National Speech And Debate Education Day
The First Friday in March is National Speech and Debate Education Day to prepare students to do more than speaking publicly. Through the support of coaches and teachers, students learn the skills vital to success in future careers and everyday decision making. The ability to conduct thorough research, construct intelligent arguments, and receive constructive criticism produces assured citizens able to collaborate and communicate their ideas ineffective, even eloquent ways.
The observance encourages communities to show the coaches and teachers support for their hard work and dedication. They spend long hours preparing and helping the students after the school day has ended. These sessions often occur after their workday has ended and before they have even been home to their families. Speech and Debate coaches spend as much time as athletic coaches preparing, studying rules, reviewing speeches, pairing teams, making changes, students work, traveling, judges, and hosting events.
Speech and debate education prepares students for future careers as well as serving their community. It helps them with critical thinking and analysis of facts. Another quality that speech and debate instill in students is confidence. As with many school activities, speech and debate help to inspire confidence in students one speech and debate at a time. Through research, practice, and increased difficulty, they master a variety of topics, all of which benefit them in the greater world the awaits them.
National Speech And Debate Education Day History
The National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA) founded National Speech and Debate Education Day to recognize and celebrate the positive impact speech and debate activities have on schools, students, organizations, and their communities. In 2016, the United States Senate passed a resolution declaring March 15, 2016, to be National Speech and Debate Education Day. In 2017, the Senate passed the resolution declaring the day to March 3, 2017. Both resolutions were co-sponsored by Senator Charles Grassley and Senator Chris Coons. In 2018, the date was set for Friday, March 2nd. The latest resolution declares the first Friday in March as the celebration date.
DATES
5 March 2021
4 March 2022
3 March 2023
1 March 2024
7 March 2025
6 March 2026
5 March 2027
3 March 2028
2 March 2029
1 March 2030
