The style is two-on-two, involves research and case writing, and is a particularly popular style in China and the United States.
Format Description:
Public Forum (PF) is a team debate event between two teams with two people on each team. Students debate topics announced before the competition and debate a single topic throughout the competition. In the USA there is a new topic every month and in China there is a new topic every semester. Each student will give a four-minute speech and a two or three-minute speech in each debate. Students also engage in a crossfire period between each set of speeches wherein they ask each other critical questions about the arguments.
Sample Topics:
Resolved: States ought not to possess nuclear weapons.
Resolved: The United States should end its embargo against Cuba.
Resolved: Rehabilitation should be prioritized over retribution in the criminal justice system.
Key Competitions:
There are two different Public Forum leagues in China and one primary league in the United States. The two leagues in China are
- National High School Debate League of China (NHSDLC)
- National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA-China).
These leagues are independent of each other and both offer quality competitions in cities around China. Both leagues also have a national championship competition for middle and high school students that take place each summer. NSDA-China also holds a “Tournament of Champions-China,” typically in January of each year.
There are also several high quality Public Forum competitions in the USA at Yale, Stanford, Berkeley, Harvard, Tournament of Champions-USA (MS & HS), NSDA Nationals (MS & HS). See the LearningLeaders competition schedule for more information about the specific dates of these events.
There are also international chapters of the NSDA in Japan, Korea and Taiwan that offer Public Forum competitions for middle and high school students.
Eligibility:
Middle school and high school students of all levels are eligible to participate in Public Forum. USA based competitions have a Varsity division and a Junior Varsity divisions. NSDA-China and NHSDLC have an Open-local division, an Open-International division, and a novice division (for first time students and middle school students).
Competitor Characteristics & Difficulty Level:
Competitors in PF range from 6th to 12th grade. There are many levels of PF participation. In China and other international events, the participants are mostly beginners and English as a Second Language (ESL) students. There are high levels of competition in Beijing and Shanghai Regionals. PF is an excellent format for gaining basic comfort in debate. We recommend moving into parliamentary debate styles for Elite middle school students, advanced high school students, and anyone who has competed in PF for 2 years or more.
In the USA, PF is highly competitive and most students come from public and private schools in the USA. Technical jargon is more widely utilized as students tend to specialize in this debate format and focus exclusively on it. In general, PF is an American-focused form of debate and the most commonly utilized format in the USA.
Key Advantages of Participation:
Public Forum (PF) is a great introduction to competitive debating. Students debate the same topic each semester (in the USA there is a new topic every month). Students engage in research and are allowed to pre-prepare and even read verbatim their opening speeches. PF provides students an opportunity to compete in more rigorous intellectual exchange relative to WSC and MUN. PF allows students without deep familiarity of current events and without knowledge of wider controversies to compete in debate. Students will learn about particular topics in-depth, engage in research, and will uniquely focus on evidence analysis and comparison.
Training Opportunities:
Attending LL classes strengthens students' ability to participate in PF debate. We do not typically offer special training for PF events. If a student has a question about how best to prepare their case, please ask your coach after lesson and you are sure to get some useful insight.