Policy Debate Series 2010

NUSPA Policy Debate Series Finals

2010-02-23T19:32:00.000-08:00

The Grand Finals of the NUSPA Policy Debate Series 2010 will be held in in the National University of Singapore on this Saturday, 27th February. The event will run from approximately 4PM to 9PM, and seating will begin from 330PM. Admission is free of charge and open to all.

The finalists are:

Secondary Level: Hwa Chong Institution vs Nanyang Girls' High
Tertiary Level: Anderson Junior College vs Nanyang Technological University

The Programme of the Grand Finals is as follows:

1600 Secondary School Grand Final

1615 Tertiary/University Finalist teams’ registration and briefing

1630 Release of Tertiary/University Grand Final motion

1700 End of Secondary School Grand Final; Break

1745 Tertiary/University Grand Final

1915 Break

2000 Prize giving ceremony begins; Presentation by guest speaker

2030 Prize giving ceremony

2100 End

Do come down for a fiery exchange of ideas and exciting debates! We hope to see you there! Do email us if you have any enquiries.

Updates: 20th February

2010-02-15T05:21:00.000-08:00

Thank you all for your participation and support in the Secondary School Level Preliminaries and Semi-Finals on 6 February!

Registration for participation in the Tertiary Level competition is now closed. The Tertiary Level Preliminaries and Semi-Finals will be held on 20th February, Saturday, and the first round of debates will begin at 930AM. Do come down and witness an exciting crossfire of ideas and arguments from our tertiary teams!

Should you have any enquiries, feel free to contact us at nuspa.policystudies@gmail.com.

Rules and Regulations

2010-01-20T00:58:00.000-08:00

The rules for the debate on 'Love, Sexuality, and Marriage' are as follows:

At the beginning of the debate, the Chairman will call the House to order and remind everyone present of the rules of the debates. The 3 speakers on each team will then make their substantive speeches in the following order:

1. 1st Proposition Speaker
2. 1st Opposition Speaker
3. 2nd Proposition Speaker
4. 2nd Opposition Speaker
5. 3rd Proposition Speaker
6. 3rd Opposition Speaker

After the 6 substantive speeches, there will be a 2-minute period for teams to confer amongst themselves, after which the debate will continue with the reply speeches. The Opposition will deliver their reply speech first.

Secondary School level

For Secondary School teams, each speaker will have 5 minutes to deliver his substantive speech. The timekeeper for the debate will give a single audible signal (a bell or knock) at the end of the fourth minute to signal that the speaker should begin to wrap his speech up. A double bell or knock will sound at the end of the fifth minute, after which the speaker should conclude his speech within 15 seconds.

Reply speeches are 2 minutes long and may be delivered by either the 1st or 2nd speaker. After 1 minute, the timekeeper will give a single signal to let the reply speaker know that he has 1 minute left. A double signal will then sound after 2 minutes.

The Chairperson may stop speeches that extend more than 15 seconds beyond their time. No points of information are allowed throughout the whole debate.

Tertiary/University level

For Tertiary and University teams, each speaker will have 8 minutes to deliver his substantive speech. The timekeeper for the debate will give a single audible signal (a bell or knock) at the end of the seventh minute to signal that the speaker should begin to wrap his speech up. A double bell or knock will sound at the end of the eighth minute, after which the speaker should conclude his speech within 15 seconds.

Reply speeches are 4 minutes long and may be delivered by either the 1st or 2nd speaker. After 3 minutes, the timekeeper will give a single signal to let the speaker know that he has 1 minute left. A double signal will then sound after 4 minutes.

The Chairperson may stop speeches that extend more than 15 seconds beyond their time. No points of information are allowed throughout the whole debate.

After every debate, the adjudicator will fill in a score sheet and then present a brief verbal summation explaining the issues that led to the decision. The adjudicator will however not disclose the actual result, which will be released by the tournament convener at a later time. Teams are welcome to approach adjudicators independently after their debates in order to get further feedback. The adjudicator's decision shall be final at all rounds. All queries, concerns or disputes should be taken up with the Organising Committee instead.

The motions selected for the Policy Debate Series will be based on the theme “Love, Sexuality and Marriage”. It is not strictly necessary for teams to propose policies. Rather, they should focus on examining and evaluating the policy implications of their arguments in the Singapore context.

Regarding Participation

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So if you're all geared up and ready to debate, these are our guidelines!

1. Composition of debate team and eligibility of participants

Secondary School level

 Each team will consist of three speakers among which there may be no more than one experienced speaker.

 An “experienced” speaker is one who has participated in at least one national-level debating competition in 2009, such as the Secondary School Debating Championships, MOE Invitational Debating Championships or various institutes’ Invitationals.

Tertiary/University level

 Each team will consist of three speakers.

 There is no restriction on the profile of the speakers in teams.

2. Number of teams allowed

 With the exception of universities, all other institutions will be allowed to send a maximum of one team each.

3. Entry Fees

 Participation in the Policy Debate series is free of charge.

 Teams should note that lunch will not be provided. The debate venues are near a variety of food and beverage outlets which teams may patronize during the lunch breaks.

4. Communication of motions for Preliminary Round

 Motions for the Preliminary Round prepared debates will be sent to the e-mail accounts that teams have used in registering for the Policy Debate Series one week before their scheduled competition date.

 Teams will also be informed of the side of the motion they are to prepare for.

 Teams are requested to send a summary of their Preliminary Round case for compilation by the Organising Committee to nuspa.policystudies@gmail.com by 23 February

 Please indicate clearly in the subject line the motion as well as the side prepared.

5. Arrangements for Preliminary Round

 Coaches, teachers-in-charge, supporters and other members of the audience are not permitted to make any gesture that does not relate to timekeeping for the speaker holding the floor.

6. Arrangements for Impromptu Rounds (Semi Final and Grand Final)

 Teams qualifying for the Impromptu Semi Final and Grand Final rounds will be informed of the motion one hour before the debate begins.

 Each team will be assigned a tournament official who will escort them to preparation rooms or other suitable holding venues where they may prepare for the debates during the hour.

 Teams will be allowed to bring only one dictionary AND one almanac with them into the preparation rooms or holding venues in addition to writing paper and stationery. No other research materials (e.g. books, magazines) are permitted.

 They are to hand over all electronic communication devices (e.g. cell phones, laptops, palm tops) to either their teacher-in-charge (if present) or their assigned tournament official. Any loose papers, notebooks or writing pads taken into the room must be completely blank.

 The only people they will be allowed contact with during this time are tournament officials. They are not permitted to communicate with or receive any help from teachers and debate coaches while preparing their cases for these debates.

 Tournament officials will be present in each preparation room/holding venue to ensure that these rules are complied with. In the event of breach or attempted breach of the above rules, the Organising Committee may choose to immediately disqualify the team in question from the competition.

7. Supporters

 Teams are allowed to bring supporters for all rounds of the Policy Debate Series.

 It would be much appreciated if teachers-in-charge could inform the Organising Committee in advance of the estimated numbers of supporters attending in order to facilitate logistical arrangements.

8. Sudden illness/incapacity of speakers

 In the event of speakers falling ill unexpectedly during the tournament, teams will be NOT be allowed to replace the speaker(s).

 In the event a team is unable to debate, the Organising Committee reserves the right to decide upon a contingency plan, which may include 1) a sudden swing team, or 2) declaring a walkover.

 Speakers who feel unwell at any point during the tournament should notify their teacher-in-charge, coach and the Organising Committee immediately.

9. Results

 Adjudicators’ decisions are final at all rounds. All queries and concerns should be directed to the Organising Committee instead.

Where in doubt regarding any of the above guidelines or otherwise, feel free to contact the Organising Committee at nuspa.policystudies@gmail.com.

Tournament Structure

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The tournament will proceed as follows:

 All teams will participate in 1 Preliminary Round scheduled on 6 February 2010 for Secondary School teams and 20 February 2010 for Tertiary/University teams.

 Teams will have one week to prepare in advance their side of the motion for the Preliminary Round. The draw of opponents and sides will be released along with the motion.

 The Preliminary Round will be a “closed round” where the adjudicators will not be allowed to reveal the verdict after the debate. Teams may however approach adjudicators independently after their debates to get further feedback.

 Teams will be ranked firstly according to the number of debates they have won and secondly, the total team score. The announcement of the top 4 teams for each level (Secondary School and Tertiary/University) breaking to the Semi Final will be made by the tournament convener after the conclusion of all the Preliminary Round debates on that day.

 The Semi Final for both levels will take place on the same day as the respective Preliminary Rounds (on 6 February 2010 for Secondary School teams and 20 February 2010 for Tertiary/University teams). It will be an Impromptu Debate i.e. the motion will be released one hour prior to the debate.

 This is also a “closed round”, where the adjudicators will not be allowed to reveal the verdict. The tournament convenor will instead do the honours in announcing those teams breaking to the Grand Final.

 The Grand Final and prize giving ceremony will take place on 27 February 2010. All participating teams and their supporters are cordially invited to attend the Grand Final, where they will enjoy a presentation on the theme “Love, Sexuality and Marriage” by a distinguished guest speaker and collect their certificates of participation.

Once again, if you have any enquiries, please contact us at: nuspa.policystudies@gmail.com

When is it?

2010-01-20T00:39:00.000-08:00

Keep these dates free!

Preliminaries and Semi Finals for Secondary Schools:

6 February 2010
Saturday
8.45am - 2.45pm

Preliminaries and Semi Finals for Tertiary and University Levels:

20 February 2010
Saturday
8.45am - 3.45pm

Grand Finals:

27 February 2010
Saturday
2.45pm - 9pm

Policy Debate Series: What's it about?

2010-01-12T05:52:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the Policy Debate Series 2010 blog!

This annual debate series organised by the NUS Students' Political Association since 2009 is a platform for youths to engage in a battle of words and quick thinking in deliberating and annalysing local public policies.

Essentially, the Debate Series has four main objectives:

To be a platform for students of all levels to engage in, and challenge each other through, political and intellectual discussion
To promote political awareness and greater knowledge on current affairs and political issues amongst Singaporean Youths and Undergraduates
To foster greater interest among youths in political, social and economic issues, especially with regards to their implications on Singapore, and to enable them to understand and critically evaluate possible policies used to deal with such issues
To encourage sharing of multiple perspectives and opinions on pertinent local issues

This year, our theme is "Love, Sexuality, and Marriage". So, if you're interested in contemplating our local issues and participating in what promises to be an interesting crossfire of ideas and convictions, register now at: nuspa.policystudies@gmail.com