Debating SA has clear goals and aims which are:

• To actively promote debating and debating-related activities.
• To provide training to young people to enable participation and excellence in all aspects of debating.
• To provide a diverse programme of substance whereby young people can practise and improve their skills with participants from other schools or groups.
• To encourage schools from across all sectors to fully participate.

Debating SA seeks to encourage and develop in young people the following:

Thinking and research skills

• Analytical thinking skills.
• The ability to think clearly under pressure.
• A strong sense of curiosity and a love of learning about issues and the world around them.
• An ability to gather and evaluate information from a range of sources.
• Informed exchange of ideas.
• Initiative in applying thinking skills critically and creatively.

Communication skills

• Coherent and confident expression of ideas in collaboration with teammates.
• The ability to coherently and convincingly argue a point of view for their team, which they may not personally support.
• Public speaking skills.
• Word power and strength of language.

Social skills

• Self-esteem and self-confidence.
• A sense of understanding, tolerance and acceptance of different views on issues.
• Respect of the right of others to hold differing and alternative ideas.

Sportsmanship

• Generosity of spirit between participants, across all school sectors.
• Teamwork and sportsmanship.
• Valuing participation more than the outcome.
• A sense of responsibility to be humble in victory and gracious in defeat.
• The ability to respond appropriately to constructive feedback.

About the Schools' Competition

The Schools' Competition is an interschool debating competition held each year from May to September (see Calendar). There are six different venues and each Primary or Secondary School team that enters debates approximately every three weeks at a designated venue as per the draw. Topics for debates are wide and varied. Secondary School teams contest a finals series which is held at the end of Term 3.

Teams and Divisions

Students enter the competition as teams of 3. Most teams choose to have an extra team member to allow for student illness and other unforseen commitments.

The competition is divided into seven divisions as follows:
• Primary B: Year 5
• Primary A: Years 6 and 7
• Year 8
• Year 9
• Year 10
• Senior: Combined Years 11 and 12
• Open: Experienced and advanced Secondary School debaters. Adult debaters are permitted to debate in this division.

Timeline of the Competition

Debates are held approximately every 3 weeks during Terms 2 and 3. Debates begin from 6:40pm. Times and specific debate details are sent to teams during Term 1.

Number of debates: 5 debates (except Senior and Open divisions which have 4 debates).
Finals: All divisions except Primary School.

Location of Debates

All debates are held in the Adelaide metropolitan area across six different school venues. Teams can choose the venue they debate at when they enter. See the Calendar for dates.

Rules, Regulations and Resources

The Standard Operating Procedures and The Official Debating Manual are two key documents that outline the procedure and technique of debating.

Debating resources are located on the resources page.