Carolina Kickoff

2019 — Greer, SC/US

• Invite
• Judges
• Pairings
• Results

Varsity Public Forum

Event Description:

NSDA Description: Public Forum Debate is audience friendly debate. You and a

partner will debate controversial issues that are "stripped" from the newspaper

headlines. A new topic will be announced the first day of each preceding month

at www.speechanddebate.org. A Public Forum Debate round begins with a flip

of a coin between the competing teams to determine your side and speaker

position. Public Forum will test your skills in argumentation, cross-

examination, and refutation.

This event is not sit-down Policy Debate or two-person LD. It should be far

more accessible to the lay public than those events. Debaters should be

rewarded for their ability to explain facts, policies, ideas, and issues in clear,

imaginative, and thoughtful ways. Excellent communication should be

rewarded, as should team members’ abilities to work together throughout the

round. While clash and conflict are both expected and required, contestants

must present their cases in a civil manner. Judges should award wins to the

pair who demonstrates superior overall persuasiveness.

NOTE: Both team members must be novices to compete in the novice division.

Both Novice and Varsity competitors will debate the following resolution: The

European Union should join the Belt and Road Initiative.