As part of the mission to further professional development for coaches in Policy and Lincoln-Douglas debate, the National Debate Coaches Association will sponsor their 2005 convention on April 1 in Atlanta, GA. The convention will be held in conjunction with Woodward Academy’s Novice and Junior Varsity National Championships and will be held at the Hilton – Atlanta airport.
The convention will offer panels to directors and students for the purpose of fostering growth providing forums for discussion about ways to improve the activity. We hope that the planned panels will be avenues to further debate education for both coaches and students. Professional development credits will be available to coaches who participate.
The convention will highlight topics of interest to Policy and Lincoln-Douglas debate coaches and students. The NDCA will also try to branch out this year and include a panel that discusses ways of incorporating Student Congress and Public Forum into debate curriculums.
One of the highlights of the 2005 NDCA Convention will be a panel presentation by Dr. David Glass on the 2005-2006 civil liberties policy topic. Dr. Glass is the president of the National Debate Coaches Association, author of the civil liberties topic paper, and successful coach at Edgemont High School (NY). We are excited to be able to provide this unique opportunity to coaches and students of policy debate. We are excited to be able to provide one of the first public presentations on next year’s topic by one of its crafters. This is a “must-see” for anyone who wants to get a jumpstart on next year’s topic.
Another panel for coaches of policy debate will focus on critical arguments, presented by Jenny Heidt, director of Westminster (GA) and coach of the 2002 TOC champions. This presentation will focus on some of the cutting-edge directions that critical arguments have undergone recently and how coaches can best teach those techniques to their debaters. The panel discussion will also focus on ways coaches can teach their debaters to better answer critical arguments.
Innovations in Lincoln-Douglas debate will also be showcased. As an outgrowth from a forum held at The 2004 Glenbrooks, panels are tentatively scheduled that deal with the new directions that are occurring in regards to Lincoln-Douglas theory. Other Lincoln-Douglas panels are being considered as additions to the program.
Back by popular demand will be a panel presentation for students on judging debates. Many high school juniors and seniors will be judging at the Junior Varsity and Novice National Championships. The NDCA feels that this panel has empirically provided an invaluable teaching tool to high school debaters as they develop their judging skills. This panel will be presented by Dan Lingel, director at Dallas Jesuit (TX) and former president of the NDCA, and Kevin Hamrick, director at Lakeland (NY).
Another feature of this year’s convention is a “Lesson Plan Swap.” Individuals wanting to participate in this curriculum trade should bring twenty-five copies of their favorite lesson plan, with complete explanations of objectives, activities, and lecture content. Participants will swap their lesson plans with others. The NDCA hopes this allows coaches to take back knowledge and tangible opportunities that can be immediately implemented into their curricula.
We hope you and your students will utilize this unique opportunity to participate in the NDCA Convention in April. Any member of the NDCA is allowed to participate as well as any student whose coach is a member. To become a member, please visit our website at www.thendca.com. We hope to see you in Atlanta!
(Tara Tate is Director of Debate, Glenbrook South High School, IL. Tara is a member of the Executive Board, NDCA and Chairperson for the 2005 NDCA Convention).
