ASAP's Philadelphia Scholastic Debate League
Public Forum, October Resolution:
"Resolved: Public high school students in the United States ought not
be required to pass standardized exit exams to graduate."
Public Forum, November Resolution:
"Resolved: Failed nations are a greater threat to the United States than
stable nations."
Public Forum, December Resolution:
"Resolved: That merit pay based on student achievement should be a significant
component of K-12 teacher compensation in United States public schools."
League Schedule
The PSDL season runs October, through December.
To view the 2009 League Schedule click here.
Following the PSDL season there will be additional opportunities for interested
teams to participate in debate events and tournaments throughout the remainder
of the academic year.
League Results
Round 1 (10/14/09):
Team
Standings
Individual
Debater Standings
School-Sweepstakes
Standings
Round 2 (10/20/09):
Team
Standings
Individual
Debater Standings
School-Sweepstakes
Standings
Round 3 (10/28/09):
Team
Standings
Individual
Debater Standings
School-Sweepstakes
Standings
(11/4/09): Canceled.
Round 4 (11/10/09):
Team
Standings
Individual
Debater Standings
School-Sweepstakes
Standings
Round 5 (11/18/09):
Team
Standings
Individual
Debater Standings
School-Sweepstakes
Standings
Round 6 (12/2/09):
Team
Standings
Individual
Debater Standings
School-Sweepstakes
Standings
Round 7 (12/9/09):
Team
Standings
Individual
Debater Standings
School-Sweepstakes
Standings
Round 8--FINALS (12/17/09):
Team
Standings
Individual
Debater Standings
School-Sweepstakes
Standings
Scoring
Team Standings: Teams (of two debaters) are compared
by win/loss record as well as the number of speaker points earned by the
team over the course of the season. Team Standings will determine match
assignments for finals.
Individual Debater Standings: Debaters earn individual
speaker points during every debate they participate in. Debaters are judged
on a scale of 0-4 in the following areas: Analysis, Evidence, Reasoning,
Cross Fire, Rebuttal, & Delivery, for a maximum of 24 individual speaker
points per debate.
School-Sweepstakes Standings: Schools earn points for
up to two matches each round. Schools earn 2 points for a win, and 1 point
for a loss (making the max. point total for schools 4pts per round). Coaches
who enter more than two teams in a given round must identify which teams
will count for school points before the round begins.
Participating PSDL Teams For 2009*:
Bodine
Central
Charter High for Architecture and Design
Constitution
Engineering & Science
Fels
Frankford
Furness
George Washington
Girls High
Masterman
Mastery Charter Lenfest Campus
Mastery Charter Pickett Campus
Mastery Charter Shoemaker Campus
Mastery Charter Thomas campus
Mathematics, Civics, & Sciences Charter
Northeast
Olney West
Science Leadership Academy
South Philadelphia
*Visit ASAP's facebook page to view team photos
ASAP coordinates
the Philadelphia Scholastic Debate League among Philadelphia public and
charter high schools. With a generous grant from Lance Funston of the
Save A Mind Foundation and through aggressive outreach and recruitment,
ASAP has expanded the League from six high schools to twenty, with a diverse
group of student participants from different backgrounds and neighborhoods
across the city.
Why Debate?
Research shows that debate offers young people an opportunity to develop
and excel in oral presentation, research, writing, strategic thinking, and
sportsmanship and because of these benefits, college admissions officers
value participation in debate programs. According to the National Association
of Urban Debate Leagues, students participating in debate for only one year
experienced a 44% improvement in critical thinking skills. In addition,
teachers reported a 50% reduction in the number of disciplinary referrals
for students involved in debate clubs.
About the Program
The Philadelphia Scholastic Debate League (PSDL) consists of 20 high school
teams that compete in weekly debates at Central High School, October through
December. Students learn policy debate, using the Public Forum format,
debating monthly national topics. The league's season culminates in December
with a final tournament and awards ceremony at Central High School. ASAP
also encourages PSDL teams to pursue additional debate opportunities throughout
the year on the local, state, and national levels. All PSDL teams are
led by faculty coaches, usually teachers; however ASAP also recruits experienced
volunteers to provide 'in-class' support to coaches or serve as judges
at PSDL tournaments. This year ASAP is also partnering with Perspectives,
a local organization that advocates for increasing debate opportunities
for Philadelphia Youth. Together ASAP and Perspectives are working to
increase PSDL participation, provide experienced volunteers to assist
coaches during debate team meetings, and involve Philly students in debate
related activities throughout the entire academic year. If you are interested
in volunteering, please click here.
If you would like more information on how your school can get involved
as a member team of the PSDL please contact Brian Pollock at bpollock@comcast.net
Click
here to view debate funders