This is not a promotional post for our debate academy, do not worry.
What this post is, is the question, what are the things that are important to you/or only me if no one comments, at a debate academy.

Lets first define it in a good debating way. A debate academy is a couple of days, up to a week long education, of course about debate. There are a couple of them that I know about, one in the GB every year, one in the Netherlands (DAPDI), and one in Slovenia (IDAS), and there is a new one that is just taking place in Serbia and there is one just going on in the USA (WDI). Because I have been a part of the organizing committee of a couple of the past IDAS, I like to think about what should we do to make it better.

So what is it that will make you join a debate academy?

I would think that the most important thing is the Faculty. But what does that mean exactly? Do we need people from the UK and only that? Or do we need people that are well known because of their great results in important debate tournaments. What about people from the theory, debate and rhetorics professors from the USA? What do you want to hear at a academy?

The second thing are the lectures. I see more and more topical lectures being provided. How to debate criminal law, economics, international relations. But is this really what a good debater needs, or are this only shortcuts to get “good” arguments? I have seen a class that has “destroyed” a tournament after the academy, because everyone used the arguments presented.

Socials? I know it is not only about the socials and drinking (or I would like to believe ), but is this a really important part? Do you make a decision based on how much free beer do you get? Or is the truth, as Bojana would say it “they are adults, they can entertain themselves”?

The last part that could be important is the accommodation. Is it really important that people stay in a fancy hotel? This is what we can see at the EUDC’s and some other tournaments (even if some of the tournaments just provide crash, and that is it)

I know a lot of questions, but these are questions that I and other people from our org.com ask themselves all the time.

Or is it “Who is going to be there”. I have been told that it is incredibly important that you have best debaters on the academy and the tournament that follows, so important that people would actually pay travel expenses to good teams, just to have them there… Is this true?

I would enjoy your comments. We, and probably every other org.com tries to balance all these things, but what is REALLY important?

If you do not find the time to comment, at least subscribe and read more blog posts.

I have already written a post on how our debaters debated for Laura Bush here, now we got official photos from the event, every photo with a not and a hand signature from Laura. Just wanted to brag about it here

One of the most important parts of my debate website for me is the Tournament invitations, at least for me.
I’m trying to post all the debate tournament invitations, announcements etc. that I come to. I regularly check the EUDC, WUDC, debate-I and other debate mailing lists, different debate blogs like Tuna’s, Flynn’s and other, I check Facebook invitations and I also regularly get invitations to my private email address.
I post all of them here, and try to add interesting details from what I know about the tournaments.
You should check this aggregate regularly, and to make it easier for you, I provide a RSS feed that you can subscribe to. Paste this Debate tournaments RSS link into your favorite RSS reader (like goggle reader) and you will be up to date.
Of course you are invited to post me your debate tournaments, so that I can post them, use the contact form and I will post it on my website, so that you will get to as many people as possible.

This years EUDC council debated on the problem about the names of the categories of debaters at EUDC. Until now we debated in the EFL (English as a first language) and ESL (English as a second language). It is understandable, that there are problems, because of the mix up of EFL that can mean English as a first language or it can mean English as a foreign lanugage, categories that are used at the WSDC and I believe also at the WUDC.
The solution that th EUDC council came up with is, that the EFL (First language) category should be named The Main break, and the other as it was, ESL.
I do have a big problem with this, because I believe that naming something Main means, that the other stuff is just not as important. That means, that the ESL break becomes the Secondary, or Auxiliary break. And this is just not acceptable.
There are other variations that could be used, but they just did not use them. Like for instance, they could call it ENL (English as a native language). They are native speakers, so there is a background for this.
There was a discussion on the names Closed and Open break, Open, because second language teams can break into the first language break, and it is not possible vice-versa. This naming is acceptable, but it is just not so natural, as the other names.
I believe that because of the respect of the second language speakers (a ESL team broke 4th on the first language break this year at EUDC), the council should reconsider this position and pick other names. I’m not sure what happened at the council, if anyone protested against that, but I do know that some ESL judges already work on using the MAIN names. We will see.

What is your opinion on that?

It’s a couple of days since I’m back from the EUDC, but am still writing from my phone, being at the Slovenian summer debate camp. Here are some of the final notes on the UEDC 2008.

1. Food
This has been one of the biggest disappointments. Not only was it not tasty, being hungry on a debate tournament really suxx. The money that they have spent on the fancy hotel would be much better spent on more and better food.

2. Tournament
Having all the announcements on time was really a great change from what i’ve seen on previous EUDC’s.

3. Coffe
Coffe should be provided at all times. Really. Always

4. Socials
Trying something different is good but it just did not work this time. And i remember a promise on free alcohol, but a free beer at the dinner is just a bit less than i expected.

All in all it was ok, but we have seen better and look forward to EUDC 2009