Lakeland District Debate
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January 2006 Available As PDF Background and Program Information Operation of Lakeland District Debate Lakeland District Debate is directed by Mr. Stefan Bauschard (SBauschard@lakelandschools.org). The District fields debaters as part of a joint Lakeland-Panas program. Stefan Bauschard also coordinates and teaches a Middle School Debate program on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Contacting Mr. Stefan Bauschard Since he works in three schools and often travels two or more days a
week, the best way to reach him is by email at SBauschard@lakelandschools.org.
You may also call him on his cell phone until 8pm weekdays. History of Lakeland District Debate Formed in 1964 by William Vogel, Lakeland High School quickly moved into the upper echelon of programs both in New York and the nation. In the early 1970s, Walter Panas, under the direction of Ted Belch, quickly became one of the nation’s premier teams. Greg Varley became the Director of Debate at Lakeland High School in 1982, and became the director of the Unified Lakeland District debate program in 1986. Peter Kruppenbacher, Tom Peters, and Kevin Hamrick directed the program from 1999-2005. Stefan Bauschard took over the program in the Fall of 2005. Competitive Program Highlights · 2500+ Individual team and District awards · Peter Keegan, Harvard, PhD · Students who participate in debate should be able to demonstrate the following: · Research skills using school-supported databases and resources on the internet · Confidence in public speaking situations · An ability to organize thoughts and ideas · An ability to engage in point-by-point refutation · Basic knowledge of the debate topic as well as philosophical and political issues related to it · A strong fluency in current events Debate is Competitive Students are motivated not only by the desire to learn, but also the desire to win. Debaters who stick with it for all four years are usually extremely competitive. We work as a team The students share all of the research they do with the entire team
and assist each other at tournaments. All students will bring different
strengths, and we work hard to produce a net result. Although debaters
debate with individual partners, we work together as a whole district
team. Success in debate requires not only the development of arguments, but
practice presenting and executing the arguments in competition. Practice
is often in after-school work sessions. Like athletes who train, debaters start meeting for works sessions the second week of August. A schedule will be sent out in June. Debaters are strongly encouraged to attend as much as possible.
Debaters do not all attend the same tournaments Everyone on the football team attends the same games, but not everyone on the debate team attends the same tournaments. Students have different opportunities depending on experience, abilities, effort, and schedules Debate is year-round Participation in sports usually lasts for a “season” – a portion of the school year. Debate takes place year-round, though we do have “busier” points – October/November and January/February are the busiest months. Tournaments are schedule at least three, and often four, weekends during those months. Everyone “starts” Although different tournaments are appropriate for different students,
everyone participates as often as possible. The Middle School debate club meets Tuesday and Thursday mornings from
8:15am until 9am. The program is structured to provide basic debate instruction
for middle school students and to prepare them for high school debate. Understanding Debate The District Debate Team operates as one large “Squad.” We work together to prepare for competition. Within that squad, individuals debate with “partners.” Two person partnerships will have their own strengths. The Squad debates one topic for the entire season. This year’s topic is “Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially reduce its authority to either detain without charge or search without probable cause.” All students will debate both sides of the topic. Affirmatives will prepare a defense of a specific instance in which authority to detain without charge or search without probable cause should be reduced. Negatives will prepare general arguments against reducing such authority and also specific arguments against each affirmative case. After the research is “completed,” debaters enter tournaments where they hope to be as prepared as possible. Preparation is a never-ending activity. Debaters and coaches, particularly upperclassmen, will work throughout tournaments to scout and prepare to debate new and unanticipated arguments. Debaters are awarded in competition in two different ways. First, individual two person partners are given a win or loss each time they debate. The win or loss is determined by a judge who decides whether what the affirmative has presented is net desirable or net undesirable. Second, debaters are given speaker points in each debate. At the end of the tournament the top 10 or 20 speakers (often out of hundreds of debaters) are rewarded. Each debater debates with a partner. Individual students cannot debate by themselves. How are partners chosen? Generally, students pick their own partners. Students are encouraged to pick partners with similar interests and abilities. Students from the same school are encouraged to partner with one another, particularly in their freshman and sophomore years. This will facilitate students working together outside of school. Can students switch partners? Students can switch partners with the permission of the Director of Debate. Partner changes should be made at least a week prior to a tournament if driving, and before plane tickets are purchased before any flying trip. If students have difficulties in their partner relationship they should try to work them between themselves. Learning to work with someone is an important life skill. If necessary, students should discuss partner problems with the Director. If a student’s partner becomes ill before a tournament, or cannot otherwise attend, the healthy student should feel free to recruit a partner amongst students not already attending the tournament. All students should treat their partners with respect.
When do tournaments occur? All tournaments occur on the weekends. The tournaments vary in length from one day (few tournaments) to 4 days (few tournaments). Most tournaments are two to three days in length. Who hosts tournaments? Various high schools and colleges/universities host debate tournaments. The Lakeland District Debate Team travels to tournaments in the region and all over the United States – the “National Circuit.” How are tournaments structured? Almost all tournaments (the exception being a few novice tournaments) have a set number of debates (5-7). The top 4-32 teams are then advanced to elimination rounds where they debate in a run-off identical to the NCAA basketball tournament. One team is then declared the champion. How long do tournament days last? Most tournaments are partially endurance contests. Students will debate until late at night (approximately 10pm) on the first day, and then return early in the am (approximately 7:30) to debate until the competition ends. How should students dress for tournaments? Students dress more formally at some tournaments than others. Generally,
for males, a shirt, tie, and pair of slacks are appropriate. Students
are NOT encouraged to wear sport coats – they end up taking them
off when they are debating, losing them, or getting them awfully dirty.
Female debaters should dress in a similar matter.
The tournament schedule is created by the Director of Debate. Sometimes
debaters are Students should attend as many tournaments as possible, particularly in their freshman and sophomore years. Students learn a lot from experience. Who judges at tournaments? Debates are judge by college students, college coaches, and other high school coaches. Juniors and seniors are sometimes asked to judge novice debate at tournaments they are not competing in. Withdrawing from Tournaments Students should recognize that if they withdraw from tournaments very close to the tournaments they are disadvantaging their partners who will likely not have another opportunity to debate. Also, since entry fees are usually assessed before the start of the tournament, if students withdraw they force the district to pay entry fees even when they are not competing Travel & Tournament Information Travel information is distributed to parents via a parent listserv and a student listserv. Printed copies are also available at school. Parents should email the director about signing up for travel information. September Greenhill School TX Wake Forest University NC October Georgetown Day D.C. Monticello NY Bronx NY St. Mark’s TX November University of Michigan Lakeland District Tournament The Glenbrooks IL December University of Kentucky Henrick Hudson NY Regis NY January Montgomery Bell Academy TN Ridge NJ Lexington High School MA Emory University GA February Newark NJ Harvard University MA March Bishop Guertin NH NFL Qualifier NY NCFL Qualifier NH April Northwestern University IL Woodward Academy GA May Tournament of Champions KY NCFL Nationals June NFL Nationals Lakeland District Debate offers a variety of opportunities for students
at differing competitive and interest levels. The previous schedule reflects
all of the tournaments that we may go to in a given year, but students
with different interests and abilities will attend different tournaments. “National
Circuit” tournaments are for the most competitive and dedicated
members of the team and the “Regional Circuit” tournaments
are for individuals who are interested in debating but do not necessarily
want to make the commitment that it takes to succeed at the national
level. The “Novice Circuit” is for students in their first
year of debate. September Greenhill School TX Wake Forest University NC October Georgetown Day D.C. Bronx NY St. Mark’s TX November University of Michigan The Glenbrooks IL December University of Kentucky January Montgomery Bell Academy TN Lexington High School MA Emory University GA February Harvard University MA April State Tournament Northwestern University IL Woodward Academy GA May Tournament of Champions KY NCFL Nationals June NFL Nationals October Monticello NY Bronx NY November Lakeland NY December Henrick Hudson NY Regis High NY January Ridge NY Lexington MA February Newark Harvard March Bishop Guertin NH April State Tournament Woodward Academy GA October Monticello Bronx November Lakeland December Henrick Hudson RegisT January Ridge NJ Lexington MA February Newark NJ Harvard MA March Bishop Guertin (frosh-soph) April State Tournament May The district covers the majority of expenses associated with preparation and tournament travel. If parents/guardians are able, we will occasionally ask parents to pay for a portion of the cost of tournament attendance, such as the cost of a plane ticket or hotel room. Lakeland School District General Departure & Return Information We will leave LHS approximately 11am on Friday. Stefan will pick Mack up from Panas at 10:30 am Mr. K’s van will return Sunday evening at approximately 10 pm to LHS. Students who are finished debating by 5-6 pm on Sunday will return with Mr. K. Stefan’s van will return later Sunday evening or Monday (depending on how far the students make it) All of the novice debates will be completed on Sunday evening, so at least all of the novices will be able to return with Mr. K. Costs The school district is paying for all of the costs of this trip except food. It is recommended that the students bring $20/day for food, though it likely that they will be able to eat for less. Tournament Schedule The tournament takes place all day Saturday & Sunday with late elimination rounds on Monday Housing Information Students with stay with Lexington High School families. Stefan will email a list of who is staying where with contact information Friday evening. It is most likely that our students will be divided between 2-3 families and since most of our debaters have cell phones they should be able to phone home on their own or borrow a friend’s cell. Adult Hotel is the Battlegreen Inn (see above) Students Attending – Absent from school on 1/13 from 11am on After school debate occurs every day that the Director is not out with the debaters. If a tournament is schedule, debate is not held after school, even if all of the students are attending the tournament. The entire squad will only attend the same tournaments a few times (Bronx, Lexington, Newark, Harvard). A schedule has been created for novice debaters to facilitate organization and their entry into the program. Every Tuesday from 2:15-3:45 all novice/first year debaters will meet at Lakeland High School to learn the basics of debate. Team members who attend school at Panas should take the activities bus to Lakeland. Every Wednesday after school Panas debaters will meet at Panas High School. Beginning debaters are also encouraged to attend other days during the week when debate is offered. Although the Direct is always available until approximately 5:30, students are not required to stay that late. Students should attend as much as they are able, but often times they will have competing obligations and may have to leave early on a given day. If the Director determines that student attendance is becoming too infrequent he will consult with the students and then his or her parents if necessary. Students who wish to be nationally competitive should expect to spend between 10-15 hours a week on debate plus tournaments. After-school debate provides students with an opportunity to earn credit
for all of the work they do in debate. Since instruction is informal (we do not have tests, daily homework assignments, etc) grading is also informal. Based primarily on effort, students can expect to see one of the following types of grades: 100. A 100 is reserved for students who make an “over the top” commitment to debate. Students who participate on the national circuit, attend debate after school nearly every day for at least two hours, and regularly complete large research projects can expect to receive a 100. 98. A 98 is the standard grade for students who participate in after school debate three days a week, attend at least one tournament a month, file and read the evidence they are provided, and regularly complete research projects. 95 A 95 grade is for students who attend after school debate two days a week, participate in at least two tournaments a quarter, and make efforts to be prepared. In order to receive a 95, students should plan on participating in at least 8 tournaments throughout the year. Students who are not able to complete a level of work outlined above
are welcome to participate in tournaments when those opportunities arise,
but should only participate in debate as a co-curricular activity rather
than one for which they receive academic credit. Students who are not
able to complete the work outlined above should not expect to be very
competitive at most tournaments. After-school debate gives debaters an opportunity to receive instruction
from the Director. Sometimes the instruction is direct and sometimes
the instruction is informal. Instruction will vary depending on the point
of the season, what preparation needs to be complete, and what tournament(s)
we will be immediately attending. When the debaters work together they have an opportunity to learn to
work together and to learn from one another. Informal discussions that
occurring during joint work time often produce the best strategies and
ideas. The district covers the majority of the office supply costs. We do ask that debaters purchase their own highlighters (they will need many of these), kitchen timers (the best ones are sold at Radio Shack) to time their speeches, and some “accordion” files.
In 2006, the Lakeland District Debate program began offering the Lincoln-Douglas (L-D) debate option. L-D debate is a one on one debate format that is less research and information intensive than policy debate. It is recommended for students who can only attend competitions irregularly and will thus have difficulties finding a similarly-experienced partner. Most of the tournaments we attend do have Lincoln-Douglas divisions, so many opportunities are available.
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