With support from the Minister for Education, Training and Skills, The Hon. Blair Boyer MP, Debating SA is delighted to invite your school to participate the inaugural Debating SA regional competition.
We are thrilled to be able to extend the benefits of debating to the regional areas of South Australia by providing an in-person competition.
Table of Contents
About the Regional Competition
In teams of three, students participate in three preliminary round debates with a Grand Final between the top two-teams to be held in Adelaide.
How many students in a team?
Students enter as teams of three.
Many teams choose to have an extra one or two team members to allow for student illness and other unforeseen commitments. These students may also assist in undertaking the duties of the Chairman (Affirmative team) or Timekeeper (Negative).
Who can participate?
Year 7 and Year 8 students. No prior debating experience is required.
Younger students can participate but they will be judged at the same standard as Year 7 and 8.
There is no limit to the number of team entries.
Team Fees – $185 per team
Thanks to the generous support of the Minister for Education, all additional school entry fees (normally $110) have been waived for this regional competition. Any costs associated with travel to Adelaide for the Grand Final, should a team qualify, will remain the responsibility of the individual schools and/or students.
What’s included in a team entry?
- Entry into the full competition, including three preliminary debates and the opportunity to qualify for the Grand Final.
- Qualified adjudicators for all debates, provided by Debating SA
- A full-day training workshop for students and teachers, including the Learn to Debate Seminar and Beginning Teachers and Coaches Workshop
- Access to digital training resources and preparation materials
- Ongoing support and communication from Debating SA staff throughout the competition
Key Dates
Event | PORT LINCOLN | WHYALLA |
Wed 30 Jul 2025, 4pm to 5pm – held online | ||
Team Entries Close | 5pm, Fri 15 Aug 2025 | |
Sat 23 Aug 2025, 10am to 3pm | Sat 30 Aug 2025, 10am to 3pm | |
Round 1 | Mon 15 Sep 2025 (evening) | Mon 22 Sep 2025 (evening) |
Round 2 | Mon 20 Oct 2025 (evening) | Mon 27 Oct 2025 (evening) |
Round 3 | Mon 3 Nov 2025 (evening) | Mon 10 Nov 2025 (evening) |
Can you help us as a host school? Please contact us. | ||
Grand Final To be held between the top two ranking teams (based on wins, then scores). | Saturday 29 November 2025 Adelaide CBD venue TBA | |
Resources
Sample Letter for Parents - Port Lincoln
Dear Parent/Caregiver,
Your child has expressed interest in participating in the 2025 Debating SA Regional Competition.
Debating is an exciting public speaking activity that allows students to communicate and argue on important topics that effect society. Debating is a more formal way of communicating. It builds confidence and self-esteem, and develops critical thinking and reasoning skills.
Debating follows a set format to allow teams of three to effectively make and respond to arguments. What makes debating different from public speaking is that it includes rebuttal – a specific part of a speech which requires you to respond to the other teams’ speeches and prove that their arguments are wrong.
The regional competition will follow the same format as Debating SA’s Schools Competition in Adelaide, that is, three rounds, with each round held two to three weeks apart. Topics are released in advance with students required to research and write their speeches in the lead up to each round
Students will be required to attend a school coaching session which will be held [weekly] on [day] at [time] (or substitute training time for your school)
There will also be a training session for your child to attend with their school teachers in Port Lincoln on Saturday 23 August 2025, where there will be a chance to write the first debate with the help of our Debating SA adjudicators.
The competition is coming up very soon, and will run in Terms 3 and 4 – teachers will need to confirm team registrations as soon as possible to complete your registration.
Your child will be required to attend the debating competition nights after-school on:
- Monday 15 September 2025
- Monday 20 October 2025
- Monday 3 November 2025
Please confirm that they are available on those evenings, and that you are able to support them in attending.
If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s teachers.
Debating SA will be in regular contact directly with the schools in the leadup to the competition.
Sample Letter for Parents - Whyalla
Dear Parent/Caregiver,
Your child has expressed interest in participating in the 2025 Debating SA Regional Competition.
Debating is an exciting public speaking activity that allows students to communicate and argue on important topics that effect society. Debating is a more formal way of communicating. It builds confidence and self-esteem, and develops critical thinking and reasoning skills.
Debating follows a set format to allow teams of three to effectively make and respond to arguments. What makes debating different from public speaking is that it includes rebuttal – a specific part of a speech which requires you to respond to the other teams’ speeches and prove that their arguments are wrong.
The regional competition will follow the same format as Debating SA’s Schools Competition in Adelaide, that is, three rounds, with each round held two to three weeks apart. Topics are released in advance with students required to research and write their speeches in the lead up to each round
Students will be required to attend a school coaching session which will be held [weekly] on [day] at [time] (or substitute training time for your school)
There will also be a training session for your child to attend with their school teachers in Port Lincoln on Saturday 30 August 2025, where there will be a chance to write the first debate with the help of our Debating SA adjudicators.
The competition is coming up very soon, and will run in Terms 3 and 4 – teachers will need to confirm team registrations as soon as possible to complete your registration.
Your child will be required to attend the debating competition nights after-school on:
- Monday 22 September 2025
- Monday 27 October 2025
- Monday 10 November 2025
Please confirm that they are available on those evenings, and that you are able to support them in attending.
If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s teachers.
Debating SA will be in regular contact directly with the schools in the leadup to the competition.
Beginners Guide to Debating and Rebuttal
More resources
Team Registration
