PF Essentials: The Resolution
Chapter 2 of the PF Essentials video course: how resolutions work in Public Forum, including topic rotation, side balance, and finding the clash before you cut any cards.
Watch on YouTubeTranscript
There are many possible battlefields on which to fight. Before you can prepare for battle you must understand the terrain, and as a Public Forum debater, your terrain is the resolution. You will be asked to debate government policy, technology and current events, with topics changing every one or two months.
Pro always agrees with the resolution and Con always disagrees. Keep in mind that the positions you hold within a debate round are not necessarily the views you personally agree with. A well-balanced resolution is winnable for both sides, topic committees work hard to avoid statements that are unwinnable for either.
Once you learn the fundamental skills, you will always be ready to tackle any topic. For the full self-guided course, look for PF Essentials right here on debatetrack.com.
Companion notes from the coaching team
The lecture makes three claims worth thinking about. First, the terrain metaphor: most novices prepare arguments before they understand the topic, which is like choosing weapons before seeing the battlefield. Reverse the order. Read about the subject until you can explain the controversy to someone outside debate, and only then start building cases. Our one-week topic prep guide on the blog turns this into a day-by-day plan.
Second, topic rotation works in your favor. Debaters who accept the reset (new subject, new literature, new clash) build research skills that carry over, so senior-year prep takes a fraction of the time it took freshman year. The resolution changes but the method stays the same: map the ground, find where the strongest version of each side collides, and prep that collision first.
Third, defending positions you do not personally hold is one of the event’s quieter strengths. Arguing both sides of every resolution builds a specific habit, steelmanning the other side before you answer it, that carries over to essays, interviews and every disagreement you will have outside a debate room. Every topic hub on this site maps both sides for that reason.