Team Policy Debate Vocabulary ୧ ‧₊˚ 🍮 ⋅ ☆

The vocabulary required for Team Policy Debate in Challenge I! I will update it as I move through the course. Happy studying!

Debate

a formal conflict, written or spoken, between competing ideas

Evidence

an authority that backs up your argument — includes logical, anecdotal, and empirical information

Affirmative

the team or speaker whose job is to support the resolution

Negative

the team or speaker whose job is to oppose the resolution

Lincoln-Douglas Debate

a one-on-one debate aiming to persuade of a moral claim or judgement

Value

a moral principle, usually abstract, proposed to govern judgments and decision-making

Team Policy Debate

a two-on-two debate aiming to change public policy

Resolution

the subject of the debate — in Lincoln-Douglas debate, it is the moral proposition; in Team Policy Debate, it is the policy to be changed

Constructive

a longer speech that sets the parameters for the debate, building arguments and reinforcing them against the other side’s attacks

Cross-Examination

a short, formal question and answer session after each constructive speech designed to clarify arguments and expose weaknesses

Rebuttal

a shorter speech that summarizes the arguments made in the constructives and argues for the superiority of the sepaker’s side

Prep Time

time allotted to each speaker or team for the entire debate, to be parceled out before their speeches

Status Quo

the current system or policy that the affirmative wants to change

Plan/Solution

a change in policy designed to fix the harms

Disadvantages

a negative outcome or consequence resulting from the affirmative plan

Negative Block

two back-to-back negative speeches comprising the last constructive speech and the first rebuttal

Harm

a problem that exists because of the current policy

Burden of Proof

the affirmative’s obligation to substantiate claims, where the negative may simply cast doubt

Advantages

a positive outcome, typically reversing a harm, resulting from the affirmative plan

Observation

one of the pillars in a formal debate

Mandate

the specific laws or policy changes your plan is proposing

Agency

the branch of government or department that will pass your plan

Funding

the means you will use to pay for your plan

Enforcement

the people responsible for enforcing your plan

Significance

clue words: enormous, important, all, substantial

Inherency

clue words: already, built-in, continue, cause

Topicality

clue words: define, resolution, bounds, exclude

Solvency

clue words: fix, improve, plan, better