September/OctoberPolitics and Government
Public Forum
Two-on-two debate on a current-events resolution that changes every month or two. Each speech is short and the round is meant to be followed by any listener. How Public Forum works
November/DecemberPolitics and Government
Resolved: The United States' strategy of Great Power Competition produces more benefits than harms.
JanuaryPolitics and Government
Resolved: The United States Federal Government should increase its diplomatic efforts to peacefully resolve internal armed conflicts in West Asia.
FebruaryPolitics and Government
Resolved: In the United States, right-to-work laws do more harm than good.
Resolved: The Republic of India should sign the Artemis Accords.
Resolved: The United States Federal Government should ban the collection of personal data through biometric recognition technology.
NationalsPolitics and Government
Resolved: The United States should adopt ranked-choice voting for its federal elections.
Lincoln-Douglas
One-on-one debate built around values: each side defends a value and a criterion for weighing it. The resolution changes every two months. How Lincoln-Douglas works
September/OctoberHealth and Medicine
Resolved: The United States ought to implement a single-payer universal healthcare system.
November/DecemberHealth and Medicine
Resolved: The People's Republic of China ought to prioritize environmental protection over economic growth.
January/FebruaryInternational Relations
Resolved: Justice requires open borders for human migration.
March/AprilCrime and Justice
Resolved: The justices of the Supreme Court of the United States ought to be term-limited.
NationalsEconomy and Work
Resolved: Government employees have a moral obligation to leak classified information to address injustice.
Policy
Two-on-two debate on one resolution for the whole season. The affirmative proposes a plan and both sides use a lot of evidence. How Policy works
Whole seasonPolitics and Government
Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its security cooperation with the North...
Shortened here. The full wording is on NSDA's topic page.
Big Questions
A debate on a philosophy and science question, with one resolution for the season.
Whole seasonPolitics and Government
Resolved: Humans are primarily driven by self-interest.
About NSDA topics
The National Speech & Debate Association (NSDA) is the largest high school speech and debate organization in the United States. It publishes the resolutions that US tournaments use each season: a new Public Forum topic every month or two, a Lincoln-Douglas topic every two months, and one Policy topic for the whole year. Its National Tournament in June has its own topics.
Resolutions from NSDA's topic page, credited to the National Speech & Debate Association. NCFL Nationals topics are from the National Catholic Forensic League tournament, as listed by NSDA.