What prevents our students from reaching their potential is simply a lack of resources. They dedicate their afternoons to debate practice yet are never able to compete with schools with debate budgets, those that can hire several coaches and pay for laptops.
Debate is one of the few educational activities in high school that combines public speaking with intensive research, critical argumentation and philosophy.
But after entry fees, transportation, and hotel charges are added up, debate is an expensive activity. One that many of our students love but can't afford.
Despite the obstacles our students have faced, they have managed to achieve great success in state debate tournaments. The problem, though, is that so many of them are not able to attend more than one or two tournaments a year. Our students consistently receive first speaker awards and win local tournaments, but never have the opportunity to expand their horizons and debate in national tournaments or attend summer debate camps. The few that do, have continued to debate in college, receiving scholarships and using the skills learned in graduate programs.
Debate is a home for these students, but what is a home without electricity, water, or food?
My Project
Laptops for our debaters would be brought with them to tournaments for in-round debating and research. While debate use to involve carrying tubs of paper evidence to each tournament, the paperless revolution has caught our team at a loss.
Many of the students are unable to afford the necessary technology to compete. While opposing teams with budgets are supplied with individual laptops and have significantly more opportunities to excel in the activity, our team struggles to make ends meet.
Imagine a group of 15 students huddled in front of a single computer, trying to put together a new file. On the other end of the table is a similarly sized group with each member actively researching at her or his computer. Our squad productivity and competitiveness is extremely hampered by the wealth and technological gap.
With these laptops, our students will be empowered to gain better research skills and hone their public speaking and critical argumentation skills.
Our debaters love the activity because it's their home.
What struggles they face at home or in school seem to disappear for them when they step in the debate room. But this home is drastically lagging behind in necessary resources. Hopefully, with your investment, we can help these students stay on the right track, graduate from high school when they normally would not, and learn to love an activity that will help them for the rest of their lives.
More than half of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Holladay and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.