC.
-Public Forum Debate internationally (primarily USA): Stanford, Berkeley, Yale, TOC, NSDA.
-World Schools Debate in Shanghai, China, and abroad.
-British Parliamentary Debate in Shanghai, China, and international.