Junior Aaron Tian has been doing public forum debate for a little over five years. In that time, he has won multiple major national tournaments, amassed 15 bids (invites) to the Tournament of Champions — the premier national debate season championship — and been ranked third overall amongst high school debaters in the country. His impressive resume has required intense preparation, research, dedication and plenty of practice.
Tian first began debating shortly before sixth grade, when he enrolled in a debate-based summer camp. The experience was “very educational” and fun, inspiring him to start competing in tournaments and join this school’s debate team during his freshman year. “[This school’s debate team] had local and national success, so I definitely wanted to be involved,” he said.
In addition to debating in the monthly local, MoCo-sponsored tournaments, Tian competes on the national debate circuit alongside his partner, junior Isabel Tang. Tang said that debating with Tian has been “interesting.” “He’s eager to run these quirky philosophical arguments that take me forever to comprehend but he’s very patient in explaining [them],” Tang said.
Indeed, Tian said his favorite aspect of debate is getting to explore “a lot of nuanced arguments and complex strategies.” His personal goals for the upcoming season include “diverging away from traditional debate,” and exploring “more critical argumentation, literature, theory, and also more progressive styles of debate,” he said.
Senior Ishan Puri, a captain on this school’s debate team, has been debating with Tian in local and national tournaments for two years, and said he believes Tian’s biggest strength is his research skills. “The breadth of knowledge he has” allows Tian to “adapt to each individual judge” during competitions, Puri said.
On the national circuit, Tian has debated for three seasons, the last two while partnered with Tang. Within those three years, he has collected countless individual and team awards. His biggest achievements include winning the Grapevine Classic and Peach State Classic national tournaments. He also semifinaled the Harvard national tournament in both 2023 and 2025, which is “one of, if not the, biggest tournament[s],” in debate, with over 300 teams participating, Tian said.
Additionally, through high-level finishes at various other competitions, Tian has accrued 15 bids, or invites, to the annual Tournament of Champions over the course of his career. The Tournament of Champions is one of the largest and most competitive debate events in the country. At big competitions, it’s “funny to see the kind of renown he has in the debate community due to how long he’s been debating and how successful he’s been,” Tang said.
Besides his individual accomplishments, Tian is focused on using his skills to improve the debate program here, where he has been a captain of the Wootton team and club since his sophomore year. “I prepare a lot of the slideshows [and] team preparations… It’s very research intensive, requires a lot of reading, finding evidence, and cutting argumentation before a tournament or debate actually happens,” Tian said.
Meeting activities include lectures, mock debates and drills to improve quick thinking or argumentation skills. These resources are important for preparing club members, especially those who are new to debate. “As a club we have a lot of support systems, such as our captains… making sure that everyone has a sense of comfort and being prepared.We have a really hardworking, dedicated team spirit,” Tian said.
Tian is interested in getting more students involved with the club. This year, Tian traveled to Harvard for a tournament, with new debaters from the team. “Every year we bring in a lot of new people who are really eager to dive into the world of debate. It’s great to see that a lot of these younger students are willing to explore and learn about debate,” Tian said.
So why should students consider participating in debate? One reason is that it can help academically. “I can’t stress how much [debate] has helped me in English classes or humanities classes where I just have a lot of background knowledge on different historical or policy-based topics. The same goes for writing skills, you learn a lot about research and writing and speaking… and also like critical thinking, being able to think on your feet,” Tian said.
Additionally, for those who compete at high levels, debate can open doors to future opportunities. Tian said, people who do national debate “end up going to top colleges and having opportunities to compete at universities hosting tournaments like Harvard or UPenn.” But for those who just want to have fun and improve their public speaking, debate is a “safe space where you can practice and foster your skills,” Tian said.
His advice for those who want to succeed in debate? “Have a good research base, be knowledgeable about the topic. Preparation is definitely one of the most important things in debate…It’s really accessible to anyone, I certainly wasn’t good when I joined but it comes with a lot of really hard work,” Tian said.
