Imagining yourself debating or interpreting a poem or a prose in a second language as a high-schooler, and then seeing Bulgarian high-schoolers doing exactly that in English at such proficiency and competitiveness, it was a marvelous experience. I was able to witness it when I volunteered to be a judge for the BEST west and east regional tournaments over two weekends.
BEST includes four types of speech competitions and a debate in the World Schools format following these rules.
- Duo Interpretation
- Original Oratory
- Poetry interpretation
- Prose Interpretation
- World Schools Debate
BEST stands for Bulgarian English Speech and Debate Tournaments, and it started by six Fulbright ETAs (English Teaching Assistants) from an idea in 2012. ETAs are often the recent graduates from colleges in various disciplines. They are each allocated to a different high school throughout Bulgaria, and their young energy is often that fire that ignites the passion in the high-schoolers to learn more about English and get to know another country. Those six ETAs are one of such examples. After their first attempt at organizing a tournament funded by a Fulbright grant, which became a reality very successfully in 2013, more students were asking them when the next tournament would be. Then the BEST founding members knew that they would find a way to continue this and they eventually established a BEST foundation to make it sustainable.
Since then, more and more students participated, more and more coaches and judges helped, and the growing community keeps on nurturing the next generations, as shown in the testimonials.
The pandemic has added another layer of challenge, as the tournaments had to be held online this year. Multiple platforms and apps were used for video/audio channels, ballots, chatting and even timers, and things worked out fairly well. Technology has been important to help the world go through the pandemic.
Some debates were impromptu and the participants had only 30 minutes to prepare their arguments and strategies without any outside resources, and they all delivered. It was quite a test not only on their speeches, but also on their mental and emotional stability.
After the regional tournaments have concluded, students who have ranked high throughout the year qualify for the National tournament. BEST also organizes the Balkan Voices international tournament with the help and support of the American University in Bulgaria. Balkan Voices is exclusively an Original Oratory tournament that welcomes students from numerous Balkan countries.
One BEST alum said that she founded a company with a few friends right after they graduated from college, and her BEST experience was what got her that confidence and skill to found a company, to articulate her visions and needs, and to set her up for a career that she felt called for. This is why BEST exists and continues.
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