Boston Debate League

The Boston Debate League offers a host of after-school, weekend and summer programs to help Boston students become advocates and intellectuals. All of these initiative operate from the basic premise that debate offers a powerful entry point into practicing fundamental academic skills and developing future leaders. Please explore them below and reach out if you or your organization can offer support or new project ideas!

After-School Debate League: The flagship program of the BDL, the after-school league hosts monthly competitions at local schools for hundreds of students in the city.

Leadership Empowerment and Action Program (LEAP): Representatives from each team meet regularly throughout the school year to learn strategies for being leaders on their teams and in the community.

OVERTIME: Monthly workshops bring together students from all teams to listen to experts discuss the year’s debate topic and practice key skills with experienced debaters.

Summer Institute: Students are invited to attend a low-cost day camp in August where they get a jump start on the upcoming year’s debate topic.

Greater Boston Policy Debate League (GBPDL): Boston students compete against their suburban counterparts at regular competitions hosted throughout the region.

At tournaments, debaters use college-level texts to argue about the intricacies of government policies, the economy, philosophy, and everything in between. Peer-review research indicates debaters are more likely to graduate from high school than their similarly-performing counterparts. This effect is even more pronounced among students of color. Likewise, grades and standardized test scores tend to improve with participation in debate. Typically associated with already-achieving students, the Boston Debate League has had great success working with ELL and Special Education populations as well in the last few years. The dedicated opportunity to practice reading and the competitive incentive to improve language skills mean that these students often make greater academic strides than more traditional learners.

Over the last six years, the after-school debate league has grown into one of the largest academic competitions in the city of Boston. Only 25 students competed in the first year of the organization, a figure that has risen to 460 students two tournaments into the 2011-2012 season. The hard work of debaters and coaches throughout the city has made all of this possible.

Learn more about the High School League and Middle School League!

Intro
The Boston Debate League’s Summer Institute is a chance for the city’s debaters to attend a one to two week day camp that prepares students for the upcoming season. Participants in the Summer Institute have access to numerous outlets for improvement, from practice rounds to topic lectures to skill drills, and their success at tournaments the following year is a testament to the hard work they put in during the summer.

History & Details
For several Augusts running, the Summer Institute has eased debaters back into the school year and debate season. In 2011, the camp added an optional second week to its offering, doubling the amount of preparation time available to Boston’s debaters. Whether fourth-year varsity debaters or newcomers with no debate background, the camp has proven effective in building enthusiasm for debate and helping students reach higher levels of debate prowess.

Local volunteers, nationally recognized instructors, and BDL staff work together to plan and execute each seven hour day, mixing in rigorous study with fun community and skill building activities. Suffolk University has been gracious enough to host the camp for the past several years, giving the Institute the added bonus of exposing students to local college campuses.

Intro
LEAP brings together four student representatives from each high school team for biweekly meetings to discuss strategies for becoming leaders on debate teams and in the broader community. From recruiting new students to mentoring less experienced debaters to becoming advocates for societal change, LEAP students use their incredible talents to make an immediate impact on the world around them.

History & Details
The Leadership Empowerment and Action Program is in its second year and has already made a meaningful impact on the Boston Debate League. The program emphasizes theoretical leadership training combined with concrete practice both on debate teams and in community projects. Beyond helping craft students’ natural talents, LEAP also represents a powerful avenue for building community across schools within the BDL, creating a tightly knit network of skilled and vocal young people.

Leadership is broken down into three major categories during LEAP meetings: recruiting, communicating and mentoring. With each debate team serving as an ongoing case study, facilitators and participants develop new ideas for building large, cohesive teams. Participation and success levels at early 2011-2012 tournaments suggest that LEAP is having a positive effect.

LEAP students are not only some of the most talented debaters in the city but also serve as ambassadors to the surrounding community. Over the year, they will work alongside community organizations around pertinent local issues. By the end of the season, students should be informed enough on their particular issue to put their argumentation skills to use in a public debate or similar advocacy project.

Intro
The Greater Boston Policy Debate League exists to provide opportunities for Boston debaters to compete against their suburban peers on an even academic playing field. The BDL helps train coaches from the region to build teams of their own, with the side goal of creating a thriving local policy debate circuit.

History & Details
Started in 2010 as a partnership between several regional debate squads and the Boston Debate League, the Greater Boston Policy Debate League is slowly but steadily returning policy debate to Massachusetts. Since its inception, students from throughout the region have competed in hundreds of debate rounds and demystified some preconceptions about what it means to live in the suburbs or in the city along the way.

To preserve a level playing field for all newcomers to debate, the GBPDL has clear divisions and evidence restrictions while preserving substantial room for argument creativity for varsity debaters. Teams with preexisting policy debate teams, those participating in other types of debate, and even schools who have never had a debate team before have all found a home in the GBPDL.

Local public and independent schools are invited to join the league at any time. The BDL is committed to helping build local teams by sharing the evidence and lesson plans it produces, offering materials to help recruit and maintain robust teams, and training suburban coaches during the summer. Anyone interested in joining the organization should contact matt@bostondebate.org to learn more!