Welcome to the DAV Website
The DAV is a non-profit association which exists to promote debate. It
is the peak debating body in Victoria and runs large competitions for
adults and for schools across Victoria. It provides training and
resources for debaters, teachers and adjudicators.
Regional Victoria Debating Competitions
The Debaters Association of Victoria runs Regional Debating Competitions in a number of regional centres across Victoria (and occasionally a competition across the border in NSW). We provide both training and debate opportunities for students residing across Victoria, with experienced adjudicators and trainers. For more information about this program, please download our information sheet.
If your school would like to host a regional debating competition, please contact us at debater@dav.com.au for more details.
Regions:
In 2020, the program will be run in the following regions;
| Region | Host School | Training Date | Competition Date | Registion |
| Border | Wodonga Middle Years College, Felltimber Campus - 8 Hedgerow Ct, West Wodonga | TBC | TBC | Registration Closed |
| Churchill | Kurnai College (cnr Monash Way & Northways Rd, Churchill) | TBC | TBC | Registration Closed |
| Echuca / Moama | TBC | TBC | TBC | Registration Closed |
| Gippsland | Gippsland Grammar School - Princes Highway, Sale | Tuesday 25th February | Tuesday 17th March | Registration Open |
| Goulburn Valley Round 1 | St. Mary of the Angels, Chapel St, Nathalia | Thursday 20th February | Wednesday 11th March | Registration Open |
| Goulburn Valley Round 2 | Notre Dame College - 139 Knight St, Shepparton | N/A | Wednesday 27th May | Registration Open |
| Goulburn Valley Round 3 | St. Mary of the Angels, Chapel St, Nathalia | N/A | TBC | Registration Open |
| Goulburn Valley Round 4 | Notre Dame College - 139 Knight St, Shepparton | Wednesday 11th November | Thursday 19th November | Registration Open |
| Hamilton |
Monivae College - 33 Ballarat Rd, Hamilton (Training Day) Hamilton and Alexandra College - 1 Chaucer St, Hamilton (Debating Day) |
Thursday 30th July | Thursday 13th August | Registration Open |
| Horsham | Holy Trinity Lutheran College, 25 Trinity Dr, Horsham | TBC | TBC | Registration Closed | Mallee | Trinity Lutheran College (Fifteenth St, Mildura) | Thursday 21st May | Thursday 22nd May | Registration Open |
| Wangaratta | Cathedral College - 344 Wangaratta-Whitfield Rd, Wangaratta | N/A | Thursday 27th February | Registration Open |
| Warrnambool | Emmanuel College (Ardlie St, Warrnambool) | Thursday 15th October | Thursday 29th October | Registration Open |
What's involved? :
The program is run over two days. The first is an optional half-day training session for students who have little or no experience of debating. The training session introduces students to debating and covers topics such as the rules and format of debating Australian 3-on-3 debating, methods of preparation and effective debating strategies. Students are also given a opportunities to practice their skills in the lead-up to the competition day, while receiving expert advice from DAV trainers and adjudicators.
The second day is a competition day. Each team will debate in three rounds. In both divisions, two of the topics will be prepared topic
(released with the draw several weeks before the day). The Year 7 and 8 division will include an
advised topic, where the subject area of the topic will be released with the draw, but the exact
wording of the topic will not be released until an hour before the debate. The Year 9 and 10 division
will include a secret topic.
Style:
Australian 3-on-3 style (See the Australasian Debating Guide in the "Resources") - three speakers
debate for each team.
How much will it cost? :
$30 DAV membership fee (if the school has not yet participated in any other DAV activities this year), and $160 per team (between 4-7 students). This fee covers one training session and one competition day.
If you would like your students to attend only the training session, or a second training session, the cost is $TBC per 7 students as well as the $30 DAV membership fee (if not previously paid).
N.B. Due to Commonwealth Government funding, the Mallee Regional Debating Competition is free for all schools.
Why Debate?
Debating is an invaluable skill for students:
- it promotes confidence and effective public presentation
- it encourages logical and critical thinking, social awareness and an interest in current affairs
- it is multi-disciplinary: debating techniques can be used in all subject areas.
- its benefits extend through all aspects of the school curriculum
- It is well directed to the "Communication" and "Thinking" domains of VELS. More specifically, it addresses the "Speaking and Listening", "Listening, Viewing and Responding", "Presenting", "Reasoning, Process and Inquiry" dimensions of VELS and VCE English