As speech and debate continues to grow nationally, in some schools this may not be the same trend. It can be difficult to get students excited about debate especially when it is so competitive. It can seem that at every local tournament the same group of competitors place highly every time. To the unenthused, this can be very frustrating and unmotivating. However, in some cases, the issue can stem from the schools themselves, when coaches and program leadership do not correctly promote debate in schools. The issue of growing debate does not start on the circuit, but in schools. 

States are beginning to see the value of debate and, in fact, states like Florida are beginning to require it in schools. However, having a program at a school is not the same as having a successful program. Speech & Debate at its core is meant to be just like any other club, which is to give students a shared purpose or interest. One of the most important aspects of debate is to make an impact on students, however, that can be difficult if a team is only composed of a few members. A successful debate team is one that fosters interest in the ideas and concepts involved in competing and practicing. 

The way to make debate more interesting and competitive is by introducing new students to the circuit. The same freshmen and sophomores who were winning debate tournaments freshman year are the same ones who are now winning in their junior and senior years. The same cannot be said for the incoming freshmen who are brand new to speech & debate. The problem is, “How do I grow my school’s program if I don’t even know what I am doing?” To combat this, I have listed some advice for new program leaders, which already exist and what needs to be changed to improve the growth of debate. 

Solutions which already exist: 

1. Equality in Forensics free Coaching seminars 

A major issue is students not being given the right resources to start their careers in debate. A way to counteract this is by Varsity students or new competitors marketing Equality in Forensics events, especially coaching for congressional debate to fellow students. The coaching labs share up-to-date information from the feedback of nationally acclaimed debaters. The programs can give students insight to how they can improve their skills in congress. These coaching seminars from other students make novices feel more comfortable and create a personal mentorship for novices. It’s a great mix of both speech and debate, and allows them to meet many debaters in one chamber. 

2. Make use of varsity members 

If you are reading this article then it is likely you are already a seasoned debater and therefore have experience in an event. Make use of your experience and your teammates' experience by organizing exhibitions presenting your events. An example would be a speech exhibition, which would give students at your school a chance to see what speech and debate looks like. In turn, this also gives your members an opportunity to practice their events in front of groups of people. If more of your varsity members make strides to reach out to others around school, it makes students more excited. In my experience, the best way to encourage students to join clubs is through other students. Our FBLA chapter grew 10 times by word of mouth and everyone wanted to go on trips with friends. Debate offers the same experiences, yet typically it is not advertised enough. 

3. Better Marketing Skills 

Free resources such as Canva exist for you to take some time and create marketing campaigns for your team. A simple way to start promoting your school’s program is getting the word out about it. If none of the students even know it exists, then it will never get traction. Moreover, a social media account gives you the platform to promote the positive sides to debate. It is strongly misunderstood that debate is just a competition with no fun. When in reality students who get to travel are able to visit new places and have fun. A social media campaign gives you the opportunity to share that fun with prospective students who want to know more. 

What can be changed: 

Better partnership between chapters 

At local tournaments students automatically move to sit with their schools, which makes sense, as most students don’t know students from other schools when they go to these tournaments. However, as a district, the leadership should be working more to create unity amongst schools by having school officers working together more often. Students should also make a deliberate effort to engage with other competitors outside of round. Students who have never been to national tournaments before are at a disadvantage at times because they may not be involved in important discussions such as dockets or rule changes. By fostering more teamwork across districts, debate not only becomes more equal but also more fun. Now, debate tournaments are not just “competitions;” you are also seeing friends that otherwise you’d never have met or seen outside of the competition. 

Government Involvement 

Local Level: School districts should take up a more active role in the recruitment process of debate coaches in their schools. As of right now it is up to schools and other debate coaches to teach and recruit coaches for new debate programs. The lack of  coaches in the community is one of the biggest issues in dying programs of schools. Moreover, the conversation of how they should be paid needs to be had, as many sacrifice their time to travel to away tournaments in other counties and sometimes states. Coaches are the foundation of debate programs and therefore, if debate is to grow then it must start by recruiting more coaches. 

State Level: In the state of Florida, the Florida Civics and Debate Initiative has fostered more interest across the state in Debate. The same support which Florida gives to the debate scene should be carried out by other states. Unfortunately, this is not the case, as interest in debate is decreasing in some states. For this same reason though, states should be supporting initiatives more than ever. The benefits which debate offers students is reason enough for state education departments to promote it. 

Overall, while debate programs are growing in some places and becoming more popular they are also dying. In order to foster long term debate programs interest needs to be generated by teams in schools. To do this it would be helpful to follow the advice from above, and hopefully NSDA and state governments will meet the needs of member schools as advised above.