JSA Debate Workshop Overview  

Debate  Workshop  is  a  JSA  style  debate  program  that  is  a  crucial  part  of  the  Summer  School  experience.  You  and  your  classmates  will  be  divided  into  sections  where  you  will  research  and  then  debate  a  variety  of  controversial  resolutions  almost  every  night  beginning  the  second  week  of  Summer  School.    To  successfully  complete  the  JSA  Debate  Workshop,  you  will  be  required  to  actively  participate  in  at  least  4  debates.    In  one  debate,  you  will  be  responsible  for  leading  the  debate  and  discussion  by  giving  the  main  speech,  either  for  or  against  one  of  the  resolutions  listed  at:  www.jsadebateworkshop.info  (more  on  the  site  below).    Additionally,  in  a  minimum  of  3  debates,  you  will  be  expected  to  make  a  supporting  or  subsequent  speech  for  or  against  other  resolutions.    

You  are  therefore  asked  to  complete  the  following  prior  to  arriving  on  campus:    

• Access  www.jsadebateworkshop.info  to  learn  about  the  20  possible  topics  and  rate  your  preference  for  each.    Visiting  the  site  is  mandatory.  You  should  plan  on  spending  from  15  minutes  to  1  hour  working  on  your  topic  ratings.  

 

• For  each  topic,  you  will  share  whether  you  are  in  favor  of  the  resolution  (Affirmative),  opposed  to  the  resolution  (Negative),  or  able  to  debate  either  side  (Neutral).  You  will  also  be  asked  to  rate  your  enthusiasm  for  debating  the  topic  from  1  (I  would  LOVE  to  debate  this  topic)  to  5  (I  would  not  prefer  to  debate  this  topic.)    You  must  rate  all  20  topics.  

 • While  you  are  filling  out  the  survey,  you  will  be  able  to  watch  short  videos  (embedded  into  the  online  

survey)  about  each  topic  to  help  you  understand  the  issues  better.  While  watching  the  videos  is  not  required,  it  is  strongly  suggested  that  you  watch  a  video  if  you  do  not  know  a  lot  about  the  resolution.    

 

• It  is  suggested  that  you  rate  at  least  five  topics  a  1  (I  would  LOVE  to  debate  this  topic)  as  you  rate  all  of  the  topics.  You  can  research  those  topics  to  help  you  get  a  head  start  on  your  debate  preparations.  Though  your  Debate  Workshop  Faculty  Critic  will  teach  you  how  to  research  properly  for  debates,  it  does  not  hurt  to  do  learn  more  about  your  top  rated  resolutions.  We  suggest  you  look  at  highly  credible  magazines  such  as  Time,  Newsweek,  U.S.  News  and  World  Report,  or  The  Economist.  Newspapers  with  national  reputations  such  as  The  New  York  Times,  The  Wall  Street  Journal,  The  Washington  Post,  The  L.A.  Times  or  The  Christian  Science  Monitor  make  excellent  source  materials,  as  do  The  Congressional  Quarterly,  Facts  on  File,  and  many  books  and  reference  materials.      

 

In  the  first  few  days  of  the  session,  your  Debate  Workshop  Faculty  critics  will  work  to  assign  your  debate  topic  based  on  the  ratings  you  assign  to  each  topic.    Our  goal  is  to  give  you  a  topic  that  you  rate  either  1  or  2,  but  advanced  debaters  may  have  to  debate  a  topic  that  they  rate  3.        

During  your  JSA  Summer  School,  you  will  be  asked  to  put  together  a  synopsis  of  the  issues  surrounding  the  resolution  for  which  you  will  be  delivering  a  main  speech.    You  will  then  be  asked  to  participate  in  a  faculty-­‐led  discussion  on  your  topic.    In  addition,  an  outline  of  your  detailed  arguments  and  a  bibliographical  list  of  your  sources  will  be  part  of  a  debate  "brief"  that  you  will  be  asked  to  turn  in;  sample  briefs  will  be  made  available  during  the  Workshop  Orientation  lectures.    Some  helpful  information  follows:  

FREQUENTLY  ASKED  QUESTIONS    1.   Will  I  receive  a  grade  for  JSA  Debate  Workshop?    How  about  academic  credit?    Is  it  a  class  like  my  American  

Government  course?    Will  I  have  a  textbook?    

Yes,  you  will  be  graded  on  your  participation  in  the  JSA  Debate  Workshop.    This  grade  constitutes  20%  of  your  regular  course  grade,  so  it  is  a  fairly  significant  component  of  the  JSA  Summer  School.  It  is  not  a  separate  class;  instead,  it  supplements  and  extends  the  information  you  learn  in  your  classes  and  through  the  Speakers  Program.    There  is  no  textbook  per  se,  but  you  will  have  access  to  research  packets  to  help  you  prepare.  During  the  first  week,  we  will  review  all  of  the  requirements  for  JSA  Debate  Workshop  and  an  extensive  series  of  large  and  small  group  presentations  will  be  made  by  the  JSA  Debate  Workshop  staff  to  introduce  you  to  the  concept  of  the  JSA  style  of  debate.      

 

2.   How  will  the  topics  and  sides  be  assigned?    When  will  I  know  which  topic  and  side  I  have  been  assigned  for  my  main  debate?  

 You  will  be  assigned  to  be  the  main  debater  from  a  rating  of  1-­‐3  you  gave  to  each  of  the  resolutions.  Hopefully,  most  of  you  will  be  assigned  to  one  of  your  top  five  choices.    You  will  be  assigned  to  uphold  the  side  you  indicated  -­‐  either  "Aff"  or  "Neg"  or  “Neutral”  so  be  sure  to  make  that  choice  correctly.    You  will  be  designated  to  debate  a  topic  in  your  section  with  another  Summer  School  student  of  comparable  debate  experience  to  yourself.    These  topic  choices  and  partnerships  will  be  published  and  announced  early  in  the  first  week  of  Summer  School.    It  is  imperative,  however,  that  you  arrive  at  Summer  School  registration  having  completed  your  online  topic  choices  at  www.jsadebateworkshop.info.  

 

3.     If  I  have  never  participated  in  Junior  State  debate  before,  will  I  be  able  to  survive?    

As  mentioned  above,  we  pair  students  by  interest  and  debate  experience.    That  is  why  we  ask  you  to  accurately  fill  out  the  online  JSA  Debate  Workshop  Sign-­‐Up  form.    Help  will  always  be  available  from  your  Resident  Assistants,  from  the  Summer  School  faculty,  the  JSA  Debate  Workshop  staff  and  Summer  School  Director;  you  will  be  guided  and  assisted  with  JSA  Debate  Workshop,  no  matter  what  your  skill  level.  All  students  experience  a  series  of  orientation  sessions  to  help  explain  how  to  research,  how  to  put  a  speech  together  and  how  to  participate  in  the  Workshop  debates.    At  the  end  of  the  summer,  students  evaluate  each  aspect  of  the  program;  JSA  Debate  Workshop  always  ranks  high,  especially  by  some  of  the  most  inexperienced  debaters  who  enjoy  this  activity  immensely.    

 

4.     When  will  the  Moderators  of  the  sections  be  announced?    Can  I  be  one?    Will  I  receive  any  training?    A  preliminary  list  of  JSA  Debate  Workshop  Moderators  will  be  selected  using  the  information  you  provide  on  the  JSA  Debate  Workshop  Sign-­‐Up  form.    Additional  Moderator  candidates  will  be  chosen  based  on  Resident  Assistants  and  teacher  recommendations  after  the  start  of  Summer  School  and  on  self-­‐nominations  once  the  JSA  Debate  Workshop  process  is  under  way.    All  candidates  will  receive  special  instructions  and  training  during  the  first  week  of  Summer  School  and  will  be  assigned  to  lead  one  of  the  first  debates  in  their  section.    At  the  conclusion  of  the  first  week  of  debating,  each  section  will  elect  a  permanent  Moderator  for  the  remaining  debates.  

 

5.     What  should  I  do  if  I  have  further  questions  about  the  process?  Feel  free  to  call  the  Junior  Statesmen  office  for  more  information  at  (800)  334-­‐5353.  You  can  also  send  email  to  summerprograms@jsa.org  

 

Please  note:    JSA  Summer  School  is  a  nonpartisan  program.    The  resolutions  were  written  to  provoke  debate  and  do  not  reflect  the  position  of  The  Junior  Statesmen  Foundation,  JSA  or  its  staff  members  who  take  no  position  except  that  high  school  students  should  be  prepared  for  active  and  informed  citizenship  and  leadership  in  our  system  of  law  and  democratic  government.  

   CONSTITUTIONAL  

Resolved,  that  District  of  Columbia  v.  Heller  be  overturned.  

Resolved,  that  an  amendment  be  adopted  to  end  corporate  personhood.  

Resolved,  that  an  amendment  be  adopted  to  elect  the  US  president  by  popular  vote  rather  than  the  Electoral  College.  

Resolved,  that  a  new  Equal  Rights  Amendment  be  adopted.  

Resolved,  that  Congress  pass  a  law  that  mandates  the  Senate  cast  an  up  or  down  vote  on  Supreme  Court  nominees  within  60  days.  

FOREIGN  POLICY  

Resolved,  the  Joint  Comprehensive  Plan  of  Action  will  not  prevent  Iran  from  getting  a  nuclear  weapon.    

Resolved,  that  the  United  States  should  take  a  more  active  role  to  defeat  ISIL  (aka  ISIS).  

Resolved,  that  the  U.S.  should  more  strongly  support  the  territorial  claims  of  its  allies  in  the  South  China  Sea  against  Chinese  encroachment.  

Resolved,  that  the  US  should  provide  greater  assistance  with  the  refugee  crisis  in  Europe.  

Resolved,  that  NATO  should  expand  its  presence  to  deter  Russian  aggression.  

ECONOMIC  

Resolved,  that  Medicare  for  all  is  the  best  way  to  improve  healthcare  in  the  US.  

Resolved,  that  US  banks  classified  as  "too  big  to  fail"  should  be  broken  up.  

Resolved,  that  American  corporations  must  pay  federal  income  taxes  on  profits  of  offshore  subsidiaries.  

Resolved,  that  Social  Security  be  strengthened  and  benefits  expanded.  

Resolved,  that  the  Trans  Pacific  Partnership  will  do  more  harm  than  good  for  American  workers.  

GENERAL  

Resolved,  that  the  Republican/Democratic  Party  duopoly  does  more  harm  than  good  for  the  American  people.  

Resolved,  comprehensive  sex  education  in  public  schools  be  mandated  by  the  US  Federal  Government.  Resolved,  that  Congress  pass  the  DREAM  act  to  provide  a  path  to  citizenship  for  undocumented  persons  brought  to  the  US  by  their  parents  as  children.  

Resolved,  that  election  day  be  a  classified  as  a  federal  holiday.    

Resolved,  that  individuals  are  automatically  registered  to  vote  in  their  state  of  residence  when  they  turn  18-­‐years  old.              Rate  your  topic  preferences  online  at  www.jsadebateworkshop.info  BEFORE  you  arrive  for  your  summer  program.      

2016  JSA  Debate  Workshop  Topics