Debate Like a Champion : The Public Forum Edition: How Any Middle Schooler Can Learn Public Forum, Speak with Confidence, and Win - From a Student Who Did It

Debate Like a Champion: The Public Forum Edition

Help Your Middle Schooler Find Their Voice, Build Strong Arguments, and Step Into Debate with Confidence

Public Forum debate can be exciting, challenging, and incredibly rewarding. But for a student preparing for their first debate round , learning how to build cases, use evidence, give speeches, handle crossfire, respond to opponents, and understand what judges are looking for can feel overwhelming at first.

Debate Like a Champion: The Public Forum Edition gives middle school students a clear and approachable path into Public Forum debate, helping beginners understand how each part of a round works and how to use those skills with confidence.

Written by Bani Kaur Rawal, currently a high school student in New York City , this book brings a rare student perspective to debate instruction. Bani began debating while attending The Anderson School and now attends The Spence School , where she continues to compete and develop as a Public Forum debater.

This book will help students:

• Build confidence and overcome speaking nerves

• Understand how a Public Forum debate round works

• Research a resolution and develop strong arguments

• Write organized cases using clear logic and evidence

• Deliver stronger rebuttals and respond to opponents

• Ask sharper questions during crossfire

• Understand weighing and crystallization

• Think more quickly and speak with greater confidence

• Prepare for tournaments and learn from every round

Through relatable stories, clear explanations, practical examples, and simple drills, Bani makes debate easier to understand without making it feel like a textbook. Students learn the fundamentals step by step while becoming more prepared to apply them in an actual round.

Bani knows that journey firsthand.

During her freshman year of high school , she became a finalist at the UPenn Liberty Bell Classic, an octofinalist at the Harvard Speech and Debate Tournament, and a semifinalist at the New York State Debate Championships .

And she isn't writing about debate years after leaving competition. Bani is still a high school student herself.

While still in high school, she founded Civispeak Debate Academy, a student-led initiative that provides free debate instruction to younger students . Her experience as both a competitor and a young instructor gives her a perspective that speaks directly to students who are just beginning their own debate journeys.

Perfect for:

• Middle school students in grades 5–8

• First-time and beginner Public Forum debaters

• Students preparing for their first tournaments

• School debate teams and clubs

• Homeschoolers and independent learners

• Parents looking to strengthen their child's speaking, reasoning, and critical-thinking skills

Students don't need to begin as polished speakers or experienced debaters. Confidence develops through preparation, practice, mistakes, and the willingness to keep going.

Every confident speaker starts with a first debate round. This book gives students the tools to keep going.