Utah, QatarDebate Centre, a member of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, has wrapped up the 4th edition of the US Universities Arabic Debating Championship. The event was organized in collaboration with the University of Utah and witnessed powerful competitions that brought together over 150 speakers from 42 American universities.
In the three-day frenzied debates in the contest, the team of Duke University won the championship. The debates featured some of the brightest young minds from various age groups and academic specializations in the US.
The competition spanned four rounds of discussions and a semi-final before the decisive round and concluded with a ceremony, distinguished speakers, partners, and guests of honor. The final round, which was held under the theme "In new democracies, this Council believes that the state should focus national identity around leaders and prominent figures rather than ideologies, was closely watched by high profile attendees, participating teams, and local and international media. Duke University team secured the first place followed by Carnegie Mellon University. The Brigham Young University team, on the other hand, won first place in the final of the Arabic Debating Championship for non-native speakers.
Commenting on the championship which was organized to foster a culture of dialogue and promote Arabic across the US, Outreach Program Coordinator at QatarDebate Center, Abdul Rahman Al-Subaie, applauded all efforts to make the event a success, praising Utah University for hosting the championship and expanding the scope of its seven-year-old partnership with QatarDebate. He added that the partnership has gained strength since the signing of a memorandum of understanding in Doha based on the shared vision to enrich dialogue and empower minds by giving opportunities to youth to have unique experiences. He added that QatarDebate will continue to support the American Debate Associations efforts and initiatives to promote dialogue in Arabic across the US.
Participants, on the other hand, praised the Centers efforts to promote the art of debate, bolster cultural exchange and bridge the gap between continents by engaging native and non-native Arabic speakers in discussions on issues of global relevance.
Member of the tournaments judging panel, Dr. Iman Saadeh, said the significant interest in the competition stems from the Centers endeavor to bolster Arabic communication skills, introduce students to the concept of debate and empower them to develop their ideas and hone their skills. Dr. Saadeh said QatarDebate has plans to integrate the culture of debate in Arabic language curricula across American universities, noting that students participation in such events gives these plans greater importance and momentum, outlining that the benefits of holding debates have exceeded expectations, particularly in terms of their contribution to promoting Arabic, which has also helped students in mastering the language.
Member of the judging panel from Harvard University Nora Marzouqa, noted that participating in such competitions has now become an objective for students who seek to reap the rewards of the rich debates and intellectual friendships they forge during the tournament, indicating that she always looks forward to the arguments and debates that take place since students come from diverse backgrounds and specializations to discuss current issues in American universities, which reflects the importance of these discussions.
In addition, member of the American Debate Association, Maryam Talebi, said such events bolster the value of dialogue in terms of learning how to accept other opinions despite differences in viewpoints, stressing the need to shed light on issues of interest to the American society as well as other communities from various angles.
When a student masters the skill of long-term and critical thinking, acquiring debate skills becomes easier with time and support from mentors, which facilitates the process of learning and understanding issues of interest, and communicating ones position in a rational way, she said.
Source: Qatar News Agency