In addition to debating at universities, competition has spread at schools all over the globe in recent decades. For example, participating countries annually send a delegation of pupils aged 14 to 19 to the World Schools Debating Championships (WSDC), which are comparable to the World Universities Debating Championships. Laura Alviz of the Debating Society Germany e.V. explains what exactly that means. WSDC takes place in Stuttgart next week. After the German team had to cover long distances in 2014 and 2015 to reach the Southeast Asian cities Bangkok and Singapore, traveling becomes easier this year. WSDC takes place in seven days ...

Last weekend, the first EBS Open organized by Bhavesh Agarval took place in Wiesbaden. There were only 16 teams due to the fact that a lot of teams canceled only a few days before the tournament. However, all participants were happy with the small EBS Open! Chief Adjudicators were Marietta Gädeke and Michael Shapira. Motions: R1: THW make EU voting compulsory. R2: You are a 19 year old boy who just finished his Abitur. As this boy, THW join the Bundeswehr (an infoslide was provided). R3: THW ban private Universities. R4: THW grant all Ethnic Germans a full Right of Return (an infoslide was provided as ...

Between September 8 and 11 2013 BGU carried out the Red Sea Open for the fourth time. Convened by Mor Zoran and Noa Golan hyper-funded by the Ben Gurion University the rounds took place on the Eilat Campus of BGU. 32 teams, an outstanding Chief Adjudication team and an all round board combined an intimate debate atmosphere with a party holiday mood.  And the debate community has a new contender that wants to host EUDC 2016. Eilat, a rather Unconventional Debate Scenery From around a dozen tournaments yearly generated on the Israeli circuit the Red Sea Open is the only one truly ...

Mannheim Debating Union elected a new executive board in july. President is now Michael Powala, his deputies are Christina Mack and Jana Gilke.

Debaters from all over the world are flocking in to Manila, Philippines. From 27 December 2011 to 4 January 2012, they assemble at De La Salle University (DLSU) to compete for the title of the World Universities Debating Championships (WUDC or Worlds). From under the roof of VDCH there will be the following debating society competing with around 400 teams from about 70 countries - all in a peaceful competition, the WUDC 2012 or DLSU Worlds: Berlin Debating Union: John Eltringham, Narendran Ramasendaran, Dessislava Kirova, Juliane Mendelsohn, Kai Dittmann, Matthias Winkelmann S.A.E.C.L.O. Greifswald: Rafael Heinisch, Ida Heidecker Debattierclub Mannheim: Jana Gilke, Katrin Sadroschinski Debattierclub Johannes ...

Mannheim Debating Union e.V. has a new elected executive board. Patrick Weber, Anne-Sophie Lockner, Martin Türck und Miriam Gauer are responsible for the well-being of debating in Mannheim. Congrats!

Ahhhh, summer holidays! Finally: Sleeping in, extended breakfast, enjoy the summer day, relax from school. A good book might compete with the all-too-fast online world. Uhm, well, the German delegation who went to the World Schools Debating Championships (WSDC or World Schools) 2011 in Dundee obviuosly meant to do the oppositie of all this: Long trip to Scottland, getting up early in the morning, out into Scottish weather, in to the next debate, out of the  debate, doing late night online research for the next day. Tired, hungry, disappointed by losses, totally euphoric from wins, running between venues, competing with ...

News from Stuttgart: His Excellency, the Ambassadorof the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Germany, Simon McDonald, is now patron of the Debating Society Germany (DSG). DSG chairman David Whitehead is really delighted to have the ambassador as patron: "This is a huge step forward for the society and we are deeply humbled by and grateful for this act. Such a patronage will permit us to promote the cause of English-language debating in Germany with more vigour than ever before." The amabassador has agreed to be the patron of the society during his term ...

This article is not available in English. Please read the German version to learn about which teams, free speakers and adjudicators made it to octos at the Deutsche Debattiermeisterschaft (DDM), or German Championship in Heidelberg. ...

East, West and North have debated all day long in Halle, Frankfurt and Osnabrück to select the best debaters at German regional championships. Format of this year's regionals is OPD, or Offene Parlamentarische Debatte (open parliamentary debate). Achte Minute has all the results for you. ...

The GSDC, or Germans - both stands for the German Schools Debating Championship -will be stagedat schools in Stuttgart from June 2 to 5. As Achte Minute reported earlier, university student debaters are more than welcome as judges. Now, the venue of the grand final has been announced: It will be hosted by the Patch High School in Stuttgart-Vaihingen. That school is part of the US-American military facilities and hence de iure located on American soil. This is why special rules apply, as David Whitehead, chair of the Debating Society Germany (DSG), pointed out. In order to have easy access to ...

Judging the up-and-coming and be wowed by them and wow them with university debating? Well then, let’s go to the German Schools Debating Championships (GSDC or Germans) in Stuttgart. This is where schools debaters from all over Germany will be competing for the title of German champion from June 2 to 5. Judges from university debating are more than welcome, David Whitehead, president of the Debating Society Germany (DSG) told Achten Minute. He intends to build on the newly made up cooperation between VDCH and DSG. Language of debate is English while the format of the Germans will be that of ...

This is an article about the German Senior League in Schools Debating. This league is annually staged by the Debating Society Germany (DSG) in Würzburg. Marcus Ewald travelled to the Franconian town where he presented the Association of Debating Societies at Universities (VDCH). In the end, the two umbrella associations have come to the conclusion that they must work together. Read more on the tourny and the coop in the German version of this article. Unfortunately, the piece is not yet available in English.

We're sorry, this piece is not available in English. Please read the German version of this article to learn more about what deb socs from Stuttgart and Vienna have to say on Botswana Worlds 2011 and what Berliner Zeitung reports on the Berlin Debating Union, the future host of Worlds 2013. ...

On his blog, Manos Moschopoulos compiled unofficial tabs for ESL and EFL respectively for the World Universities Debating Championships (WUDC or Worlds). He did so based on data provided by Leela Koenig, judge at Botswana Worlds, and the competition's language committee. So far, official ESL and EFL tabs have not yet been published by the adjudication team of CA Logandran Balavijendran. According to Manos’ compilation, a correction of the Top Five EFL Speakers has to be noted: “Simon Belak (Ljubljana C) and Andreas Lazar (Stuttgart A) are joint top EFL speakers (initially, they were announced as 2nd and 1st respectively),” Manos ...

The full tab of the World Universities Debating Championships 2011 has been made available online already! The CA team put it on the homepage of Botswana Worlds. Naturally, Achte Minute does have a focus on the results of  VDCH teams and speakers. Hence, to lighten the burden for you, our loyal readers, we compiled their results. ...

Debaters worldwide already are cheering about their teams at World Universities Debating Championships (WUDC or Worlds): The Debattierclub Stuttgart (DCS) jubilates about a smooth start into 2011, the Israeli Debating League compliment their Israeli debaters on their results and the weekly newspaper DIE ZEIT interviewed Chinese debaters. ...

Breaking news from Botswana: Results of our VDCH teams after round 6 leaked from Gabs and we have it all here for our loyal readers. Colm Flynn provided photographs of the tab on his World Debating Website. So how are our German and Austrian teams doing in Gaborone? ...

Six preliminary rounds are over, night has fallen over Botswana. Tomorrow will bring three more pre-rounds at Worlds 2011. These are going to be closed rounds – no feedback and no info on the ranking will leak from the judges. Socials tonight feature a “culture night”. No more complaints about waiting and queuing are to be heard in Gaborone, but speculations on the ranking of teams and institutions. The teams of Debattierclub Stuttgart feel fine with their performance, Andreas C. Lazar reported this morning: “Gaborone, 32 degrees Celsius. Both Michael [Saliba] and I (Stuttgart A) as well as Jana [Gilke] and ...

In a few days time, Stuttgart will be stage to the EurOpen 2010, the open European schools debating championship. Students from schools all over the world will flock in the south-western town from 6 to 12 November. University students are not allowed to take part as speakers, but are warmly welcome as judges, as Jana Gilke reports, president of Mannheim Debating Union and co-convenor of EurOpen 2010. Those interested in sharing their experience may write an e-mail to Jana via jana[at]dwtranslations.de. Eight prelims, quarters and the final take place in Stuttgart while the semi finals will be staged in Tübingen where ...

Mannheim Debating Union has elected a new executive board. Jana Gilke is now president, David Weiss and Daniel Mühle-García her deputies. Congratulations and good luck with your work!