When many adults think back to their secondary education, their fondest moments and most vivid memories are often presentations, simulations, or other opportunities to role-play, discuss, or otherwise actively engage with the material. These educational experiences forced them to engage with new material, step outside their comfort zone, learn to relate with and understand people who disagree with them and build confidence in their own abilities.

Washington Urban Debate League supports all sorts of efforts to imbed debate into the curriculum and introduce even more students to the fundamentals of argumentation. 

DCPS Cornerstone Program: 

The 3rd quarter cornerstone for all 8th graders at DCPS schools requires them to read Harper Lee’s epic To Kill a Mockingbird. Students then run through many of the fundamentals of debate, including integrating evidence into speeches, claims and warrants, and flowing, before doing some basic debates around one of the key themes of the book, racism and the criminal justice system. 

We’ve recruited a number of new middle school after school debate coaches through this program, with more than 10,000 students getting a basic exposure to debate. 

Debate Class Support: 

We have supported more than a dozen DCPS and D.C. charter schools launch debate classes, ranging from 1/2 credit electives to core curricular classes, serving 5th and 6th graders to juniors and seniors in high school. Regardless of the school or the age group, we’re happy to help educators implement and plan courses related to debate and argumentation We hope to expand this program to work with other schools, school districts, and age groups.

Youth Services Center: 

Our latest venture in this area has WUDL working with Maya Angelou at the Youth Services Center to pilot a debate program for justice involved youth in D.C., including a class for this coming fall. 

After several months of practices, the pilot culminated in a great exhibition debate between several WUDL seniors and recent alumni and youth in YSC about reparations, judged by luminaries from Georgetown and UDC Law Schools and DC Judge Faruqui.