On Sunday, 1st of March, I had the opportunity to participate in a debating workshop run by the Western Australian Debating League (WADL) at Kelmscott Senior High School.

The Debating Competition was split up into three levels: Novice (Years 7 and 8), Junior (Years 9 and 10) and Seniors (Years 11 and 12).  As an Year 8, I was part of the Novice League.

At Kelmscott, we spent the day learning about important debating concepts, such as the difference between a principle argument and a practical argument. We also participated in a couple of spectrum debates, where we chose whether or not we agreed with a notion and quickly summarised our thoughts.

The event was also an opportunity to meet new people/potential debaters. I befriended an Year 7 called Jake, who was just starting debating, as well has a couple of other people.

The day was rounded off with a practice debate: “This house believes that Young People’s Votes Should Count Double”. I was part of the negative team. While generally I am a third speaker, I tried out the role of first speaker.

For future debaters, I strongly suggest that debaters should try out this seminar, as it was very helpful, and would further extend your knowledge of constructing an excellent debate.