Parliamentary Debate
Encyclopedia
Parliamentary Debate is an academic debate
event. Many university level institutions in English speaking nations sponsor parliamentary debate teams, but the format is currently spreading to the high school level as well. Despite the name, the Parliamentary style is not related to debates in governmental parliaments.
and the European Universities Debating Championship
(at which the speakers are given only fifteen minutes' notice of the motion). Speeches are usually between five and seven minutes in duration. The debate consists of four teams of two speakers, sometimes called factions, with two teams on either side of the case.
Because of the style's origins in British parliamentary procedure
, the two sides are called the Government and Opposition, while the speakers take their titles from those of their parliamentary equivalents (such as the opening Government speaker, called the Prime Minister). Furthermore, since this style is based on parliamentary debate, each faction is considered to be one of two parties in a coalition
. They must therefore differentiate themselves from the other team on their side of the case in order to succeed in their own right.
All speakers are expected to offer Points of Information (POIs) to their opponents. POIs are particularly important in British Parliamentary style, as it allows the first two teams to maintain their relevance during the course of the debate, and the last two teams to introduce their arguments early in the debate. The first and last minute of each speech is considered "protected time", during which no POI may be offered.
Depending on the country, there are variations in speaking time, speaking order, and the number of speakers. For example, in New Zealand, both the leader of the Opposition and the Prime Minister offer a short summary as the last two speakers.
University level
The most popular intercollegiate parliamentary debate style is supported by the National Parliamentary Debate Association
(NPDA), which was born in western US in 1991. NPDA circuit consists of a loose confederation of local leagues and a number of invitational tournaments. The NPDA season culminates with two national tournaments – NPDA Nationals and the National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence
(NPTE). NPDA Nationals (founded in 1994) is open to all and attracts about 200 teams each year. NPTE (founded in 2001) is qualification-only and invites the top 64 teams of the approximately 1000 teams that compete in NPDA/NPTE-sanctioned invitationals throughout the season. Phi Rho Pi Nationals for junior and community colleges have an NPDA-style division, as do Novice Nationals. The chief online forum for the NPDA circuit is Net-Benefits.net, started in 2002 by Jed Link.
American Parliamentary Debate Association (APDA), the oldest intercollegiate parliamentary debate league in the US, was founded in 1982. APDA currently has around 40 member universities, primarily in the Northeast.
A number of smaller intercollegiate debate leagues, such as the Lincoln Parliamentary League (LPL) and International Public Debate Association
(IPDA) also exists.
The British Parliamentary Style
(a.k.a. Worlds Debate, distinct from World Schools Style) is also beginning to spread to the US, with the US Universities Debating Championship held annually at the University of Vermont.
High School level
The premier high school debate league, National Forensic League
(NFL), does not offer parliamentary debate at its national tournament. It does, however, recognize parli competitions offered at the state level, albeit at a reduced points value. In 2010 NFL Nationals added Supplemental Debate, which bears some similarity to parliamentary debate.
A number of attempts to organize a high school parli championship tournament have been made – National Parliamentary Caucus (2003–2005), NPDL Parli Grand Nationals (2006–2007) and IDEA Tournament of Champions (2005–2009, switched to world format in 2010). The current incarnation of such championship is the California Cup (2010–present, began accepting out-of-state teams in 2011).
Oregon State Tournament (OSAA) added parliamentary debate (known In Oregon as Public debate
) in 2001, California State Tournament (CHSSA) followed suit in 2003, and Pennsylvania State Tournament (PHSSL) in 2010. Yale, ASU, Whitman, as well as a number of invitational tournaments in Oregon and California, the largest of them held at Stanford, James Logan HS, SCU, UOP, Willamette, University of Oregon, Pepperdine and Claremont HS also offer parli.
The central website for high school parliamentary debate is PointOfInformation.org, started in 2009 by Artem Raskin.
High school parli is taught at several summer Debate camp
s, including SNFI, ODI and CCPDI
Format
The first key feature uniting various formats of parliamentary debate in the US is their spontaneity. The resolutions alternate each round and are typically announced 15–20 minutes in advance. APDA is somewhat of an exception in the respect, with "loose link" rounds allowing the affirmative to run a case of their choosing, dealing with virtually any topic. The second key feature of parli is a ban on quoted evidence. Debaters may not bring in any material that was not prepared in the 15–20 minutes of preparation time and consult it during the round. APDA, Worlds and high school parli debate styles tend to take a more lay-friendly approach to debate, ensuring that debates are easy to understand no matter the audience member's expertise of the resolution. NPDA is more diverse, with some teams engaging in a more academic and specific-knowledge style borrowed from Policy debate
. Resolutions typically focus on current events, though the entrance of the Kritik
to NPDA, and, to a lesser extent, to some high school circuits, introduced a philosophical element to parli.
This style consists a two-on-two debate, between the affirmative team, known as the Government or the Proposition, and the negative team, referred to as the Opposition. Debater role names are borrowed from the British Parliament, with the judge being referred to as the Speaker. The round consists of six speeches, as follows:
Specific rules and speech times vary slightly between organizations. NPDA, APDA and OSAA use the 7-8-8-8-4-5 format, CHSSA and the ASU Invitational use the Claremont 7-7-7-7-5-5 format, the SCU Invitational uses the 6-7-7-7-4-5 format, and Yale high school tournaments use the Osterweis 4-5-5-5-2-3 format. PHSSL borrows its 8 speeches 6-6-6-6-6-6-3-3 format from World Schools Style debate.
Most variations of the style do not include a specialized cross-examination period, but allow debaters to make parliamentary points.
Between the end of the first and the beginning of the last minute of an eight-minute speech, the opposing party may offer "points of information". The speaker may refuse these, but should take at least one or two points during his or her speech. No points of order or Privilege are used.
Topics can be supplied long in advance, or may be given 45 minutes or an hour before the debate begins. There is not much room for re-definition, and squirreling
is strictly prohibited. The World Schools Debating Championships
is attended by many countries, and is in this format.
A similar format, with 7 minute speeched and Points-of-Information, is known as the Asian Parliamentary Format and is used by the United Asian Debating Championships
Debate
Debate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion...
event. Many university level institutions in English speaking nations sponsor parliamentary debate teams, but the format is currently spreading to the high school level as well. Despite the name, the Parliamentary style is not related to debates in governmental parliaments.
British Parliamentary Debate
British Parliamentary Debate is very widespread, and has gained major support earl in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Europe, Africa, Philippines and United States. It has also been adopted as the official style of the World Universities Debating ChampionshipWorld Universities Debating Championship
The World Universities Debating Championship is the world's largest debating tournament, and one of the largest annual international student events in the world. It is a parliamentary debating event, held using the British Parliamentary Debate format. Each year, the event is hosted by a university...
and the European Universities Debating Championship
European Universities Debating Championship
The European Universities Debating Championship is an annual debating tournament for teams from universities in Europe. The competition uses the British Parliamentary Debate format .The championships as they are known today were first held in Rotterdam, Netherlands at Erasmus University from 8–11...
(at which the speakers are given only fifteen minutes' notice of the motion). Speeches are usually between five and seven minutes in duration. The debate consists of four teams of two speakers, sometimes called factions, with two teams on either side of the case.
Because of the style's origins in British parliamentary procedure
Parliamentary procedure
Parliamentary procedure is the body of rules, ethics, and customs governing meetings and other operations of clubs, organizations, legislative bodies, and other deliberative assemblies...
, the two sides are called the Government and Opposition, while the speakers take their titles from those of their parliamentary equivalents (such as the opening Government speaker, called the Prime Minister). Furthermore, since this style is based on parliamentary debate, each faction is considered to be one of two parties in a coalition
Coalition
A coalition is a pact or treaty among individuals or groups, during which they cooperate in joint action, each in their own self-interest, joining forces together for a common cause. This alliance may be temporary or a matter of convenience. A coalition thus differs from a more formal covenant...
. They must therefore differentiate themselves from the other team on their side of the case in order to succeed in their own right.
All speakers are expected to offer Points of Information (POIs) to their opponents. POIs are particularly important in British Parliamentary style, as it allows the first two teams to maintain their relevance during the course of the debate, and the last two teams to introduce their arguments early in the debate. The first and last minute of each speech is considered "protected time", during which no POI may be offered.
Depending on the country, there are variations in speaking time, speaking order, and the number of speakers. For example, in New Zealand, both the leader of the Opposition and the Prime Minister offer a short summary as the last two speakers.
Parliamentary Debate in the United States
American Parliamentary Debate is supported by a number of organizations in the United States at the tertiary and secondary levels.University level
The most popular intercollegiate parliamentary debate style is supported by the National Parliamentary Debate Association
National Parliamentary Debate Association
The National Parliamentary Debate Association is one of the two national intercollegiate parliamentary debate organizations in the United States. The other is the American Parliamentary Debate Association. The NPDA is a relatively young organization, but it is now the largest college debate...
(NPDA), which was born in western US in 1991. NPDA circuit consists of a loose confederation of local leagues and a number of invitational tournaments. The NPDA season culminates with two national tournaments – NPDA Nationals and the National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence
National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence
The National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence operates an invitation-only national championship tournament once per year for parliamentary debate...
(NPTE). NPDA Nationals (founded in 1994) is open to all and attracts about 200 teams each year. NPTE (founded in 2001) is qualification-only and invites the top 64 teams of the approximately 1000 teams that compete in NPDA/NPTE-sanctioned invitationals throughout the season. Phi Rho Pi Nationals for junior and community colleges have an NPDA-style division, as do Novice Nationals. The chief online forum for the NPDA circuit is Net-Benefits.net, started in 2002 by Jed Link.
American Parliamentary Debate Association (APDA), the oldest intercollegiate parliamentary debate league in the US, was founded in 1982. APDA currently has around 40 member universities, primarily in the Northeast.
A number of smaller intercollegiate debate leagues, such as the Lincoln Parliamentary League (LPL) and International Public Debate Association
International Public Debate Association
The International Public Debate Association , inaugurated on 15 February 1997 at St. Mary's University, Texas in San Antonio, is a national debate league currently active in the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Kansas, Alabama, Texas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Florida, and...
(IPDA) also exists.
The British Parliamentary Style
British Parliamentary Style
British Parliamentary style debate is a common form of academic debate. It has gained support in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Europe, Africa, Philippines and United States, and has also been adopted as the official style of the World Universities Debating Championship and European...
(a.k.a. Worlds Debate, distinct from World Schools Style) is also beginning to spread to the US, with the US Universities Debating Championship held annually at the University of Vermont.
High School level
The premier high school debate league, National Forensic League
National Forensic League
The National Forensic League is a non-partisan, non-profit educational honor society established to encourage and motivate American high school students to participate in and become proficient in the forensic arts: debate, public speaking and interpretation. NFL is the America's oldest and largest...
(NFL), does not offer parliamentary debate at its national tournament. It does, however, recognize parli competitions offered at the state level, albeit at a reduced points value. In 2010 NFL Nationals added Supplemental Debate, which bears some similarity to parliamentary debate.
A number of attempts to organize a high school parli championship tournament have been made – National Parliamentary Caucus (2003–2005), NPDL Parli Grand Nationals (2006–2007) and IDEA Tournament of Champions (2005–2009, switched to world format in 2010). The current incarnation of such championship is the California Cup (2010–present, began accepting out-of-state teams in 2011).
Oregon State Tournament (OSAA) added parliamentary debate (known In Oregon as Public debate
Public debate
Public debate is a formal style of debate. Two teams of two compete through six rounds of argument, giving persuasive speeches on a particular topic.- Pre-Debate :...
) in 2001, California State Tournament (CHSSA) followed suit in 2003, and Pennsylvania State Tournament (PHSSL) in 2010. Yale, ASU, Whitman, as well as a number of invitational tournaments in Oregon and California, the largest of them held at Stanford, James Logan HS, SCU, UOP, Willamette, University of Oregon, Pepperdine and Claremont HS also offer parli.
The central website for high school parliamentary debate is PointOfInformation.org, started in 2009 by Artem Raskin.
High school parli is taught at several summer Debate camp
Debate camp
A debate camp or debate institute is a training workshop for high school and collegiate debaters. The camps exist so students may learn about the upcoming topic or "resolution". Usually these camps are held over the summer for weeks a time at different universities around the country between two...
s, including SNFI, ODI and CCPDI
Format
The first key feature uniting various formats of parliamentary debate in the US is their spontaneity. The resolutions alternate each round and are typically announced 15–20 minutes in advance. APDA is somewhat of an exception in the respect, with "loose link" rounds allowing the affirmative to run a case of their choosing, dealing with virtually any topic. The second key feature of parli is a ban on quoted evidence. Debaters may not bring in any material that was not prepared in the 15–20 minutes of preparation time and consult it during the round. APDA, Worlds and high school parli debate styles tend to take a more lay-friendly approach to debate, ensuring that debates are easy to understand no matter the audience member's expertise of the resolution. NPDA is more diverse, with some teams engaging in a more academic and specific-knowledge style borrowed from Policy debate
Policy debate
Policy debate is a form of speech competition in which teams of two advocate for and against a resolution that typically calls for policy change by the United States federal government or security discourse...
. Resolutions typically focus on current events, though the entrance of the Kritik
Kritik
In policy debate , a kritik is generally a type of argument that challenges a certain mindset, assumption, or discursive element that exists within the advocacy of the opposing team, often from the perspective of...
to NPDA, and, to a lesser extent, to some high school circuits, introduced a philosophical element to parli.
This style consists a two-on-two debate, between the affirmative team, known as the Government or the Proposition, and the negative team, referred to as the Opposition. Debater role names are borrowed from the British Parliament, with the judge being referred to as the Speaker. The round consists of six speeches, as follows:
- Prime Minister Constructive (PMC): the first affirmative speaker presents the affirmative case
- Leader of the Opposition Constructive (LOC): the first negative speaker presents the negative case and answers the PMC arguments
- Member of the Government Constructive (MGC): the second affirmative speaker upholds the affirmative case and responds to the LOC arguments
- Member of the Opposition Constructive (MOC): the second negative speaker upholds the negative case and responds to the MGC arguments
- Leader of the Opposition Rebuttal (LOR): the first negative speaker summarizes the round. New arguments are not allowed.
- Prime Minister Rebuttal (PMR):the first affirmative speaker summarizes the round and responds to any new arguments brought up in the MOC/LOC Opp block. New arguments in the PMR are not allowed.
Specific rules and speech times vary slightly between organizations. NPDA, APDA and OSAA use the 7-8-8-8-4-5 format, CHSSA and the ASU Invitational use the Claremont 7-7-7-7-5-5 format, the SCU Invitational uses the 6-7-7-7-4-5 format, and Yale high school tournaments use the Osterweis 4-5-5-5-2-3 format. PHSSL borrows its 8 speeches 6-6-6-6-6-6-3-3 format from World Schools Style debate.
Most variations of the style do not include a specialized cross-examination period, but allow debaters to make parliamentary points.
- Points of Information (POI) are questions or statements the opposing side can direct the speaker who has the floor. The speaker has an option to recognize or decline a POI. In most styles POIs cannot be made during the first and last minute of each speech (known as protected time) or during rebuttals.
- Points of Order are made when the speaker is introducing a new argument during a rebuttal speech, or grossly mischaracterizing arguments. During a Point of Order, official time (usually kept by the judge) is to be stopped while the judge listens and considers the point raised.
- Points of Personal Privilege are made when the speaker makes offensive claims or personal attacks.
World Schools Style
This is a combination of the British Parliamentary and Australian formats, which results in a debate comprising eight speeches delivered by two three-member teams (the Proposition and the Opposition). Each speaker delivers an eight-minute speech – the first two are substansive matter and the third a rebuttal speech; then both teams deliver a "reply speech" lasting four minutes, with the last word being reserved for the Proposition. In junior debates, these limits are changed to about 5 minutes, and in some local competitions, speeches are 7 minutes.Between the end of the first and the beginning of the last minute of an eight-minute speech, the opposing party may offer "points of information". The speaker may refuse these, but should take at least one or two points during his or her speech. No points of order or Privilege are used.
Topics can be supplied long in advance, or may be given 45 minutes or an hour before the debate begins. There is not much room for re-definition, and squirreling
Squirrel (debate)
A squirrel is a term in debating jargon, particularly in parliamentary debate, that indicates a definition from the side of the opening speaker that makes it too easy for his or her side. The first speaker in a debate, who is defending the motion or proposition, generally has to define the terms...
is strictly prohibited. The World Schools Debating Championships
World Schools Debating Championships
The World Schools Debating Championships is an annual English-language debating tournament for high school-level teams representing different countries.In recent years, the championships have involved teams from over 40 nations each year.-History:...
is attended by many countries, and is in this format.
A similar format, with 7 minute speeched and Points-of-Information, is known as the Asian Parliamentary Format and is used by the United Asian Debating Championships
United Asian Debating Championships
The United Asian Debating Championship is an annual debating tournament for teams from universities in Asia. It will be the largest inter-varsity Parliamentary Debate tournament in Asia, with over 600 participants. The UADC holds debates in the Asian 3-on-3 format Parliamentary Debating...
See also
- Public debatePublic debatePublic debate is a formal style of debate. Two teams of two compete through six rounds of argument, giving persuasive speeches on a particular topic.- Pre-Debate :...
- International university debating
- World Universities Debating ChampionshipWorld Universities Debating ChampionshipThe World Universities Debating Championship is the world's largest debating tournament, and one of the largest annual international student events in the world. It is a parliamentary debating event, held using the British Parliamentary Debate format. Each year, the event is hosted by a university...
- American Parliamentary Debate Association
- Canadian University Society for Intercollegiate DebateCanadian University Society for Intercollegiate DebateThe Canadian University Society for Intercollegiate Debate is the national organization which governs all competitive university debating and public speaking in Canada. It sanctions several official annual tournaments and represents Canadian debating domestically and abroad...
- North American Debating ChampionshipNorth American Debating ChampionshipThe North American Debating Championship is the official university debating championship of North America, sanctioned by the national university debating associations in the United States and Canada, the American Parliamentary Debate Association and the Canadian University Society for...
- North American Public Speaking Championship
- National Parliamentary Debate AssociationNational Parliamentary Debate AssociationThe National Parliamentary Debate Association is one of the two national intercollegiate parliamentary debate organizations in the United States. The other is the American Parliamentary Debate Association. The NPDA is a relatively young organization, but it is now the largest college debate...
- National Parliamentary Tournament of ExcellenceNational Parliamentary Tournament of ExcellenceThe National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence operates an invitation-only national championship tournament once per year for parliamentary debate...
- World Universities Debating Championship
- International high school debating
- World Schools Debating ChampionshipsWorld Schools Debating ChampionshipsThe World Schools Debating Championships is an annual English-language debating tournament for high school-level teams representing different countries.In recent years, the championships have involved teams from over 40 nations each year.-History:...
- World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championship
- World Schools Debating Championships
-
- Debate#Australia-Asia debate DebateDebateDebate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion...
- Debate#Australia-Asia debate Debate
External links
- Debate organizations
- International Public Debate Association
- American Parliamentary Debate Association United States collegiate parliamentary debate organization.
- National Parliamentary Debate Association United States collegiate parliamentary debate organization.
- National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence Sponsors U.S.-based parliamentary rankings system and national invitational championship.
- National Parliamentary Debate League United States high school parliamentary debate organization (defunct since 2008).
- Associated Leaders of Urban Debate – A national organization promoting debate to the general public
- Resources
- Net Benefits United States college NPDA-parli debate forum
- Point of Information United States high school parliamentary debate website
- 'Debating': A free online 'how-to' guide (A free 200-page debating book written by a former winner of the World Schools Debating Championship)
- Presentations Teaching Parli Slides from a former director of forensics teaching basics of parliamentary debate
- World Debate Website – Information about university debating events around the globe
- The Judges British Parliamentary Debating est.1999 – An extensive array of unconventional tutorials that focus on the alternative and fun aspects of debate.
- Parlidebate.com – Video and audio recordings of APDA, BP, CUSID and NPDA debate rounds.
- Strategic Argumentation in Parliamentary Debate – College Parliamentary Debate E-Book and Textbook