Township Debating League (TDL)

Photo: Two of my students from TDL :)


As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have been volunteering with an organization called the Township Debating League (TDL). This organization works with youth from the townships around Cape Town to develop critical thinking, public speaking, and debating skills. The organization was founded in response to the lack of a proper debating organization for township youth (a debating league was already in existence for the more affluent schools). TDL is part of an umbrella organization called Ubunye that is organized and supported by UCT students. There are also local private donors for funding needs. Ubunye also has tutoring programs, a media program that assists students in developing school newspapers, and a mentoring program. I chose TDL because of my experience with debating and the opportunity to encourage critical thinking. Also, the topics we discuss in TDL tend to be about current events, politics, and world affairs (need I say more?). Every Thursday afternoon, I go to LEAP School in Pinelands (not in a township, but attended by students bussed from local townships) to lead workshops about debating. The students here are such a pleasure to work with. They are high school age (14-18 years old) and it is a co-ed school. The students have qualified to attend this school either through application or recommendation from a previous school and specifically focus on math and science.

Recently, we had a tournament. My school sent two teams to the tournament and they divided boys and girls (just because the students wanted to, not because it was required by the school or the organization). The day we spent at the tournament was so much fun because it allowed us to bond more and for me to get to know the girls much better. They are so sweet and had such a good time. They did three debates during the day. The first one they lost and you would have thought someone had killed their dog -- they were so sad. I told them that it was okay and they'd do better next time. We talked about strategies and how good it is to practice and continue through even when you don't win. We also talked about what they learned from the first debate. After the next debate, they waited for me outside of the volunteers' room and had sad faces. I asked them how they did and they immediately started cheering and told me they won! I was so so proud of them and they were so happy! They also won the next debate as well. The winning and losing, of course, is not the important part and I think most teams win and lose some of the debates. It was great to be a part of the whole event. Students from the 20some schools that TDL operates in come together to debate and get to know one another. It's a lot of fun. Anyway, thought I'd let yall know a bit about what I'm up to.