Refugee Week Exhibition Debate

On Friday 20th of June, in celebration of Refugee Week, the Braybrook Community Centre hosted a debate on the topic, "That it is harder for young refugees to make Australia their home than adults"

All of the speakers had come to Australia as refugees, and the audience was given an insight into both the refugee experience and generational difference. Free Debate provided coaches to both teams to ensure that the debate was fair, fun and fast-paced.

In support of the motion was a team of adults: Cuc, Mesert and Duku (pictured with their coaches Roland and Rob). Against the motion were a team of students from Braybrook High School: Monaliza, Bishara and Malaang, coached by Lucia.

One highlight was Duku's impersonation of an image obsessed teenager, right down to the dance moves. Also memorable were Bishara's arguments about how teenagers experiment with drugs and alcohol, each sentence finishing with the statement "not that I do."

The team of students won narrowly and Free Debate would like to congratulate all speakers on an engaging and informative debate. Free Debate would also like to acknowledge the hard work and grace under fire of Kiemi Lai, Engaged Communities Coordinator of the Western Bulldogs and roving interviewer on the night of the debate.

Free Debate Financial Accountability Principles

Free Debate is a not-for-profit organization.

Free Debate will employ high standards of prudence, probity and record-keeping in all financial dealings.

1. Free Debate will administer any tied gifts, donations or grants fairly and transparently, including clear communication with both donors and recipients;
2. Free Debate will ensure that we receive value for money and minimise costs (e.g. obtaining quotes) when incurring expenses;
3. Free Debate will generally reimburse such expenses on presentation of acceptable receipts, but the Committee may authorise other expenditure (e.g. advances) where justified.

Call for Application for 2008 Hiroshima-Tokyo Debate Seminars Trainer

Free Debate Inc, is seeking an Australian debating coach to attend the 2008 Hiroshima-Tokyo Debate Seminars, from 4-14 August 2008.

Free Debate Incorporated, in cooperation with our Japanese partners, will send an Australian debating coach to Hiroshima and Tokyo in August 2008 to deliver a number of debating and communication skills seminars. The Seminars are supported by the Australian Commonwealth Government through the Australian-Japan Foundation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The programme will focus on high school and university students who have limited debating opportunities.

This exciting new project involves coaching both high school students and university debaters, as well as presenting and attending at a prestigious academic conference sponsored by the Japan Debate Association with the convention theme “Argumentation, the Law & Justice.” The coach selected will also have the opportunity to attend significant cultural events in Japan, such as the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony as part of the project.

Main Elements of the Program:

• 5-7 August 2008 - Hiroshima - Attend Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony (6 August) and deliver introductory debating seminar to high school students


• 8-10 August 2008 - Tokyo - Attend and present at the Tokyo International Academic Conference on Argumentation


• 11-14 August 2008 - Tokyo - Deliver advanced debating, adjudication and critical thinking course to university level debaters

For information about applying for this project, email freedebate1@gmail.com. Applications are due Friday 6th June 2008.

Free Debate Enabling Day 2

 Free Debate's second annual Enabling Day built on the success of last year's membership and training day. This year's highlights were guest speakers Melanie Tedja (new member) and Tim Sonnreich (Committee consultant).

President Kim Little welcomed new members with an introduction to Free Debate's history, aims and objectives, and then Rob Koh delivered a short presentation on the preparation, delivery and follow-up involved in all Free Debate projects.

Please contact us if you would like to know more about this year's Enabling Day.

JPDU Spring Seminar in Tokyo

The 2008 Spring Seminar, hosted by the Japanese Parliamentary Debating Union (JPDU) from 29 February until 2 March 2008, was an excellent and highly successful programme.

Four Australian coaches were funded by the Australia-Japan Foundation to attend the Spring Seminar. Nicole Lynch, Fiona Prowse, Jacob Clifton and Ivan Ah Sam, travelled to Tokyo and ran classes during the three days for over 150 Japanese university and high school debaters.

As well as providing an intensive opportunity for accelerated learning in debating, facilitiated through seminars and practice debates, the Spring Seminar provided a unique opportunity for cross-cultural exchange.

One coach said about the program:


"Japanese debaters are the most dedicated and hardest working debaters I have come across in my training career. They are extremely diligent and attentive during classes and it is a pleasure to work with them during the
Seminar."

We look forward to working with JPDU and the Australia-Japan Foundation in the future.

Application for 2008 JPDU Spring Seminar Trainer

JPDU, in cooperation with Free Debate Inc., is seeking Australian debating coaches to attend the 2008 Spring Seminar in Tokyo, from 29 February – 2 March 2008.

Japan Parliamentary Debate Union (JPDU) is a student-run organization that coordinates events for the advancement of Japanese debaters. It represents debating clubs from 40 universities. For the past five years JPDU has been inviting Australian debaters to Japan to train Japanese debaters at the JPDU Spring Seminar. The Australia-Japan Debaters Spring Seminar is supported by the Australian Commonwealth Government through the Australian-Japan Foundation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Free Debate will be selecting coaches in consultation with JPDU.

If you are an Australian debater and would like to be considered for a place on the 2008 training team, please provide a brief debating CV and a separate statement addressing the criteria set out below. This statement should be no longer than two pages. Please also provide a one page lesson plan as referred to in criterion [3].

All responses should be sent to freedebate1@gmail.com with the subject line “JPDU Spring Seminar Application”. Responses must be submitted no later than 28 January 2008. Please note that selection is open to but not limited to members of Free Debate Inc.

If you have any questions about the Spring Seminar, please email JPDU representative Toshiaki Ikehara at o_ob380@yahoo.com.

Selection criteria
[1] Significant training experience, preferably including experience training ESL speakers.

[2] A strong record in debating and/or adjudicating at an international level.

[3] The ability and capacity to develop a high quality, replicable training program (including a training plan and supporting materials). In addition to providing evidence of your relevant experience, please provide a one page plan summarising how you would run the JPDU training.

[4] Proven interpersonal and team-work skills.

[5] A commitment to encouraging and supporting a wide variety of people to debate, including the ability and capacity to develop ways to extend the reach of ESL debating training.

Western Chances Update

"I really don't want to speak in front of the group. I wanted to do public speaking training, but I didn't realise it would involve actual public speaking"

Free Debate and Western Chances have been working together since 2006 to deliver high quality communications training to youth in Victoria's western suburbs. And yes the person quoted above did have to talk in front of the group. And yes, she did a very good job, in spite of her fear.

Last year Free Debate implemented a successful pilot programme at Bayside College – featured in The Bridge newsletter in September '06 – which has resulted in Bayside's increased involvement in the mainstream debating competition run by the Debater's Association of Victoria. Free Debate's four week program focused on basic debating training and research skills and each participant was awarded a certificate by Terry Bracks.

Since then Free Debate has expanded its programme to include a "train the trainer" course for teachers with the aim of fostering a debating culture within schools. In 2007 participating schools to date include Kurungang Secondary College, Copperfield College, Kealba College and Bayside Secondary College. More are expected by the end of the year.

As the number of schools involved has increased, Free Debate has broadened the programme's structure to include general presentation and leadership skills as well as formal debating skills. Student leaders as well as debating teams can now learn how to structure, deliver and time a speech, as well as how to use body language, props and microphones. These more general sessions have allowed the students to discuss issues that matter to them (granting an immigration visa to rapper Snoop Dogg was a particularly hot topic in the early sessions) while also having to take up positions contrary to their own.

Free Debate is especially grateful for the hard work of Helen Worladge, Executive Director, Western Chances, who has brokered the relationship with Free Debate and has provided constant support as well as introducing Free Debate to other members of the Western Chances network.