saasta.ac.za Schools Debates Competition 2017 : South African Agency for Science & Technology Advancement

Organization : SAASTA – South African Agency for Science & Technology Advancement
Competition Name : Schools Debates Competition 2017
Applicable For : Grade 9, 10 or 11 Students
Competition Deadline : 05 August 2017

Website : https://www.saasta.ac.za/competitions/

Schools Debates Competition :

** SAASTA is currently in the process of selecting multiple service providers to implement this year’s competition in each province on behalf of SAASTA.

Related : SAASTA AstroQuiz Competition : www.southafricain.com/7250.html

** Once the process has been completed, a list of appointed service providers will be made available on our website.
** This year’s competition will change slightly compared to previous years, but still promises to be exciting and fun for learners.

** Schools will no longer be requested to enter the competition by means of an essay.
** A call will be sent out in May to interested schools to participate in the competition for 2017.
** Schools will be selected on the basis of their performance at provincial workshops.
** The provincial workshop will have two main objectives.

** The first half of the workshop will focus on training and delve into the debating style, research methodology and the use of social media to discuss ideas.
** The second half of the workshop will involve a mini-debate, which will be adjudicated and from which a final selection of 10 teams to participate in the provincial competitions will be made.

Dates for the 2017 competition :
** Provincial workshops – 05 August 2017 (running concurrently in all provinces)
** Provincial tournaments – 26 August, 02 September, 09 September (1 per province, 3 provinces per Saturday).

** Participating provinces will be announced at the provincial workshop.
** National Final – 05 October 2017 (1 national tournament to be held at a central venue in Gauteng)

Terms & Conditions :
National Schools Debates :
** All debaters must be registered pupils in grade 9, 10 or 11 at a recognised high school.
** The provincial contest is restricted to 10 high schools per province and only five debaters per school may enter the contest as a team.

** Dress code for the debaters is strictly school uniform.
** Debating Teams should be at the contest venue 30 minutes before the contest is due to begin. Late arrival may result in the debaters’ disqualification.

** Each contestant must participate in a plenary session in line with the rules of the style of debate set out in this manual in order to be considered for participation at the national competition.
** All content presented by the debaters must be original, and the debaters’ own work.

** Debaters are required to participate in English in a plenary session on a given subject. The workshop facilitators will advise the debaters of the topic, where after the debaters will be given until the provincial competition to collect his/her thoughts on the topic and research their position thoroughly. The contestants are allowed to prepare written speeches for the competition where necessary.

** There will be more than one debate at the National Competition. A different speaker must deliver the Opening Statement for each debate. A different speaker must also deliver the Closing Statement for each debate. Furthermore, speakers who deliver the Opening Statement may not deliver the Closing Statement in any of the debates. This is to ensure that all members of the team receive speaking time.

** Each provincial winning team will advance to the National Finals in Johannesburg.

** The organisers may arrange for the transportation of each school team and one accompanying teacher/parent, if deemed necessary by the organisers, to the venue where the National Finals will take place.

** Previous national prize winners (i.e. 1st, 2nd and 3rd) may not reenter the competition. This specifically applies to the team members. Winning schools may re-enter with different teams.
** The judging panel’s decision is final and no discussion or correspondence will be entered into.