CEDA+Format

CEDA is short for Cross Examination Debate Association. It is also referred to as simply policy debate.

Policy debate, like parliamentary debate, is also an audience-centered form of two-person debate. In each debate, two students will represent the affirmative side (or the side supporting the resolution), while two students will represent the negative side (or the side negating the resolution). Also like NPDA, students are expected to present arguments supporting their side while refuting arguments of the other team.

In policy debate, the resolution is announced long ahead of time and stays the same for the entire entire year. The 2007 - 2008 CEDA debate topic is:

"Resolved: that the United States Federal Government should increase its constructive engagement with the government of one or more of: Afghanistan, Iran, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, and Syria, and it should include offering them a security guarantee(s) and/or a substantial increase in foreign assistance."

In policy debate, the debaters commonly research the topics and prepare their cases in their own time, so there is no specified preparation time in the tournament itself (because you can prepare whenever you feel like it in your free time) to be taken prior to the round. There is, however, prep time that can be used //during// the round, between speeches, unlike NPDA. Prep time is voluntarily used either prior to a speech to get some time to prepare or otherwise used to extend the cross examination period and ask more questions.

In CEDA format, the round itself follows this format:

Prep time: Usually 10 minutes, sometimes 8 minutes.


 * First Affirmative Constructive (1AC): 9 minutes
 * Cross Examination by the Second Negative Speaker: 3 minutes
 * First Negative Constructive (1NC): 9 minutes
 * Cross Examination by the First Affirmative Speaker: 3 minutes
 * Second Affirmative Constructive (2AC): 9 minutes
 * Cross Examination by the First Negative Speaker: 3 minutes
 * Second Negative Constructive (2NC): 9 minutes
 * Cross Examination by the Second Affirmative Speaker: 3 minutes
 * First Negative Rebuttal (1NR): 6 minutes
 * First Affirmative Rebuttal (1AR): 6 minutes
 * Second Negative Rebuttal (2NR): 6 minutes
 * Second Affirmative Rebuttal (2AR): 6 minutes

Contrary to NPDA format debate, there are no mechanisms to interrupt the other speaker.