Diablo Vista Middle School
Diablo Vista Middle School
Welcome to our competition Public Forum Debate program hosted at Diablo Vista Middle School in Danville, CA!
This practice is led by our head coach and founder, Ben Fagan.
If you have questions, please email us at Info@strtgm.org.
More information about Public Forum Debate can be found here.
This is an in-person practice group that tentatively meets on Thursdays from 3:05PM to 5:05PM, subject to district approval. We’ll send out an update if these times change. Our practice calendar is below:
13 Fall Sessions: 9/5, 9/12, 9/19, 9/26, 10/10, 10/17, 10/24, 10/31, 11/7, 11/14, 11/21, 12/5, & 12/12.
13 Spring Sessions: 1/23, 1/30, 2/6, 2/13, 2/20, 2/27, 3/6, 3/13, 3/20, 3/27, 4/3, 4/17, & 4/24.
Our students will also have the opportunity to participate in tournaments against students from other schools about once per month. We anticipate a mix of in-person and online tournaments this season. Tournament fees are not included in the cost of tuition.
Please be sure to fill out the emergency contact forms and releases for this class when you sign up!
Stratagem Learning is a 501(c)3 nonprofit and is not affiliated with the host campus or school district.
This is a competition level Public Forum team that is open to any sixth to eighth grade student who can make the course times and is taught by Head Coach Ben Fagan. Registering for the full season before our first session on 9/7 qualifies you for a $200 discount, which is reflected in our pricing.
Our custom curriculum works to bring our students to a high level of competency in this challenging debate format, and is an ideal jumping on point for students at all levels of skill and confidence. For a typical topic we engage in a six week development cycle, spending the first two weeks of each topic on argumentation and analysis, the second set of two weeks on technique and form, and the final two weeks on full length debates. This way we cover all the bases that make for a good debater: a thorough understanding of the topic, mastery of the mechanics of the debate, and strong public speaking skills. All students in this class will also have their cases reviewed and extensively commented on by their coach so that they have as much help as possible to perform to the best of their abilities.
Students also have the opportunity to compete in tournaments against other Bay Area teams. These tournaments are very fun and reward the hard work that the students put in on each of our topics. This season we will heavily favor in person, middle school only tournaments, though we may participate in online or mixed entry tournaments if no other options are available. Tournament fees are not included in the cost of this class and must be purchased separately.
Public Forum topics are chosen by a national committee and change on a bi-monthly basis in the Fall and a monthly basis in the Spring. Past and current topics can always be found at speechanddebate.org/topics. Our first topic will be Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially expand its surveillance infrastructure along its southern border.
We anticipate being able to offer our full season in-person this school year but, to protect our students and our staff, Stratagem Learning also reserves an unlimited right to return to an online format based on the guidance of relevant school districts, health and civil authorities, and pandemic conditions at any point in the season.