Our Debating Wombats course is an experienced level program.

Designed for students with formal coaching in debating, we recommend that students only enrol if they have:

• completed at least one (but ideally multiple) term of our Debating Wallabies program;
• previously participated in our Debating Wombats program, and want to improve some other debating skills;
• received formal training with another provider; or
• attended a school with a comprehensive debating training program, and competed in a number of interschool debates.

Importantly, debating and public speaking are very different skills – attending a public speaking program with us, or participating in a public speaking program at school, doesn’t really prepare students for this workshop – they would be better off giving out Debating Wallabies program a try.

In addition, whilst our Speaking Camp Koalas and Speaking Camp Kangaroos holiday programs do cover some debating skills, this is taught in the context of public speaking more generally, and would not normally be sufficient for them to be able to properly participate in our Debating Wombats program.

If you’re not sure whether your child would be better suited for our Debating Wallabies or Debating Wombats program, please get in touch and we would be more than happy to discuss it with you!

At the end of this programs, students should:

• have developed an understanding of how to develop a case as a team for ‘policy’ debates;
• have a better understanding of the two key debating concepts –  arguments and giving rebuttal; and
• have engaged in various activities and practice debates throughout the term to help them develop their skills.

Fostering a Nurturing Class Environment

As with all our term programs, the first session will focus on creating a positive learning environment, as well as ensuring that all students are up to speed on the relevant concepts.  These early sessions also involve a range of speaking activities that help students recall and further develop their existing debating skills.

Case Structure

Our Debating Wombats program takes the focus off the ‘Value’ debates covered in our Debating Wallabies program, and moves across to the more complex ‘Policy’ debates.

These debates require students to understand a new type of case structure to help them persuade adjudicators.  As a result, multiple sessions each term are devoted to helping students understand this case structure (which often takes years to truly comprehend).

Arguments & Rebuttal

Similar to the Debating Wallabies program, students will spend at least one session looking at argumentation, and another at rebuttal.  These sessions are be more advanced in nature, place a greater emphasis on ‘Policy’ type debates, and involve plenty of practical activities to help them apply the skills that they’ve learned.

Practice Debates

In addition to all the theory, students will have the opportunity to participate in multiple practice debates during the term.  Each debate will be on a different policy topic, and students will have the opportunity to speak in different rolls each time.

Parent Presentations

As with all our weekly programs, the term concludes with a presentation to the students’ parents.  This is a great way to help them develop the confidence to speak directly to adults, as well as being a good opportunity for them to showcase their new skills.

Our classes vary in size every term depending on how many bookings we receive – however, the maximum size of our Debating Wombats class is around eight students with one coach.

If there aren’t any spots left, it’s usually because we’ve hit capacity, but may also be the result of a miscommunication with the coaching college – please get in touch with us and we’ll see what we can do about either opening an extra class, fitting your child into the existing class, or putting you on a waitlist in case any students pull out!

After each program, students will go home with:

• a personal feedback sheet prepared by their coach, which goes through what they’ve improved on, and what still needs some work;
• a certificate recognising their achievements;
• a course booklet, which covers everything they’ve learned over the course of the term;
• the speech that they prepared for their parent demonstration debate; and
• a much better understanding (and hopefully improved perception) of debating!

If you’re interested in doing another term program, we generally recommend that students attend our Debating Wombats program a few times – each term runs a separate program, with different approaches to the same theory and new activities, so students are very welcome to spend a multiple terms with the program.