What Debate Tournament you will attend

We highly recommend you attend these tournaments with our debate team if you are currently enrolled in Debate Level 3 or above. They are great opportunities to practice your public speaking and argumentation skills while receiving top-level feedback from some of the best judges in Canadian high school debating

 

Tournament List

McGill British Parliamentary Championship

October

Hosted by : McGill University

University of Western Ontario High School Debate Tournament

November

 

York University Debate Tournament

November

Hosted By:York Debating Society

Description: This is an annual high school debate tournament held by the YDS for the purpose of promoting the YDS among high schoolers who will be future university debaters, to give high schoolers a chance to debate against each other and receive feedback to improve as debaters and public speakers, and to raise money for the YDS through registration fees. The event includes five rounds of debate for all debaters, with two playoff rounds for those who qualify.

 

Queen's University Debate Tournament

January

Hosted By: Queen’s Debating Union

Description: The Queen’s University High School Debating Championship will be held at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario once again this winter. The tournament is one of the most prestigious and competitive debate tournaments for students at the high school level.The Queen’s Debating Union, North America’s oldest debating society, is in its 176th session. We have a strong reputation of competitive success, as well as hosting educational and well-run tournaments. The Queen’s National High School Debating Championship is among the most esteemed and well-attended high school debating events of the year.

Western Debate Tournament

February

Hosted By: UWO Debate Society

Hart House Debate Tournament

February

Hosted By: University of Toronto

Description: Hart House Schools is the largest debate tournament for high school students in Canada. The tournament is run in the British Parliamentary style.

 York Women Debate Tournament

February

Hosted By: York Debating Society

Description: This tournament will be an opportunity to introduce high school students to university-style debate. It will also be run as a Women's tournament, working to foster gender inclusivity within a male-dominated activity. It will give students a chance to improve their public speaking skills. This will be the second consecutive year that the Debating Society at York has organized this tournament and we seek to grow this tournament in size and quality over the first year

Harvard World School Debate Tournament

March

 

Thornhill Debate Tournament

March

Ridge Debate Tournament

May

 

Waterloo Debate Tournament

May

 

LinkedKey Debate Tournament

July

Hosted by: LinkedKey

 

Gallery of Tournament

Our Instructors

Brent S.

Brent S.

Head Coach, Debate
Brent's Bio

Brent has been teaching and competing at debate tournaments for more than 7 years. As a debater, Brent competed for Western University and the University of Toronto, achieving multiple speaker awards and tournament victories in different debate styles both in Canada and abroad. Brent has taught and trained debaters of all ages, ranging from students as young as grade 6 to some of the best university debaters in Canada and the United States. As a debater and instructor, Brent has a wide range of experience in debate and is well respected in the high school and university debating circuits throughout North America.

Jenny H.

Jenny H.

Coach, Debate

Jenny has been in competitive debate for 8+ years, having broken at numerous national as well as international competitions with various speaker awards and team awards. In university, she was the head of training at McMaster Debate and worked to establish some of Hamilton’s first youth debate programs. As a former White Oaks Debate Executive, Jenny has coached students of various age groups through summer workshops and year-round programs in many different formats of debate and public speaking. Additionally, Jenny has demonstrated high academic achievement, coming in at the top of her class in IB Biology, Geography, and History. Academically, Jenny holds a MSc Global Health and completed her undergraduate at McMaster University in Health Science with interests in knowledge translation, anatomy & physiology, and intersectional health advocacy. She is currently working with global NGOs to support the World Health Organization in research knowledge translation.

Tian Zhi Y.

Tian Zhi Y.

Coach, Debate

Tianzhi Yang (pronounced tan-zee) graduated from the Schulich School of Business with a degree in Business Administration and has been debating for over 8 years. She was the former President of York Debate Society and was on the White Oak’s Debate executive team. As a debater, she has broken at numerous university debate competitions at University of Toronto, McGill, Queens, and more. During her time at YDS she has served as the Tournament Director for York’s High School Debate Tournament and the Canadian High School Women’s Debate Championships.

Sophie W.

Sophie W.

Coach, DECA

Sophie was president of her high school’s DECA chapter and debate team, where she coached and mentored many younger students. In DECA, she qualified for ICDC four times, and taught many students in a variety of categories throughout her executive positions. As a debater, she volunteered as a debate coach for her elementary school as well as the Hong Kong Parliamentary Debate Society summer camp, and competed in many tournaments at a national and international level.

Matt T.

Matt T.

Head Coach, Debate

Matt is a product of the University of Toronto’s English, Philosophy, and Sociology programs, he is well versed in multiple writing disciplines and carries a long tradition of high standards and strong results into the classroom. Matt has taught students of all ages and skill levels how to elevate their written work, inspiring a passion for writing that his students carry with them through post secondary education and into their professional lives. His expectations are high but fair, Matt goes to great lengths to adapt his lessons to accommodate the needs of individual students and ensure their success, through patience and persistence he instills in his class not just a love of writing, but also the discipline required to do it well.