FLTRP Cup

I just had the most amazing, internationally overwhelming, intellectually exhausting week of my life! I spent the week in Beijing at a national debate competition supported by the FLTRP (Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press). The adjudicators traveled from all around the world to judge the competition and teach Chinese teachers about British Parliamentary Debate. I passed the adjudicator test and was privileged to serve on panels as a judge with adjudicators from Sweden, England, Israel, Scotland, Venezuela, Thailand, and of course, China and the US.

I took two students to the competition and we traveled with another team from our city (see the photo above). Our students really performed well, but the competition was fierce as they competed against students from top universities across China.

The two Qufu teams

Me and my students, Felicity and Sophie, with our awards.
Funny story: Chinese people kept accidentally calling Felicity by
"Facility" all week which made her annoyed and made me laugh.

While some debates ranked better than others,
I am overall really proud of how both teams debated.





Me and my new friend, Cathy--the coach from Xingtan College in Qufu


The Grand Final
Tsinghua (in Beijing), Nankai (in Tianjin), University of Macau, and Beijing University of Technology
And the grand prize went to: Nankai!

Motions from this year's debates:

Round 0

China should use taxpayers’ money to compensate the entertainment industry for losses due to piracy.

Round 1

Prisoners who agree to donate their organs should receive lessened prison sentences.

Round 2

China should require students to learn “red songs”(Hong ge) at all levels of education.

Round 3

China should establish military bases abroad.

Round 4

China should allow international adoption to homosexual couples whose union is legally recognized in their home jurisdiction.

Round 5

The Arab League should take the lead to achieve the regime change in Libya.

Round 6

China should provide financial incentives to rural families who bear and raise daughters.

Round 7

China should require all foreign direct investment projects in Africa to hire least 50% of their workforce locally.

Round 8

Contestants who have undergone cosmetic surgery should be prohibited from competing in beauty pageants.

Octo-Final

The United States was justified in violating Pakistan’s sovereignty to assassinate Osama Bin Laden.

Quarter Final

The Chinese government should require corporations to provide compensation to families of employees who commit suicide.

Semi-Final 1

China should establish an inheritance tax on the rich intended to prevent the transference of wealth between generations.

Semi-Final 2

Chinese local governments should abolish housing purchase restrictions that require local Hukou for buyers.

Grand Final

China should criminalize academic dishonesty.