Debate for Beginners
This course will focus on critical thinking, public speaking, and debate skills for young learners to have early access to debate.
Lindsey Dixon M.S., B.S., Professor
Average rating:
4.9
Number of reviews:(386)
What's included
1 live meeting
40 mins in-class hours per weekAssessment
In class assessment on how learners and improve and work on their arguments.Class Experience
Hi y'all, My name is Lindsey and I am a full-time college professor and debate coach! I have dedicated my life to teaching people how to improve their critical thinking, public speaking, and debate skills. I have spent the last 10 years teaching at a major university and traveling all over the world training and introducing students to the art of debate. I wanted to create a class for younger students to get even earlier exposure to the basics of debate. This class is designed for a much younger student, normally late elementary school age. It is completely okay if your learner has NO experience in debate. This will be a very fun and engaging class for them to get their first exposure to debate and critical thinking. What will I teach? We will learn the basics of debate and how to work on our organization skills when it comes to explaining our thoughts and ideas. We will also work on listening skills so we can respond to other people's ideas and arguments. Mostly this class will work on confidence-building for the learners. What topics will be covered? Each topic will be announced in class for students. You will not need to know the topic before class because we will go over everything at the start of each class. Week 1 Schools should be year long Week 2 All kids should have a pet Week 3 Students should be allowed to grade their teachers on how well they teach. Week 4 Learner directed topic. For this week we will have the learners pick the topic to see what they want to debate about. Any classes that go beyond this will cover topics that are similar to the ones I listed above and will be mixed with learner direction on what they want to talk about. How will class be structured? First we will talk about how to give arguments then we will announce the debate topic and give each student time to create their arguments. How will I teach this class? I will have slides and handouts to use throughout the class. Any documents I share will be posted in the classroom for the students to access. What is my teach style? I have been teaching in college for 10 years and I have been in debate for over 13 so I have learned through experience how to keep debates engaging and empowering for students. I love being positive and upbeat while also offering helpful and meaningful constructive criticism. I also have run debate camps all around the world and have plenty of experience organizing and running camps. How will learners interact with each other and myself? I will have mini lecturers and then students will engage and debate back and forth with each other. I will also have games and debate drills we will do within class. There is a lot of hands-on engagement! Is there any required experience need? Nope! This class is GREAT for students who don't know anything about debate but are willing to learn, have fun, and share their ideas!
Learning Goals
The goals of this class are:
1. Critical thinking
- It's important to engage students in areas that they like but also can help hone their critical thinking skills by constructing arguments and having to respond to their fellow classmates.
2. Argumentation building
- building arguments is foundational for all areas of our lives and learning the steps of how arguments are formed and then practicing those steps is paramount to mastering them.
3. Listening skills
- A large part of the discourse is having to listen and comprehend what others around you are saying and not just waiting to speak next. This debate helps students to focus on listening to respond not just waiting to talk.
4. Improve Public Speaking Skills
- Debate allows students to work not only on their critical thinking skills but helps to build their confidence with public speaking.
5. Building a Community
- A great part of debate is building a community of people who also enjoy talking and debating.
Other Details
Parental Guidance
All topics will be appropriate for the age ranges. All topics will be announced in class and students will be given time in class to think through their arguments. I have been teaching debate for over 10 years to all different ages groups from all around the world and I understand how to navigate a variety of topics.
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined July, 2020
4.9
386reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
2 Degrees
Master's Degree in Communications from Illinois State University
Bachelor's Degree in Communications from Ball State University
Hi, Y'all!
I am a Director of Debate and instructor. I started the Debate Society from scratch; over the years, it has grown into one of the most well-respected programs in the country. We travel all over the United States and the world for competitions and training. I put everything I have into my students in the classroom and on my debate team. I love being able to watch students grow, learn and challenge themselves through critical thinking.
Throughout the years I have helped to run some of the largest debate tournaments in the United States and the World to help promote critical thinking, argumentation building, and public speaking. I was recently the first woman to ever host the United States University Debating Championship which is the largest debating competition in the country.
In debate, we cover every kind of topic you can think of and help students learn how to communicate effectively, respectfully, and with objective information. I have led countless workshops on communicating about difficult topics such as gender, racial, social-economic, and cultural issues. These topics are difficult and complex but can and should be talked about so that students can start to learn and talk about these issues.
Below is a list of what I do as a current debate coach and some lists of accomplishments along with the places I have been invited to as a trainer to help promote and develop debate.
Personal Debate Awards and Accomplishments
Achievement
Convener of United States University Debating Championship Clemson University
This is the largest debate tournament in the country.
The first female to ever convene the national championship.
Chief Adjudicator for the United States University Debating Championship Denver, Colorado.
This is the largest debate tournament in the country. I was elected to assist in
running this prestigious event by my peers at the 2016 National Tournament.
Judged the final of the United States University Debating Championship
Anchorage, Alaska
Atlanta, Georgia
Denver, Colorado
Chief Adjudicator of Vanderbilt University
Nashville, Tennessee
Chief Adjudicator United States Air Force Academy
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Chief Adjudicator Herstory Womxn
La Verne, California
Chief Adjudicator Huber Debate
Burlington, Vermont
Chief Adjudicator for the Pan American Championships
Montego Bay, Jamaica
Chief Adjudicator for the University of North Georgia
Oakwood, Georgia
Broke as a judge at over 30 tournaments
Breaking at a tournament as a judge means you are recognized as one of the best
judges at the tournament.
Invited Debate Training
North American Debate Academy
Burlington, Vermont
International Debate Academy in Slovenia
Ljubljana, Slovenia
Southern Debate Academy
Clemson, South Carolina.
Jamaican Association for Debating and Empowerment
Kingston, Jamaica
Beihang World Debate Academy,
Beijing, China
Reviews
Live Group Class
$12
weekly1x per week
40 min
Completed by 59 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 7-10
4-6 learners per class
