Recent Speech & Debate Site News & Updates
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State Congressional Legislation
Legislation for all conferences is now posted.
UIL MS Debate
Do you have middle school students that want to learn about argumentation and debate?
Would you like to get a feeder program for CX Debate started in your middle school that could strengthen your high school program?
Are you interested in providing debate competition at your middle school invitational or district meet?
See the resources designed especially for UIL Middle School CX Debate!
An Overview of the Fall 2024 Lincoln Douglas Debate Resolution
Whether we reside in rural or urban areas, the necessity for food is universal, making the Fall UIL topic a crucial exploration of American agricultural practices and their effects on both human and animal welfare. This topic invites a values-based analysis, encompassing environmental justice, the ethical provision of food, the protection of quality of life, and animal rights, among others. A fundamental step in addressing this topic is to define “agroecology.” According to the Soil Association, a UK-based organization advocating for alternatives to industrial farming, “Agroecology is an umbrella term that covers lots of agricultural practices that you may be more familiar with, like organic, biodynamic or permaculture. Organic farming is a form of agroecological farming. All organic farmers are required to meet a strict set of standards. These standards guarantee higher animal welfare, fewer pesticides and antibiotics and no GMOs [genetically-modified organisms]. Organic practices also support more jobs on farms, healthy soil and more on-farm” (https://www.soilassociation.org/causes-campaigns/a-ten-year-transition-to-agroecology/what-is-agroecology/). Therefore, affirmative cases are likely to emphasize the health benefits of rejecting GMOs, the promotion of animal welfare by opposing confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs), or environmental protection through the reduced use of pesticides and herbicides. Conversely, negative cases may argue that industrialized agriculture is essential for feeding a growing global population, that intensive farming methods protect the environment by producing more food on less land, or that well-regulated CAFOs can effectively balance animal welfare with minimal environmental disruption.
Fall 2024 LD Debate Topic
The 2024 Fall Lincoln Douglas topic is now posted.
Speech State Tournament Information
The UIL Speech State Tournament webpage is open. Coaches who have contestants competing in the Region Meet will want to review it now, in the event your student qualifies for the State tournament due to the quick turnaround of state required forms. The deadline for schools to submit their LD debate judge and Prose/Poetry Documentation along with other tournament forms is Tuesday, April 30. Click here. Or use the quick link at the top of this page.
Managing Your District Meet: For CX Meet Directors
Spring 2024 LD Debate Topic
January – May 2024 UIL Lincoln Douglas Debate Spring Topic now posted.
Resolved: On balance, the use of artificial intelligence in art, music, and literature is undesirable.
New breakthroughs in artificial intelligence are changing everything around us, including in the creative arts. The question raised by the Spring 2024 UIL Lincoln-Douglas debate topic is whether these changes are good or bad. Critics see many negative results: replacing human creativity with cheap imitations lacking soul or any understanding of the human experience; putting creative artists out of work; and lack of accountability for algorithmically stealing from the body of work done by great artists, musicians, and writers. Many of these issues were at the heart of the recent writers’ strike in Hollywood. But there are also many defenders who see AI as a tool that can be used to enhance human creativity. Creative artists who are embracing AI find that it makes their work more productive in several ways: it can automate mundane functions, promote brainstorming and help push through “writer’s block,” and serve as a research assistant. Ironically, the use of AI in the creative arts may actually increase the value – both artistically and financially – of works preserving the human touch. The 2024 Spring UIL Lincoln-Douglas topic offers an opportunity for debaters to explore these timely issues.
Rich Edwards, Ph.D.
Professor of Communication
Baylor University