Participation in forensics introduced me to a wide variety of academic literatures beyond those I would have encountered studying history. Topics on Latin America and arms control introduced me to literatures in political science and communications/rhetoric,. Topics on drug testing and freedom of speech introduced me to academic work on the law, business, economics and medicine. A topic on gun control introduced me to work by scholars in sociology and criminology. Throughout all of these topics and others I found myself reading philosophy and even literary theory. There is simply no better way to expose a student to a diverse range of academic subjects than researching debate topics.

Debate, because of the necessity of constructing strong arguments from evidence on both sides of a question, sharpened my ability to do research, think critically about evidence and arguments, and to consider a wide variety of perspectives on an issue. The limited times given for speaking and presenting idea sharpened both my writing and verbal skills, helping me to learn to express myself clearly and concisely. Forensics, in short, prepares students to consume information critically, to articulate their views clearly, and to consider or take seriously all evidence-based views on an issue.