Let’s start with the basics: how should a debater think about structuring an argument? Hear it directly from TOC and NSDA Senate National Champion, Tyler Luu. We recommend watching this prior to the Block Format video.

Once you understand the fundamentals of argumentation, watch this video to understand putting it into practice through the Block Format. The Block Format is a proprietary argumentation format developed by Ascend co-founder Quest Sandel.

For your reference, we’re excited to share a sample case written in Block Format. Tyler Luu won the NSDA National Tournament with this case. This resource is intended as an example you can leverage to guide you in writing a speech in the Block Format.

Judges pay attention to the quality of the sources that you use in your speech. We know that figuring out the right sources to use in your speeches can be challenging, so we created a guide to help you navigate this.

If you plan to serve as a presiding officer in Congress, use this resource to keep track of speeches and questions. Once you click the below link, please make a copy if you would like to make the sheet editable for us in-round at a tournament.

We’ve curated a collection of example early, mid, and late round speeches. We recommend using this resource to teach and/or learn about the differences among different types of Congress speeches based on round timing.