2015 Qualitative Assessment Project Results

The Chicago Debate League’s Qualitative Assessment Project concluded its third full year during the 2014/2015 debate season! The Qualitative Assessment Project (QAP) measures urban debaters’ understanding and performance of key elements of competitive academic debate, connecting urban debate more closely to academic learning objectives. The QAP assesses students’ performance against the Debater Development Benchmarks. These benchmarks identify specific skills and knowledge debaters should acquire in each year and at each level of debate.

Four Varsity debaters from each CDL school were assessed in the early season (T1 or T2). Those same Varsity debaters were assessed in the late season (T5 through T6) and their growth and learning as debaters over the course of the season is documented as Varsity Season Growth. Additionally, four first-year debaters from each school were assessed in the late season. Each school is given a single average qualitative rating of their debaters (on the 10 point scale that the Debater Development Benchmarks use) based on the top four scoring varsity member and their top 4 scoring junior varsity members. This rating measures how educationally developed their debating is by the end of the debate season.

The SY2015 Qualitative Assessment Project Results:

Congratulations to our Qualitative Performance Incentives winners based on the Qualitative Assessment Project results as reported above.

1st – 5th place receiving $400 per school
Northside College Prep
Whitney Young Magnet High School
Walter Payton College Prep
Lane Tech College Prep
Lincoln Park High School

6th – 10th place receiving $300 per school
Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center
Taft High School
Ogden International School of Chicago
Emiliano Zapata Academy
Thomas Kelly High School

11th – 15th place receiving $200 per school
Solorio Academy
Michele Clark High School
Westinghouse College Prep
Evanston Township High School
Lindblom Math and Science Academy

16th – 20th place receiving $100 per school
RTC Medical Prep
Phoenix Military Academy
St. Ignatius College Prep
Senn High School
King College Prep

This week the CDC will be sending each schools’ coaches the specific late-season assessments of their debaters, along with average performance ratings on each relevant benchmark. An additional ranking, incorporating all debaters assessed at each school (not exclusively the top 8 varsity and jv) in an aggregate score across the entire debate program, and a enlargement of the above results can be found here.