“O Romeo, Romeo, Wherefore Art Thou Romeo?”

Christina Dobbins, a SVUDL Debate Centered Instruction (DCI) Fellow and English teacher at East Palo Alto Academy, has discovered the powerful impact of DCI in her classroom. With six years of teaching experience—three at East Palo Alto Academy, a small school of approximately 300 students— she has integrated DCI methodologies into her everyday teaching to enhance her students' core English skills.

"What I have appreciated most about DCI activities is that they naturally help students develop critical thinking skills," Christina explains. "Additionally, these activities help students see the value of collaboration, learn how to assess various points of view, and gain confidence in speaking."

Christina was initially introduced to DCI through a colleague who had been implementing the approach in his own classroom and enthusiastically shared its benefits. Though she had no previous experience with Speech or Debate in her personal and professional background, she was particularly drawn to DCI's potential to build students' speaking confidence.

Her journey with DCI began when SVUDL Senior Program Specialist Kwodwo Moore helped her refine a presentation activity. Kwodwo and SVUDL Director of Programming Dr. Robert Burns visited her classroom to help facilitate the activity.

"This was such a positive experience that I decided to sign up for the cohort so that I could incorporate more DCI activities into my classroom," she recalls. "Integrating DCI has challenged me to reflect on how to create learning experiences that give students the ability to engage in the learning process in a meaningful and authentic way. Problem-solving, articulating ideas, and collaboration provide valuable skill sets that apply to life beyond high school. DCI activities naturally foster these skills."

She has successfully implemented specific DCI strategies in her curriculum, particularly around self-growth and Shakespeare studies. "I have run two debates in my class: one examining the value of conflict in self-growth and another for Romeo & Juliet arguing who was most responsible for the tragedy," she shares. "Both lessons were extremely positive experiences because students collaborated, used concrete evidence to develop arguments, and engaged in critical thinking throughout the debates."

Her debate structure involves an individual planning phase where students organize their ideas and evidence, followed by the group debate itself. For these activities, Dr. Burns and Kwodwo Moore provided organizing templates, advice, and facilitation support. "In both debates, students were highly engaged and collaborated effectively to prepare and argue their cases," she notes.

The impact of DCI in her classroom has been substantial. "I have seen a deeper understanding of content, more confidence in public speaking, and authentic collaboration among students," she reports. "Practicing how to develop a stance with supporting evidence and assessing other perspectives is such a valuable life skill. This work gives students the opportunity to develop these abilities."

She has also observed positive emotional responses from her students: "When we ran the debates, students were initially nervous but proud of themselves by the end. As a teacher, I loved seeing how engaged they were and how effectively they worked together both in preparation and during the debates."

Christina acknowledges that implementing DCI comes with challenges. "Running new activities in class can be difficult because I don't know what to expect, and developing new lessons takes time," she admits. "However, SVUDL is an excellent resource, providing planning assistance and support for both developing and running new activities."

For teachers considering DCI, she offers encouragement: "I highly recommend trying DCI. It's amazing to see how students engage with each other and with ideas through this work. SVUDL is very supportive and will help you prepare and lead new activities. Also, you don't need to implement everything at once—I've found it helpful to start with small changes and related activities and build from there."

She also advocates for DCI adoption at all levels of school and district administrative leadership: "DCI provides access to developing many important skills that will benefit students throughout their lives, including critical thinking, understanding different perspectives, presenting arguments effectively, collaboration, and public speaking."

For Christina, the alignment between DCI and English education standards is clear. "The standards in English are reading, writing, speaking, and listening. DCI activities help students develop their skills in all these areas," she concludes.