DMS Students Medal in International Debate Competition
Written by Keanu Longboy
Paige Barnum, Keanu Longboy, and Jorrin Ikeno
Jointly administered by the Brewer Foundation and New York University (NYU), the “International Public Policy Forum” (IPPF) Competition is available to all high schools students for free. The contest annually involves hundreds of high school teams and thousands of student debaters from around the world.
Each year, high school teams get the chance to write a qualifying essay on a specific topic. This year, our issue was “Resolved: On balance, the hegemony of the United States dollar is detrimental to the world economy.” Sixty-four top teams are selected and engaged in written debate. They are narrowed down from 64 to 32, then to 16, and the final 8 get to take part in an oral debate in the spring.
The first year taking part in the IPPF was a huge learning curve, as this was my first time participating in an international debate competition. Of course, it was challenging to engage in a written debate with another school, especially a debate team composed of juniors and seniors. This debate was much more intense than any other debate I’ve experienced before, especially since it dealt with current global issues. We had to learn how to research intensely, pinpoint flaws in the opposition’s arguments, and learn how to sound as professional as possible during this debate.
Even though we may not have made it past the top 64, this experience will always be valuable in my debate/public speaking life. I’m thankful that we got to experience this opportunity, which not too many people get to have. I certainly believe the IPPF will help us grow in our debate skills. I hope we can try again next year and achieve even higher goal