Current Events and Conversations

Service Description

Fridays 3:30pm PST - 5pm PST This course seeks to examine the main hot-button political topics of the current time period. Each class session will take a 2-hour deep dive into a specific contemporary US policy. The focus is on understanding the primary arguments surrounding these issues AND how to consume modern news media in responsible fashion. One of the hardest concepts to teach as a debate coach is general awareness of the political landscape. This course contextualizes WHY we debate about topics when they are chosen. For Lincoln Douglas and Public Forum debaters, this course will provide a necessary real-life tangible grounding to the philosophical argumentation. For Congressional debaters, this course will directly engage in the study of major policy which bills will debate for years to come. The class structure will be a 45 minute lecture on policy which opens up into the 2nd half of presentation of common arguments FOR and AGAINST the policy, as well as issues with policy implementation. Students can expect to research the following topics and come prepared with what they believe are the strongest statements on each side of the topic.