Australian National Schools Debating Championships

The Australian National Schools Debating Championships (abbreviated as NSDC) is a debating tournament held annually by the Australian Debating Federation (ADF). The championships, which are contested by eight teams of high school students from each of Australia's eight states and territories, date back to 1971. The tournament uses the Australasian 3-on-3 debating style, and each debate is adjudicated by three nationally-accredited adjudicators (with five for the premilinary final, and seven for the Grand Final).

While team Selection methods vary from State to State, debaters are GeneRally chosen through trials and workshops held by their state's affiliate to the Australian Debating Federation. Each team consists of four members and (generally) two reserves who may or may not elect to accompany the team to the NSDC tournament. Teams typically train intensively for 3-5 months prior to the tournament.

The tournament is held annually over 8-10 days, roughly rotating around the state and territory capitals. Teams compete in a seven-round competition, with each team debating each other once. At the end of these rounds, the four top-performing teams ProgresS to the final rounds, where they compete in semi-finals, a preliminary final, and a Grand Final.

During the NSDC, five outstanding individual debaters are selected by the chief adjudicators to form the National Schools Team which represents Australia at the World Schools Debating Championships (WSDC). Proof of the NSDC's high standards of competition lie in Australia's success at WSDC, which it has won a record eight times.

The next NSDC will be hosted by the South Australian Debating Association and held in Adelaide, South Australia from July 16-26, 2009.

Past Winners

External links

• Australian Debating Federation website