Civic Learning
Competitive Speech and Debate Creates a Better Civil Society
Since 1925, the National Speech & Debate Association has been providing recognition and support for students participating in speech and debate activities. While our organization has evolved over the decades, our mission is more relevant today than ever before. We connect, support, and inspire a diverse community committed to empowering students through competitive speech and debate.
NSDA membership builds confidence, boosts classroom performance, improves communication, and increases critical thinking skills—providing students with the most in-demand portable skills. More individuals who are equipped with these essential life skills who are used to applying them to engage in civil dialogue and civic engagement, improves the world.
March 10-14, 2025
Multiple peer reviewed studies and nearly two million alumni demonstrate that competitive speech and debate is one of the best ways to accomplish this.
Student Activity: Writing Legislation to Shape Government Policy
This activity introduces students to the legislative process and puts the power in their hands to craft policies they believe our government should adopt. Students will learn the following:
- How a bill becomes a law
- Key components of a bill
- How to research and craft a bill of their own on an issue of their choice
Student Activity: Writing Effective Speeches on Impactful Issues
Once students have crafted their legislation, it’s time for them to prepare speeches for and against bills written by themselves and their classmates. Using rhetorical strategies of ethos, pathos, and logos, students will research, write, and deliver speeches designed to convince their fellow Congresspeople in the classroom to vote in their favor.
About the Event—Congressional Debate: In this event, students participate in a model legislative session, where they act like a member of Congress debating bills and resolutions that have been written by students in advance.
Sample Video: Congressional Debate Overview:
This video offers a breakdown of a full Congressional Debate round. Keep in mind that students work up to this point, and these students are the best in the country!
2:2-Column Layout
Use Cases:
This is a basic way to display text with 2-columns of content.
Header
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.
Header
Header
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.
2:3-Column Layout
Use Cases:
This is a basic way to start with 2-column content and continue with 3-column content.
Header
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.
Header
Header
Header
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.