World Schools Debate is a three-on-three format. While a given team may consist of five members, only three students from a team participate in a given debate. Resolutions come in two types: prepared motions, which students work on before a competition, and impromptu motions, which are announced shortly before a round begins. Teams will be assigned one of two sides in each round- either the government team proposing the motion or the opposition team advocating the rejection of the motion. Debaters present their position on a topic, refute their opponents, and respond to questions throughout the course of the debate.
This course will take coaches new to World Schools through the ins and outs of the event. Upon completion of the course, coaches will be able to:
- Follow a round of World Schools and identify the different speeches, their purpose, and the strategy at play.
- Explain key terms and how they fit in to the structure of the event.
- Implement strategies for success in coaching both in the classroom and at tournaments.
- Build on their initial understanding with additional resources to learn more about coaching Worlds.
Julie Roos
Julie Roos is the district chair of Golden Desert (NV) and has been the coach of Team Golden Desert since the first World Schools Debate Invitational at Nationals. She has been the co-chair of World Schools Debate at Nationals since 2021. She has been a coach at both Canyon Springs High School and Leadership & Law Academy and Northwest Career & Technical Academy and has had national qualifiers in World Schools Debate, Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Policy Debate, Original Oratory, and Dramatic Interpretation. She competed in the Pittsburgh District for North Hills High School in the late 1990s.