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A New System of Debating: How We're Different

Rise & Shine is a new way to debate. We keep the traditional elements of teamwork, arguing a topic and trying to persuade others of your view, but we also use debating as a vehicle for students to gain skills that will serve them well in further education as well as their careers in today’s fast-paced and rapidly-changing world.

We take debating from being an often cut-throat activity to something that is inclusive, playful, challenging and experiential - working with each student to help them discover and hone their unique strengths and share their ideas with the world. Rise & Shine is about training the next generation of leaders, humanitarians, creators, thinkers, and people who are not afraid to stand up, speak out and let their talents shine!  

Inclusive Learning

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Rise & Shine debating provides a chance for all students to participate and shine, regardless of academic or language ability and learning style. Everyone is welcome in our programs. 

Balancing Achievement

with Play

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Debating is a challenging activity but Rise & Shine teaches it in a way that allows students to have fun, explore, play with ideas and express themselves creatively - something they love to do.

Age-appropriate Challenges

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While we work mainly with Year 5, 6 and  7 students, debating can be great for talented Year 4s and older students too. We teach high-level skills in ways that suit all stages of development.

A New Take on Competing

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Our unique Rise & Shine adjudication system awards Bronze, Silver, Gold & Platinum certification based on demonstrated achievement of skills, rather than just winning and losing.

Developing Mastery

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Debate nights are a very  exciting challenge, but the experiential learning gleaned in preparation is fundamental to the ultimate goal of building confidence and developing mastery.

Experiential Learning

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Debating is a real-life, interactive and hands-on adventure that creates a unique enthusiasm as students have the chance to voice their thoughts on topics that are important to them.  

Healthy Competition
Deeper learning through meaningful achievement

Rise & Shine takes a different approach to traditional debate scoring. Instead of a winning team and losing team, we award levels of accomplishment based on a set of criteria. In a Rise & Shine debate event, teams are awarded a Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum certificate depending on the skill level they have achieved.

For beginning debaters and young students, simply announcing a winning team does little to help the students grow and improve, whereas the Rise & Shine award they achieve tells them which skills they’ve mastered and which skills they need to work on to reach the next level.

Our Rise & Shine adjudication system encourages students to challenge themselves, adding to and honing their abilities while recognising and rewarding their improvements. 

“The key to holding a logical debate is to understand the

other person’s argument, no matter how divergent their

views may seem.” 

- Auliq Ice - 

My daughter has made it into the Year 7 Debating Team at Mercedes College. Thank you for your amazing expertise, experience, commitment, dedication, and passion!!!

Parent of a Year 6 Rise & Shine Debating student

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