Chris Beebout Assignment 6

     Before my freshman year, I signed up for AP Human Geography as my elective class. I had no idea what it was, but the idea of taking on two AP classes in my freshman year excited me; I wanted to challenge myself as much as I could and earn as many college credits as possible. Upon receiving my schedule, however, I saw that I had been placed in Advanced Debate, my second choice, instead. “Advanced” somehow looked so much less prestigious than “AP,” leaving me slightly dejected. And indeed, for much of that class I was engaging in relatively easy work or clumsily participating in various forms of argumentation. However, of those debate styles, one caught my eye: congressional debate.

     After a positive experience with Congress in class, I decided my sophomore year to enter into Congress competition with our debate team. It has been the most grueling, uncomfortable, and thrilling experience in my academic career. Every tournament, I spend the days and nights before constantly prepping speeches and research on a plethora of current and controversial topics, thus honing my work ethic, political knowledge, and sense of argumentation. I have argued against bills that I disliked and sponsored bills that I despised, teaching me the value of objectivity in life. I have been soundly beaten by my betters at times and triumphed over them at others, but I have always made sure to learn from them. By happy accident, I have found in Congressional debate an outlet for my passions and a stimulus to my mental strength. Without it, I would not possess the same love of voluntary learning that I cherish today— learning both about the world surrounding me and about my own impact on the world.