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School debating in Scotland is a competitive activity taken up on an extra-curricular basis by many schools across the country. Teams of two or three compete in several competitions and schools debaters may be selected for Scotland in the World Schools Debating Championships.

Contents 1 The Law Society Donald Dewar Memorial Debating Tournament 2 The Courier and Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland Schools Junior Debating Competition 3 The ESU Scotland Juniors Competition 4 Other Tournaments 5 Website And Information

This competition organised by the Law Society of Scotland is a popular Scottish schools debating competition. The tournament is currently sponsored by The Glasgow Bar Association and Simpson and Warwick Solicitors. The 2005 final was won by George Heriot's School of Edinburgh and chaired by Nicola Sturgeon MSP. Robert Gordon's College finished second.

In 2006 the tournament received it's highest level of entries as 152 teams from different 90 schools entered.

This competition is organised by the Courier newspaper, and is open to Junior school debaters in the area covered by the newspaper. It is sponsored by the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland. The competition is in extended BP format, with three teams on each side rather than the more usual two, and is run on a knock-out basis, with 72 original teams being reduced to six finalists over the course of long-preparation rounds. The Grand Final is run, with the help of the University of St Andrews Union Debating Society, in Lower Parliament Hall, St Andrews, with the winners receiving a trip to America, and the runners-up a break in London.

Winners of the 2006/2007 competition were Shona Young and Kirsty Paterson-Hunter of Kinross High School, who spoke in opposition to the motion that 'This House Would ban non-reconstructive cosmetic surgery'. Runners-up were Marianne Inglis and Catherine Lovegrove from Morrison's Academy who argued for the motion.

The 2007/2008 competition is due to commence in October 2007.

The largest competition in Scotland for S1-S3 debaters. The 2006 competition received 113 entries. The competition is in BP format, with four teams of two competing in the debate.

Last year's grand final took place in the Scottish Parliament and was judged by Brian Monteith MSP and chaired by Jenni Harrison (President of SSDC). The motion was 'This House Believes that America has turned its dream into a nightmare'. The winners were Catriona Basquill and Laura Sugden of Dollar Academy. The other finalists were The High School of Dundee, Dumfries Academy and Newcastle Royal Grammar School.

• ESU Mace - a competition open to schools throughout Britain
• Northern Lights - Invitational tournament held at Robert Gordon's College.
• The Glasgow University Union Schools' Debating Tournament
• Dundee University Schools' Competition
• Aberdeen University Debater Schools' Competition
• Edinburgh University Schools' Competition

A website has been set up for information about Schools debating in Scotland. The site offers information on competitions, dates and rules. The website can be found at scottishdebate.com