Menu
Menu
COMPETE IN INTERNATIONAL TORUNMENTS
Welcome to our Tournaments page, the hub for all information on the school debate tournaments we (co-)host. Here, you’ll find details about each tournament, including dates, formats, and registration information.
Debate tournaments are competitions where school teams face off in multiple rounds, tackling diverse topics with structured arguments. Teams compete against one another, judged by a panel who scores them on ballots (team votes) and individual speaker scores. The highest-scoring teams progress to knockout rounds, including quarterfinals, semifinals, or directly to the final, depending on the tournament format. The tournament culminates in the crowning of the best speakers, based on accumulated speaker scores, and the champion team.
In partnership with IFTE’s Misch dich ein, we co-organize the prestigious Austrian National Debate Championships. Each year, the tournament focuses on a central theme that guides the debates, encouraging young participants to engage with significant social and political issues.
The event enjoys endorsement from the Austrian President and consistently attracts national media attention, highlighting its role in promoting youth dialogue and civic involvement. A distinguished honorary jury, composed of notable experts, public figures, and academics, evaluates the debates, adding to the event’s prestige. Our contributions include providing skilled judges, collaborating on topic selection, and ensuring the overall quality of the competition.
For further details, visit the official page.
Welcome to the Austrian Autumn Schools Cup, Austria’s inaugural international schools debating competition! Organized by DK Wien and GIBS (Graz International Bilingual School), this event promises an exciting platform for young debaters from across Europe to test their skills in the WSDC (World Schools Debating Championship) format.
Registration Details (Closed):
Event Details:
Prepared motions:
Schedule:
Friday, 15.11.2024
11:00-12:00 Teachers Debate Café (sign up)
12:00-13:00 Debaters Workshop (sign up)
12:00-13:00 Check-in
13:00-14:00 Opening Ceremony
14:00-14:30 Judge briefing
14:00-17:00 Round 1 (impromptu)
17:00-19:00 Round 2 (prepared)
19:00-20:00 Dinner (provided)
Saturday, 16.11.2024
08:00-09:00 Check-in and breakfast
09:00-10:30 Round 3 (prepared)
10:30-13:00 Round 4 (impromptu)
13:00-14:00 Lunch (provided)
14:00-16:30 Round 5 (impromptu)
16:30-19:00 Round 6 (impromptu)
19:00-20:00 Dinner and Cultural Night
20:00 Break announcement
Sunday, 17.11.2024
08:00-09:00 Check-in and breakfast
09:00-11:30 Quarters & Novice Final (impromptu)
11:30-14:00 Semis
14:00-15:00 Lunch (provided)
15:00-17:30 Final
17:30-18:00 Award ceremony
Prepare for an extraordinary weekend of debate, where top adjudicators, dynamic motions, and the lively atmosphere of Graz come together to create a truly memorable experience. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with talented debaters, forge new friendships, and immerse yourself in thrilling discussions.
Stay tuned for further updates and registration information, and feel free to reach out with any questions at schools@dkwien.at. We can’t wait to welcome you to Graz for the Austrian Autumn Schools Cup!
Ballot: The score sheet used by judges to record team and individual speaker scores, showing which team won and the quality of each speaker’s performance. Each judge fills out one ballot representin their vote.
Bracket: A ranking system that organizes teams in knockout rounds, matching higher-ranked teams with lower-ranked ones for fair competition as rounds progress.
Delib (Deliberation): A discussion among judges to reach a consensus on the round’s outcome, often necessary for rounds with complex arguments or close scores.
Draw: The list of matchups for each round, showing which teams will debate each other and the side (proposition or opposition) they’ll argue.
ESL (English as a Second Language): A category for debaters whose primary language is not English, often involving separate awards or recognitions for non-native speakers.
Fold: The method of pairing teams within a bracket for knockout rounds, usually by matching higher-ranked teams with lower-ranked ones to ensure balanced competition.
Impromptu: A debate format where topics are announced shortly before the round, allowing only limited preparation time (usually 1 hour).
Inround Bracket: In preliminary rounds, teams are grouped based on performance so that teams with similar records face each other for fairer matchups.
Inrounds: The preliminary rounds where all teams compete to qualify for knockout stages, with performance in these rounds determining rankings and advancement.
Opp (Opposition): The team assigned to argue against the motion, responsible for challenging the arguments of the proposition team.
Outround Bracket: In the knockout stages, teams are ranked and matched within a bracket so that higher-ranked teams face lower-ranked ones as they progress toward the final.
Outrounds: The elimination rounds after preliminary rounds, including quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals, where teams are knocked out until a champion is determined.
POI (Point of Information): A brief interjection during an opponent’s speech, where a speaker can pose a question or challenge a point, aiming to disrupt or test the speaker.
Power Pairing: A system in the preliminary rounds that pairs teams with similar win-loss records to ensure balanced and fair competition.
Prepared: A debate format where teams receive the topic well in advance, allowing for in-depth research and development of arguments.
Prop (Proposition): The team tasked with arguing in favor of the motion, presenting a case to support the proposed change or action.
Pull Up/Pull Down: Adjustments made to pairings to balance competition when there’s an odd number of teams with similar records (pull up = lower-ranked team faces a higher one, pull down = the opposite).
Speaks: Individual scores awarded to each speaker based on delivery, clarity, and argument quality, used for both team ranking and individual awards.
Split: A scenario where judges disagree on the winning team, leading to a verdict based on majority opinion, such as a 2-1 vote in a three-judge panel.
Tab (Tabulation Room): The system or location where tournament scores are calculated, rankings tracked, and matchups determined, managing the overall structure of the event.
Tab (Results): The final published results document listing team rankings, individual speaker scores, and any awards, providing a summary of the tournament outcomes.
