For over fifty years, the University of Vermont has been a center for national debate education through its summer programs. In 1983, this tradition was strengthened by the creation of the National Debate Institute, a national summer program for competitive debaters.
Since 1983 the program has grown and matured into one where the faculty consists of highly published debate theoreticians and strategists, along with national champion debaters and coaches. In 1997 the name was changed from "National Debate Institute" to "World Debate Institute" to reflect the increasingly international nature of attendees and the debate community.
WDI is a nonprofit educational program of the University of Vermont. It is managed by the University, not by someone renting campus facilities, as is so often the case.
"I think that it truly is boot camp for the brain. I enjoyed it."
"It's one of those challenging, pivotal, aggravating, wonderful points in your debate career. Definitely memorable."
The World Debate Institute is a unique academic program. Its conceptual foundations include:
QUALITY
Faculty members are skilled college and university coaches with extensive experience teaching students, not college debaters seeking summer employment.INTENSITY
The program styles itself as "Boot camp for the brain." It seeks to challenge students to do more than they have done before, as well as more than they think they are capable of, but all in an environment to provide the support that young people need. The program is intense, and it is by no means "easy."COOPERATIVE LEARNING COMMUNITY
The program stresses the creation of a cooperative atmosphere so that students and faculty can freely share ideas and research. Each student is asked to give what they are able to give, and all students are supported and nurtured in their personal development. This program is an opportunity to transcend the competition and elitism which can be a problem in academic debate.RESPECT
Each individual student is seen as being intelligent and capable, although some are more experienced than others. Students at all levels of experience are given tasks and challenges which respect their abilities and recognizes their future achievements.
Evidence and Research
"This institute is much more organized and more productive. The overall quality of the evidence is 150% better."
"I've now compared them all -- this evidence set is way better, more recent, better organized, more useful."
"I really appreciated the typing of all tags and sources on evidence."
The University of Vermont has one of the finest and most user friendly libraries in America. Unlike other institutes, students will have full borrowing privileges. Enrolled students will have access to the widest array of electronic research tools available at any summer program, including unlimited Lexis-Nexis access.
The two Policy Workshops emphasize research skills. All research is done by small, faculty-directed groups. All briefs produced will be shared with all students. All briefs are edited and approved by faculty members. All sources and tag lines are typed. Last year's evidence set was of legendary proportions.
All photocopying costs are covered by the program. Banks of Macs and PCs are available for student use along with laser printers.
Practice Debates and Skill Drills
To really learn how to debate, a student must debate and receive constructive feedback. At WDI students average six debates each week. Each debate is critiqued by a staff member in a way which emphasizes teaching and learning, not just "who won." A series of Skill Drills will be offered. These daily drills will focus on: delivery (clarity, coverage, speed), organization, evidence analysis, argument invention, flowing, debating theory, and other topics.
Unique Organizational Structure
"Senior top level debaters have a lot to learn from this."
"I really appreciated the support shown to less experienced debaters."
The WDI program is designed to meet the needs of all debaters, from beginners to seasoned debate veterans. Small group learning through activities makes learning enjoyable. This is done by targeting those with less experience for additional introductory instruction without separating them totally from the more experienced debaters. At the same time, students with more experience are given additional
and more challenging assignments. More experienced students are allowed to show leadership while less experienced students gain exposure to high levels of argument preparation and instruction.
In the Policy Workshops, students are assigned to argument groups where, for
example, six students and a faculty member will work on researching and briefing one disadvantage, while another group of ten students and two faculty members will work on an affirmative case. The WDI system has been tested and refined over the years. It is a "cooperative" model for a learning community.
Daily Schedule
Different times of day are dedicated for different purposes, depending on which group a student is assigned to. For example, some have practice debate in the mornings, others in the afternoons, but all groups (except for teachers/coaches) follow the same basic schedule:
| 9 AM - 11:30 AM | Work Sessions |
| 11:30 AM - 1 PM | Lunch Break |
| 1 PM - 3 PM | Work Sessions |
| 3 PM - 5 PM | Work Sessions |
| 5 PM - 7 PM | Dinner Break |
| 7 PM - 8:30 PM | Work Sessions / Supervised Social Activities |
Saturday evenings are usually free as are Sunday mornings. There are organized social activities for high school and middle school students.
Work Sessions consist of small group instruction. WDI does not utilize large lectures except for a few topic background presentations. Work sessions include:
Faculty
Click here to learn more about the WDI faculty.
Burlington and The University of Vermont
"The best lectures anywhere, best staff, cool downtown area."
"Wonderful people, faculty, students, and the town of Burlington were just a blast."
The University of Vermont has a beautifully landscaped and wooded campus located on a hill overlooking Lake Champlain. The center of the campus is the "University Green" bequeathed by Ira Allen. There are fountains, benches, and nearby open spaces for youthful play.
Burlington is one of America's most beautiful towns. In 2000 it was rated as America's "Most Livable City." A four season tourist attraction, it is full of interesting shops, coffee houses, and entertainment. It retains a small town Vermont charm and is free from the crime and decay which characterize many urban areas.
Summer in Vermont is delightful, with the temperature hovering in the 80's and rarely reaching the 90's. Humidity is low and outdoor activities are common and comfortable.
Questions
For questions about the workshop activities or content, please email us here. For questions about payment or the online registration process, please call
802-656-2085 or 800-639-3210 or email to speak with a Customer Service representative. To find out more about how to receive academic credit for a particular workshop, please send us an email or call Nichole Hathaway at 802-656-2085 or 800-639-3210.
The World Debate Institute is a non-profit educational program of the University of Vermont, a registered non-profit educational institution. Our federal ID # is 03-0179440. Our Vermont registration certificate # is 10113.
Last modified November 24 2008 02:19 PM
