About Us
“Joining the debate club and learning this skill was the best part of my school year.”
Grade 12 student, West Hill Collegiate Institute, Toronto
Our Mission
Speech and Debate Canada Foundation is a national not-for-profit Private Foundation that brings debate and speech clubs to Canadian schools. It is our mission to help spread debate literacy across the country. By partnering with schools and communities across Canada, we work to teach as many students as possible how to participate in formal debates. It is our belief that every Canadian child should have the opportunity to learn how to advocate for themselves and others.
Values Statement
We believe debate fosters leadership and critical thinking skills, while empowering young people to see the world from a new perspective. We believe a student who learns the true art of debate becomes a young adult equipped to advocate for themselves and others. We are building a future of adults capable of viewing all problems from every side of the spectrum and making decisions after applying critical thinking skills regardless of occupation.
Partner Schools
We strive to provide diverse and culturally relevant programming in teaching debating skills to all students in Canada regardless of where they may attend school or live.
It is our mandate to start clubs at schools where they do not exist. We would also be keen to partner with schools where debate clubs have gone dormant, or to assist schools that do not have a faculty member with the time and/or debate-related experience to lead a club. Determining if you qualify for our support begins with a conversation.
Along with providing qualified instructors, we are also happy to provide training materials and mentorship to teachers who are interested in leading debate co-curricular programs or in-class instruction themselves.
Our Instructors
Our instructors are individuals with expertise in debate and public speaking. Most are university students who competed at debate and public speaking tournaments throughout their high school years. These instructors are contractors of S & DCF or volunteers who partner with us. Our instructors have a clean Vulnerable Sector Check for their province/territory of residence and are willing to complete whatever other background check your school requires.
