Inter-School Debate Tournament

Sheikh Iraj and Tashfiq Bin Maksud

Debate competitions in school, colleges and universities are quite popular throughout the world, and Bangladesh is no exception. Through debating, students benefit in a number of ways: their public speaking skills, self-confidence, logical and analytical thinking powers improve to a great degree.
Independent University of Bangladesh (IUB) recently hosted an inter-school debate tournament titled ‘IUB Ascension 2016’. It was a unique event as it was based on comic book characters and their ideals. The three-day event started on July 21 and ended with the final round on the 23rd. There were 60 teams representing 28 schools from across the country that participated in two categories _ Novice and Open.
Each team had three members and their experience is what put them in different groups. If every member had participated in less than six debate tournaments, they were categorised as a ‘Novice’ team, while a team with more experience was placed in the ‘Open’ group. There were several rounds, including preliminary, quarterfinal, semifinal and final.
Besides having a unique theme, the event had an exceptional and unbiased judging system. Moderated by Rishad Sharif, the chair of Bangladesh Debate Council (BDC), the system required the judges to point out the flaws and plus points of the teams after every round, so the teams could improve themselves. The team members could also score the judges based on their judgment which ensured fairness. Led by Sharif, the adjudicators hailed from reputable institutions such as Dhaka University and Boston College.
The tournament was intense at every level. Each team got to compete in at least five rounds until they were knocked out or moved up to the semifinals and finals. The debates were based on contradictory principles of superheroes and villains, with motions ranging from sports to education and media politics. In the Open category, Academia School of Dhaka was the champion, while Viqarunnisa Noon School and College, Dhaka became the runner-up. Green Herald won in the Novice category, while Scholastica Mirpur was the runner-up.
Lima Choudhury, deputy director of IUB’s Admission and Financial Aid office, was the MC at the award presentation ceremony. Chief guest A Matin Chowdhury, chairman of Education, Science, Technology and Cultural Development Trust of IUB, trustees of the university, Vice-Chancellor M Omar Rahman and deans of different faculties of IUB presented trophies and prize money to the champion and runner-up teams.
Y&I talked to some of the participants about their experience at the tournament. Here is what they had to say:

Wasif Khan, Academia School

Our team, comprising of Md Shadman Karim, Md Saquib Shahzad and myself, are always thrilled to attend debate tournaments, mostly because we love the activity. But IUB Ascension was something far greater than just that. It had every element of a perfect event. First and most importantly, perhaps, we actually felt safe within the campus, which was a marvelous emulation of a House of Heroes, the theme of the event, because of how thorough the security procedure was. Before this tournament, I could never imagine such attention to detail was possible because in every corner of IUB, we found our promised heroes, who made the campus ever so lively. The real heroes, however, were all the members of the organising committee and the team of volunteers who managed the event so perfectly. It was a spectacular affair with 60 teams participating in the battle of rhetoric. As tiresome as it sounds, we were energised throughout the tournament because of all the amazing food and hospitality we were provided. After five exciting rounds of debating, IUB’s proud alumni, Nemesis, returned to their alma mater to entertain all the debaters with a show of their skills in the art of music. Finally, the most competitive and heart-throbbing rounds, the knockouts, began and Academia made it to the finals unscathed. We were up against Viqarunnisa Noon School and College in the grand final. It was a fierce spectacle, but in the end, we came out on top, and were crowned champions. It is always great to win a tournament, but this triumph was particularly satisfying because we proved ourselves to be the best team, in the best tournament hosted in Bangladesh.

Noshin Saiyara, Viqarunnisa Noon School & College

I have been in the English debate circuit for almost three years now. IUB Ascension has been one of the best tournaments I have had the privilege to attend. With the theme of Superheroes, the graphics department and comics in goodie bags gave us the ultimate comic nerd’s fantasy. We had two days of grueling debate in five preliminary rounds, with motions ranging from sports to education and media politics. We had to prep motions that we were given, that were based on feminism and political campaigns. The whole experience was the best of what debating has to offer.

M Towseef Hossain, European Standard School

Ascension is an apt name, it ascended above every expectation and dream of what a debate tournament could look like. Every round was a breath of fresh air teeming with anticipation. Every food break was a treat for the taste buds. The best adjudicators in town, in arguably the best campus in town, rose above every hurdle to deliver the tournament I never thought possible. It doesn’t get better than this.

Syeda Ashfah Toaha Duti, Viqarunnisa Noon School & College

IUB has hosted this debate tournament in an extravagant manner. From the first day to the last, the organisers never failed to impress me. Each round in both Open and Novice were intense. It was a thrill to compete in this tournament. This very fest made us realise how wide the debating world is. Knowing about stuff, catching points, standing up with a sensible conclusion makes you feel the rush. Personally, I got to learn a lot. My enthusiasm level went so high that I was a consistent viewer of all the debates that were held.  This whole thing was a huge learning experience for me.  It might sound funny, yet I must say, I have never learned so much in school.

Nazifa Raidah, Viqarunnisa Noon School & College

As much as we love debating, it’s quite hard to keep your head above the anxiousness at times and have fun. However, this tournament made sure the debaters get to have the best experience while debating, keeping the competitive drive. Starting from the amazing props that greeted us at the entrance, to every hall and room to the amazing goodies, and ending the night with Nemesis! Every single arrangement showed how dedicated IUB’s organising committee was to make sure that the participants got the best experience one can expect from a debate tournament. I am truly grateful to all the members associated who made this tournament successful. Reaching the finals at this tournament was quite an honour. IUB Ascension 2016 has set a standard for upcoming tournaments, can’t wait for next year.

AZM Ridoan, head of communication & co-convenor IUBDC

Ascension was an idea breeding inside to celebrate IUBDC (IUB Debating Club) the legends in form of our alumnus, and especially the debating circuit of Bangladesh as a whole. That is when IUB generously stepped up, giving us a platform for organising this event. An inter-school debating tournament to nourish and motivate talented kids from the national debating scene, and celebrate the spirit of debating with an equal balance of competitiveness and fun, which was missing from the circuit for quite some time. Thus, we brought you the biggest national debating tournament in the form of IUB Ascension 2016. The Superhero theme was an essential part of the event, making it such fun, cheerful and motivating.

Rishad Sharif, chair of BDC, chief adjudicator

IUB has hosted an excellent debate tournament along with a unique theme and it was an honour to be the chief adjudicator of the event. We had about 60 teams competing in this tournament from schools across the country. The adjudicators in this event were all well qualified with impressive debating backgrounds. To make the judgment fair, we implemented a system which is used in the WDC Tournament. This system requires the judges to point out all the flaws and advantages of a team and explain elaborately why they have either lost or progressed. It also enables the competitors to grade the adjudicators, to avoid any biased judgment. We have been implementing this system in numerous debate tournaments in our country for the past four years, and I hope it would become more widespread. 

 

Inter-School Debate Tournament

Sheikh Iraj and Tashfiq Bin Maksud Debate competitions in school, colleges and universities are quite popular throughout the world, and Bangladesh is no exception. Through debating, students benefit in a number of ways: their public speaking skills, self-confidence, logical and analytical thinking powers improve to a great degree. Independent University of Bangladesh (IUB) recently hosted an inter-school debate tournament titled IUB Ascension 2016. It was a unique event as it was based on comic book characters and their ideals. The three-day event started on July 21 and ended with the final round on the 23rd. There were 60 teams representing 28 schools from across the country that participated in two categories _ Novice and Open. Each team had three members and their experience is what put them in different groups. If every member had participated in less than six debate tournaments, they were categorised as a Novice team, while a team with more experience was placed in the Open group. There were several rounds, including preliminary, quarterfinal, semifinal and final. Besides having a unique theme, the event had an exceptional and unbiased judging system. Moderated by Rishad Sharif, the chair of Bangladesh Debate Council (BDC), the system required the judges to point out the flaws and plus points of the teams after every round, so the teams could improve themselves. The team members could also score the judges based on their judgment which ensured fairness. Led by Sharif, the adjudicators hailed from reputable institutions such as Dhaka University and Boston College. The tournament was intense at every level. Each team got to compete in at least five rounds until they were knocked out or moved up to the semifinals and finals. The debates were based on contradictory principles of superheroes and villains, with motions ranging from sports to education and media politics. In the Open category, Academia School of Dhaka was the champion, while Viqarunnisa Noon School and College, Dhaka became the runner-up. Green Herald won in the Novice category, while Scholastica Mirpur was the runner-up. Lima Choudhury, deputy director of IUBs Admission and Financial Aid office, was the MC at the award presentation ceremony. Chief guest A Matin Chowdhury, chairman of Education, Science, Technology and Cultural Development Trust of IUB, trustees of the university, Vice-Chancellor M Omar Rahman and deans of different faculties of IUB presented trophies and prize money to the champion and runner-up teams. YI talked to some of the participants about their experience at the tournament. Here is what they had to say: Wasif Khan, Academia School Our team, comprising of Md Shadman Karim, Md Saquib Shahzad and myself, are always thrilled to attend debate tournaments, mostly because we love the activity. But IUB Ascension was something far greater than just that. It had every element of a perfect event. First and most importantly, perhaps, we actually felt safe within the campus, which was a marvelous emulation of a House of Heroes, the theme of the event, because of how thorough the security procedure was. Before this tournament, I could never imagine such attention to detail was possible because in every corner of IUB, we found our promised heroes, who made the campus ever so lively. The real heroes, however, were all the members of the organising committee and the team of volunteers who managed the event so perfectly. It was a spectacular affair with 60 teams participating in the battle of rhetoric. As tiresome as it sounds, we were energised throughout the tournament because of all the amazing food and hospitality we were provided. After five exciting rounds of debating, IUBs proud alumni, Nemesis, returned to their alma mater to entertain all the debaters with a show of their skills in the art of music. Finally, the most competitive and heart-throbbing rounds, the knockouts, began and Academia made it to the finals unscathed. We were up against Viqarunnisa Noon School and College in the grand final. It was a fierce spectacle, but in the end, we came out on top, and were crowned champions. It is always great to win a tournament, but this triumph was particularly satisfying because we proved ourselves to be the best team, in the best tournament hosted in Bangladesh. Noshin Saiyara, Viqarunnisa Noon School College I have been in the English debate circuit for almost three years now. IUB Ascension has been one of the best tournaments I have had the privilege to attend. With the theme of Superheroes, the graphics department and comics in goodie bags gave us the ultimate comic nerds fantasy. We had two days of grueling debate in five preliminary rounds, with motions ranging from sports to education and media politics. We had to prep motions that we were given, that were based on feminism and political campaigns. The whole experience was the best of what debating has to offer. M Towseef Hossain, European Standard School Ascension is an apt name, it ascended above every expectation and dream of what a debate tournament could look like. Every round was a breath of fresh air teeming with anticipation. Every food break was a treat for the taste buds. The best adjudicators in town, in arguably the best campus in town, rose above every hurdle to deliver the tournament I never thought possible. It doesnt get better than this. Syeda Ashfah Toaha Duti, Viqarunnisa Noon School College IUB has hosted this debate tournament in an extravagant manner. From the first day to the last, the organisers never failed to impress me. Each round in both Open and Novice were intense. It was a thrill to compete in this tournament. This very fest made us realise how wide the debating world is. Knowing about stuff, catching points, standing up with a sensible conclusion makes you feel the rush. Personally, I got to learn a lot. My enthusiasm level went so high that I was a consistent viewer of all the debates that were held. This whole thing was a huge learning experience for me. It might sound funny, yet I must say, I have never learned so much in school. Nazifa Raidah, Viqarunnisa Noon School College As much as we love debating, its quite hard to keep your head above the anxiousness at times and have fun. However, this tournament made sure the debaters get to have the best experience while debating, keeping the competitive drive. Starting from the amazing props that greeted us at the entrance, to every hall and room to the amazing goodies, and ending the night with Nemesis! Every single arrangement showed how dedicated IUBs organising committee was to make sure that the participants got the best experience one can expect from a debate tournament. I am truly grateful to all the members associated who made this tournament successful. Reaching the finals at this tournament was quite an honour. IUB Ascension 2016 has set a standard for upcoming tournaments, cant wait for next year. AZM Ridoan, head of communication co-convenor IUBDC Ascension was an idea breeding inside to celebrate IUBDC (IUB Debating Club) the legends in form of our alumnus, and especially the debating circuit of Bangladesh as a whole. That is when IUB generously stepped up, giving us a platform for organising this event. An inter-school debating tournament to nourish and motivate talented kids from the national debating scene, and celebrate the spirit of debating with an equal balance of competitiveness and fun, which was missing from the circuit for quite some time. Thus, we brought you the biggest national debating tournament in the form of IUB Ascension 2016. The Superhero theme was an essential part of the event, making it such fun, cheerful and motivating. Rishad Sharif, chair of BDC, chief adjudicator IUB has hosted an excellent debate tournament along with a unique theme and it was an honour to be the chief adjudicator of the event. We had about 60 teams competing in this tournament from schools across the country. The adjudicators in this event were all well qualified with impressive debating backgrounds. To make the judgment fair, we implemented a system which is used in the WDC Tournament. This system requires the judges to point out all the flaws and advantages of a team and explain elaborately why they have either lost or progressed. It also enables the competitors to grade the adjudicators, to avoid any biased judgment. We have been implementing this system in numerous debate tournaments in our country for the past four years, and I hope it would become more widespread.