Students begin by watching past presidential debates, analyzing, and then collaborating to define the concepts of “public speaking” and “debate.” From there, the class transitions into an in-depth exploration of public speaking, focusing on the art of rhetoric and the persuasive appeals of Aristotle’s rhetorical triangle — ethos, pathos, and logos. Students watch and analyze speeches by influential activists, politicians, and entrepreneurs, using these real-world examples to understand effective speaking techniques. Key components of the subsequent debate section of the course include the CWI argument structure, identification and analysis of logical fallacies, and the crafting of effective rebuttals. Lessons are brought to life through interactive activities like trivia games, Kahoot!, quizzes, and tongue twisters. The semester culminates in a dynamic role-play simulation: a zombie apocalypse survival scenario. Each student is assigned a unique character with specific traits, professions, and motivations. Drawing on the skills developed throughout the course, students present persuasive speeches arguing why their character deserves to survive. At other debate academies, this course aligns with the Novice (N) level of instruction.

With resolutions centered on current events, PF relies on logic, clear communication, and well-sourced evidence with a preference for reliability and recency. Recent PF topics have tackled single-use plastics, surveillance infrastructure on the United States Southern border, and federal student debt cancellation. Upon the completion of this course, students will have a comprehensive understanding of PF round structure, the purpose of each speech, a basic grasp of round vision, and some in-round debate experience.

A defining feature of this course—compared to the Argument Architects class—is the emphasis on research and debate around topics of global significance. For the first time, students receive topic analysis lectures from coaches based on the assigned National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA) PF resolution. New concepts are examined through the lens of both current and past PF resolutions, encouraging students to develop nuanced, well-rounded arguments. Over the course of the semester, students are expected to prepare full cases and partial blockfiles. Faculty will organize two in-house debate sessions between students: a mid-semester debate day (week 5) and a culminating debate day (week 10). After all debates, faculty provide an oral and written RFD (reason for decision), personalized feedback to all competitors, and suggested edits to students’ cases and blockfiles. Upon the completion of this course, students may begin attending national circuit debate tournaments. At other debate academies, this course aligns with Varsity (V) level.

Most students in Team X have attended at least one prior tournament and/or are familiar with national circuit debate. For a majority of the course, students engage directly with coaches in crafting cases and blockfiles, receiving lectures on the most recent NSDA topic, partaking in drills, and debating against one another. Between lessons, members can access our exclusive newsletter curated on a weekly basis to include the most relevant current events and academic research on a given topic. The only new concept taught in this course is progressive argumentation, with a focus on theory shells as they are read on the PF national circuit. Students are introduced to what a shell is, the various components of a shell, popular shells on the PF national circuit (paraphrasing, disclosure/open-source, etc.), and how to respond to a shell primarily through counter-interps. The course includes a brief segment on both topical and non-topical K literature. Coaches will assist students with starting and maintaining their page on the OpenCaseList, including contact information, best practices for citations, and writing round reports. Unique to this course is the complementary tournament registration service; at any point in the semester, students may ask to be registered under the ''Eloquence Academy'' name for an online debate tournament. When tournaments arrive, coaches are available for hands-on support. Upon the completion of this course, students are equipped for achieving deep competitive success. They are also equipped with a lifelong understanding of public speaking and how to prepare for these tournaments, no matter the topic. At other debate academies, this course would correlate with the Travel Team.

Most CNDF rounds are impromptu. Students learn about the topic that they will debate as they enter the room. They then have 20 minutes to prepare without technology. Therefore, rounds are more focused on logical reasoning rather than intensive research, scholarly evidence, or debate technicalities. Still, several aspects of CNDF carry over to other debate events, including judge adaptation, weighing, and argument structure. The CNDF season starts in January and there are several regional, provincial, and national tournaments throughout the year. In this course, students will learn the CNDF format, thoroughly unpack each speech of the round, watch demo CNDF rounds with guided instructor analysis to identify strong strategies and common pitfalls, practice on-the-spot case generation, and receive personalized feedback to refine both their speaking style and strategic decision-making in-round. Upon the completion of this course, students may begin attending CNDF tournaments.