Debate Coach
Competed at the World University Debating Championships. Founded a school’s first debate program.
Two arcs of debate: three seasons on the LSE Debate Team (2013–2016) as member then General Secretary, culminating in WUDC Malaysia 2015 — then founded the Burnt Mill Academy debate program in Harlow during TeachFirst, taking the school to its first inter-school competitions.
232 / 731
WUDC 2015 individual ranking
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
3
years on LSE Debate Team
Member, then General Secretary
Founder
Burnt Mill debate program
Took the school to its first inter-school competitions
100+
competitions attended
UK + continental Europe
WUDC 2015 ranking: official tab roster (source on request).
Two arcs
First compete. Then coach the program you start from scratch.
Competitor
LSE Debate Team · 2013–2016
Three full seasons on the LSE Debate Team — member then General Secretary. Hundreds of competitions across UK and continental Europe: inter-university opens, IVs, and majors in the British Parliamentary format. Culminated in the **World University Debating Championships 2015 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia**, finishing 232nd out of 731 individual debaters globally on the WUDC 2015 tab. General-Secretary work included club operations, novice training, captaincy decisions, and pastoral cover for junior debaters.
Coach
Burnt Mill Academy · Harlow · 2016–2018
Founded the school's debate program during a two-year TeachFirst placement at Burnt Mill Academy — no prior infrastructure. Took Burnt Mill to **its first inter-school debate competitions**, the school's debut on the competitive schools' circuit. Coaching context: a non-selective state secondary; students starting from scratch in both format knowledge and the confidence to argue in front of strangers.
What debate teaches
What I learned competing — and what coaching teaches students.
Argue both sides at full strength before you commit
The single most under-priced cognitive skill in business. Debate is the only training I know that drills it; you literally don't find out which side you're on until 15 minutes before round-start.
Hold structure under time pressure
Seven minutes to make the case, three minutes of points-of-information from opponents, immediate adjudication. There is nowhere for waffle to hide.
Performance discipline under hostile examination
What survives PoIs is what survives investor Q&A, board challenges, and clinical-advisor scrutiny. Same muscle.
Adversarial respect
The team you beat in round 3 is the team you have a drink with at finals night. Disagreement is what debate is for; treating opponents as enemies is the amateur move.
How I’d coach
Format first. Get the BP structure, roles, and time signature memorised before anything stylistic. The structure does the heavy lifting.
PoIs are the test. Anyone can prepare a 7-minute speech; the differentiator is the 30 seconds when an opponent stands up.
Roleplay the judge in feedback. Students improve fastest when they learn to predict what the adjudicator will write.
Match the motion to the student early. Confidence compounds; running a 14-year-old against a Schools' Mace final on their second week is bad coaching.
Travel the team. A school's first inter-school competition is the inflection point — get them through the door of someone else's auditorium.
Debate never stopped being useful
Investor Q&A — adversarial scrutiny under pressure, in a board context. Same muscle as PoIs.
Briefing clinical advisors — structured argument with cross-examination from domain experts.
Cross-functional argument — taking the other side at full strength before committing to one. The single most under-priced cognitive skill in operating work.