Welcome to the DC Area High School Ethics Bowl

The ethics Bowl is a fun and rewarding way to get high school students thinking about the challenging ethical and political issues of our time. As a team member, you will investigate and debate such issues as medical ethics, censorship, violence in schools, and the financial practices of world governments, all in a chiefly collaborative manner. The goal is not to prove your friends and opposing teams wrong, but to debate in a careful, thoughtful manner about the positions which make the most sense.

While similar in structure to a debate, students on a team are not assigned positions or captains. This means no one tells you what to think or when to speak—it's the job of the entire team to come together to make the best case for their position to the judges and the opposing team. In turn, the other team will comment on your position, perhaps helping to clarify or perfect it. Even the judges have a chance to chime in, and your team will field their questions too.

As cooperative as the Ethics Bowl is, teams are still scored based on the strengths of their presentations. In the end, one team will be declared the winner, and will be eligible to travel to North Carolina in the Spring to participate in the National Ethics Bowl competition!