2024 Maputo Championship

Tournament Information Pack

Thishin@ndl.org.za / +27 81 343 9036
 Welcome
The National Debating League (NDL) has established school debating leagues in Cape
Town, Johannesburg and Gqeberha. Our programs unite a community of nearly 70
primary and high schools from South Africa.

This information pack will discuss our plans for the Maputo Championship at Maputo
International School on 16-17 February 2024.

Overview
Students will work in teams to debate various topics. Every debate will address a different
subject area. In one round we might debate about banning scientific experiments on
animals. In the next round we might debate about whether children should get paid for
doing chores at home.

Our local program will consist of 5 preliminary rounds and a Final. All of these debates will
be held over the course of two days. Individual and team scores will be collected from
each debate and tabulated. At the end of the tournament, we will recognize our top scor-
ing teams and individuals with medals, trophies and certificates.

Age Divisions
We will have three age divisions:
Group A: Grade 10+
Group B: Grade 8-9
Group C: Grade 6-7

Build teamwork and Team Composition

critical thinking.
Schools may field multiple teams—each consisting of three members. Team members do
not need to be from the same grade.

For each team entered, a school will need to bring one teacher.
 Adjudication
Most of our adjudicators will be teachers. We will start the season with an orientation
session for new speakers and teachers. We will ensure everyone has a common understand-
ing of our format and how to score a debate.

Please don’t be nervous! In 2023 we introduced nearly sixty new teachers to adjudication.
You will always work with a co-judge from another school and you will not adjudicate your
own students.

Our adjudicators will explain their verdicts to students at the end of each round. They will
also offer constructive feedback to each team.

Preparation
Debate may be new to some of our participating schools. With this in mind, we are have
several resources to share—such a debate manuals and sample speeches. Remember that
we don’t expect anyone to be perfect—especially the first time! Our number one priority is
that students come up with their own points and develop the ability to express those
thoughts clearly.

Speech Structure
More information about our debate format can be found here:
https://www.nationaldebatingleague.org.za/debate-format
https://www.nationaldebatingleague.org.za/resources

There is a proposition and opposition team in each debate. The teams take turns

Join a community speaking. The maximum speech length depends on the age division. For Group C and D it is
4:20. For Group B it is 6:20 and Group A speaks for up to 8:20.

of caring educators. Topics and Research Areas

We expect students to research the topics for their division before arriving at the
tournament. At the start of each round, teams will have 45 minutes to write their speeches.
 Group C Topics (Grade 6-7)
Round 1: Public social media accounts of celebrities do more harm than good
Round 2: Children should be allowed to Google the answers to their homework
Round 3: Children should get paid for doing chores at home
Round 4: We should ban lotteries
Round 5: Schools should not issue detentions

Group B Topics (Grade 8-9)

Round 1: All schools should be Co-Educational
Round 2: Schools should allow students to use ChatGPT to complete assignments
Round 3: We should award participation medals at all sports events
Round 4: We should ban food and drinks with added sugar
Round 5: Maputo should submit a bid to host the Olympic Games

Group A Topics (Grade 10+)

Round 1: Movies created using generative AI should not be eligible for awards
Round 2: Mozambique should use a jury system to determine judgements
Round 3: We should legalize graffiti
Round 4: It should be compulsory to vote in national elections
Round 5: Mozambique should decriminalize the piracy of copyrighted materials

Build confidence and

communication skills.
 Awards
At the end of the season we will recognize our top performing speakers and teams with
medals, certificates and (sometimes) trophies. All recorded speakers will receive a partici-
pation certificate. All educators and coaches will receive certificates of recognition for
their contributions to the community.

Registration Fees
The registration fee per person (student or teacher) is MZN 1,300 per person. This
includes meals on both competition days, any awards won and the materials needed to
run the event.

The registration deadline is 2 February 2024.

How to Register
Please contact Thishin using thishin@ndl.org.za or 081 343 9036.

We are ready to answer any questions you may have about how to join or prepare.

Further Competition
Passionate debaters should consider joining the Pan-African Championship. The 2024
iteration of the championship will be held in Johannesburg at Roedean School (SA) on
1-4 July 2024.

More information can be found here: https://www.africandebatingprogram.org.za/pac

Build ambition
and resilience.
Join our growing
community of schools
Contact Thishin Moodley
+27 81 343 9036
thishin@ndl.org.za
nationaldebatingleague.org.za