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By the Juris Education Interview Team
Bob Alexander is the Assistant Dean of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences and Debate Team coach at Bossier Parish Community College.
At BPCC, we compete exclusively in the International Public Debate Association. Competitions include both 1-on-1 individual debates and 2-on-2 team debates.
John Stuart Mill once wrote that “he who knows only his own side of the case, knows little of that” (On Liberty, Chapter 2). Academic debate teaches students to see multiple sides of issues, to understand the reasoning behind them, and to find not only the points of disagreement but also to find the points of agreement that can serve as a foundation for persuasion. Then, being armed with this understanding students gain the opportunity to refine their ability to advocate on a variety of subject areas.
Both the greatest challenge and the greatest reward of joining a debate union are the same: it is a craft that can be refined but never perfected. Many join who are high achievers and it can be intimidating at first when one begins to see just how much they do not know, and it requires self-discipline to continue developing. At the same time, this continual learning can provide the greatest reward. I started academic debate as an undergraduate student thirty-two years ago, then began coaching in graduate school. While my role is to teach students, after thirty-two years of experience I am also continuing to learn and that makes it an extremely rewarding activity.
To be forced to present your ideas under strict time limits, to do so knowing that your opponent will attempt to pick apart everything that you have said, while simultaneously doing so in front of a judge who will either vote for or against you creates an extreme amount of pressure that debaters must rise to. Couple this with many of the academic debate formats providing limited preparation (ex: in the IPDA format students receive a different topic for every debate and do not find out the topic until thirty minutes prior to the debate) and debaters are often forced to advocate for a topic or side that just a brief time earlier they may not have had any knowledge about. Being able to effectively navigate through these challenges through a dozen or more debates over the course of a weekend competition not only provides invaluable speaking experience but can create a level of confidence that clearly sets debaters apart from those who have not been a part of the activity.
I have been fortunate to have coached a number of great debaters who continued on to law school. Because it teaches you to understand all sides of an argument, to be able to research and support your advocacy, and to be able to effectively communicate that advocacy in a persuasive manner, academic debate is an extremely beneficial activity for aspiring law school students.
Every past member of our team who has applied to law school has ultimately been accepted, attended, graduated, and passed the bar. To a person, they attribute much of their success to their past participation in academic debate.
Join. It really is as simple as that. Any of the hesitations that one may have can be overcome by embracing the power of “yet.” For example: “I am not comfortable speaking in public…yet” or “I am not sure how I will fit it into my schedule…yet.” If you are serious about pursuing a legal education then the sooner that you join a debate team the better off you will be. If the college/university you are attending does not have an academic debate team, then inquire about starting one. It is simply that important.
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