IDEA is pleased to offer the BP track at the Youth Forum for the second time.

This track will be taught by Justice Motlhbani, Logan Balavijendran, and Sharmila Parmanand.

As BP debating gains in popularity in Europe (indeed, the next two World Universities Debating Championships will be held in Ireland and Turkey) the training you’ll receive will have immediate benefit to your debating career.

The advantages of BP are not limited to the connections you immediately make to debaters around the world. As an extemporaneous format of debating, BP offers debaters the opportunity to engage a variety of controversial issues of the day. With ample opportunity for debaters to interact through the use of Points of Information, the format is particularly appealing to audiences. But perhaps the most unique characteristic of the BP format is that rather than the typical two teams engaged in debate, BP debating features four teams, two on the Proposition and two on the Opposition. Each of these teams is independent of the others, prepares separately and is ranked from first to fourth at the end of the round. The addition of two teams to the debate opens the door to a depth of analysis and a level of strategy not accessible in traditional two-team debate.

This year’s BP track will focus on the differences between two- and four-team debating, the unique roles and responsibilities of each speaker in a BP round, how to prepare and defend cases, the organization and structure of a BP round and advanced strategy and tactics for BP debating. Every effort will be made to connect the training to the style of debate practiced at the World Championships and at intervarsity tournaments around the world. Additionally this year we will add elements of capacity building to the schedule so as to provide you with opportunity to learn how to run a debate club, recruit members and run competitions - skills very much needed in the world of university debating.

Wanna see who the winner of the Youth Forum tracks were?

Click here to find out! And this is how they prepared in the Mixed Team Track labs.

See the trainers debate in British Parliamentary Demo debate.

Read more about the trainers who will teach you!

Justice Motlhbani has been involved with debating for nine years both internationally and in Botswana as a speaker, coach, organizer, adjudicator and trainer. He is currently the coach of the Botswana Schools National Debating Team and runs a number of debating workshops in schools around Botswana. He coached National Botswana Debating teams to the African Schools Debating Championships and World Schools Debating Championship. He is a two time former president of the University of Botswana Debating Masters Association and has also served as Botswana’s representative in the South African Debating Council and in the World Debating Council. Justice has worked as a freelance journalist and columnist for newspapers in Botswana, and written articles for the yearly and only debating magazine the Monash Debating Review. He has been vigorously working to bring worlds to Africa, since 2006, leading and presenting Botswana’s bid three times at World Council.

Logan Balavijendran has debated and adjudicated at many worlds' leading debating competitions. He has also coached debate around Asia, in 10 different countries (Japan, South Korea, Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan, Singapore, Bangladesh, Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia). He currently teaches Speech and Debate in South Korea, where he works mostly with students from an English as Second an Foreign Language background. He has been to the last YF, being one of the trainers in the newly introduced British Parliamentary Track.

Sharmila Parmanand
is a graduate of Political Science 2007 with um laude Ateneo de Manila University. Currently she is a lecturer of Department of English at Ateneo de Manila University. She is also a Research Consultant for the Visayan Forum Foundation, which is an NGO committed to improving the conditions of Filipino migrant workers and domestic helpers. She is the Adjudication Officer, at the 2008-2009 Asian Universities Debate Championship Executive Committee. She has been in leading positions in terms of adjudication and organization of debate events all over S-E Asia ever since 2005.
Sharmila sincerely believes that the skills developed in debate - critical thinking, tolerance and open-mindedness, confidence and public-speaking, and social awareness - are essential in building a mature political culture and strengthening democracy and human rights. By serving as a trainer at the forum, she hopes to contribute to this process of mobilizing young people to actively shape their societies.