The Oracy Institute

What The Oracy Institute does

The Oracy Institute is a Rotterdam-based education company founded in 2022 that designs and delivers oracy, debate, and argumentation programs for Dutch schools and international institutions. Its core offerings include a structured Oracy Curriculum, the Praatjesmakers program for younger students, the Ethics Bowl, and the recently launched International Schools Debating League (NDL) and Soapbox Challenge — a mix of curriculum licensing, recurring league/tournament formats, and one-off events. The company also runs dedicated debate clubs inside partner schools such as Rijnlands Lyceum and Wolfert Bilingual, and has embedded multi-year programs at schools including RISS, KBS Onder de Bogen, and ISK Zaanstad.

The company's underlying technology stack is light: its two AI-powered prototypes (an AI debate tool and an AI essay feedback system, grouped under an "Oracy Practice Center" concept) are explicitly described as prototypes and likely depend on third-party NLP/language models rather than proprietary models. Its deeper moat is content — a proprietary set of frameworks (STEAK, CRASH, etc.), 2 published books, and 40+ titles in its catalog — supplemented by EU-funded research collaboration through the IDAC consortium with Tilburg University, Nuffic, and Oxford Schools. Reach to date is modest: 2,500+ students engaged and 350+ teachers trained cumulatively since founding.

The business model is a combination of (i) professional services — teacher training workshops priced at EUR 750 (ex VAT) per half-day for up to 10 teachers, (ii) recurring school program contracts (e.g., the multi-year RISS engagement), (iii) league/competition entry fees and tournament income (NDL, Soapbox Challenge), and (iv) curriculum and book sales. The company is privately held, founder-owned by Devin van den Berg and Mare van den Putte (both Dutch National Debate Champions), and has not disclosed external funding. The team is small (8 employees), and geographic reach is currently centered on the Netherlands with select projects in the UK and France.

Name

The Oracy Institute

Legal name

The Oracy Institute

Website

https://oracyeducation.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Oracy Institute is a Rotterdam-based education company founded in 2022 that develops oracy, debate, and argumentation curricula, programs, and competitions for Dutch schools and select international institutions, serving approximately 2,500 students and 350 teachers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Services (Oracy and Debate Training)

NAICS

All Other Schools and Instruction (61169), Exam Preparation and Tutoring (611691)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Debate Academies & Speech Coaching Centers (EDAMAOAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

In-School Debate Teams & Speech Programs (EDAMAOAA), Speech & Debate Camps, Intensives & Bootcamps (EDAMAOAN), Debate Tournament & League Organizers (EDAMAOAE), Online Public Speaking & Debate Programs (Live/Recorded) (EDAMAOAD), Teacher/Coach Training & Curriculum for Speech & Debate (EDAMAOAL), Debate Curriculum, Lesson Plans & Instructional Materials Publishers (EDAMAOAM)

Keywords

• Oracy education programs
• Debate club training
• Teacher professional development
• Curriculum consultancy services
• Public speaking skills

Headquarters

HQ city

Rotterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Teacher Training Services: Half-day professional development sessions for groups of up to 10 teachers at 750 euros excl. VAT, with larger groups receiving custom quotes. Multi-day deep dive courses available at negotiated rates.
2. After-school Debate Club Programs: Praatjesmakers is a Dutch after-school debate club for primary school students operating on a voluntary parent contribution basis, prioritizing accessibility.
3. Curriculum Consultancy: Custom curriculum development and reform support for schools, including language policy development and oracy program implementation.
4. Debate Events and Tournaments: Organization of debate events, tournaments, and speaking contests including National Debate League and Soapbox Challenge.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Oracy Institute provides skills-based oracy and debate education programs to primary and secondary schools. Core offerings include in-school debate club coordination, teacher training workshops (half-day and multi-day professional development), curriculum consultancy and language policy development, and dedicated debate programs such as the National Debate League. Supplementary offerings include after-school programs (Praatjesmakers), summer camps (Young Minds Academy), speech contests (Soapbox Challenge), and an EU-funded online debate platform (IDAC). All programs are delivered in both Dutch and English.

Product overview

The Oracy Institute offers a portfolio of education programs focused on teaching oracy (speaking, listening, and critical thinking skills). The core offerings include debate clubs and oracy curriculum programs at various Dutch and international schools (Praatjesmakers, Oracy Curriculum & Debate Club, Wolfert Debate Society, Rijnlands Debate Club), competition programs (National Debate League, Soapbox Challenge, Ethics Bowl), and online learning platforms (IDAC). Supporting services include teacher training workshops, curriculum consultancy, and the Oracy Practice Center which incorporates AI-powered prototypes for debate and writing feedback. Programs serve students from primary school through secondary school and are delivered in both Dutch and English.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Praatjesmakers: Dutch after-school debate club for primary school students
• IDAC (Innovate Debate: Applied Curriculum for Debate-based Youth Work)
• National Debate League (NDL)

Products and services

• Praatjesmakers (Primary School Debate Club) Dutch after-school debate club for primary school students offering a safe, supportive environment to share ideas, listen to others, collaborate, and build confidence through discussion and critical thinking. Operates on a voluntary contribution basis prioritizing accessibility.
• Teacher Training (Nascholing) Half-day and multi-day professional development training for teachers covering debate exercises, judging and feedback techniques, advanced argumentation, and supporting students with fear of speaking. Priced at 750 EUR per half-day session for groups of up to 10 teachers, with custom quotes for larger groups.
• Language Policy & Curriculum Consultancy Custom curriculum development and reform support for schools, including design of skills-based classes and tailored exercises for specific subjects, as well as language policy development and oracy program implementation.
• Oracy Curriculum & Debate Club Three-year Oracy programme that makes oracy a permanent part of school curriculum for grades 6, 7, and 8, providing top-notch speaking skills and critical thinking education. Includes debate club training and launch of the International Schools Debating League.
• National Debate League (NDL) Debate and public speaking program for bilingual and international upper secondary students (TTO havo/vwo 4-6). Includes training from expert coaches, three national tournaments, and mentoring opportunities.
• Soapbox Challenge (SBC) English speech contest for students in bilingual education (TTO 1-3), providing opportunities to showcase presentation skills and speak about current affairs. Co-organized with Nuffic and DebatUnie.
• Ethics Bowl Unique debate format in collaboration with Tilburg University where students explore ethical dilemmas through thoughtful dialogue rather than opposition. Covers topics like AI, sustainability, and political representation.
• IDAC Online Debate Platform EU-funded online platform for debate courses promoting interactive approach to learning critical thinking and communication skills. Accessible to everyone, covering argumentation, rebuttal, and climate change topics. Available at learningbase.idebate.net.
• Oracy Practice Center (AI Prototypes) Research-driven initiative tackling meaningful practice and feedback in speaking skills. Developed two AI-powered prototypes including an innovative AI debate tool and an AI-powered writing/essay feedback system that provides text-based feedback on student work.
• Young Minds Academy (YMA) Free summer camp for ambitious and socially engaged youths, featuring debates, workshops on democracy, critical thinking sessions, and active citizenship activities.
• ADAPT Debate/Philosophy Book Published book contribution as part of the ADAPT project, blending argumentative skills from debate education with core concepts in political philosophy including freedom, justice, and equality.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,500+ students have used their materials
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Rijnlands Lyceum & International School WassenaarcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLongstanding partnership for weekly extra-curricular debate sessions. Students attend national and international debating events together. Partnership includes school-wide events like house debating tournaments and teacher trainings.
• KBS Onder de BogencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLongstanding partnership with primary school. Started with single class and expanded to four classes. Exploring new opportunities for developmentally advanced students through debate activities.
• Rotterdam International Secondary School (RISS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeveloped three-year RISS Rose Oracy programme making oracy a permanent part of curriculum. All grades 6, 7, and 8 receive speaking skills and critical thinking education. Training debate club and launched International Schools Debating League.
• NufficcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-organizer of Soapbox Challenge English speech contest for bilingual education students (TTO 1-3). Also partners on National Debate League where students mentor younger students through Nuffic's Soapbox Challenge.
• DebatUniecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-organizer of Soapbox Challenge English speech contest. Partnership enables provision of presentation skills opportunities for students in bilingual education.
• Tilburg UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organized the first Dutch edition of Ethics Bowl debate format. Provided training from national debate champions to sharpen participants' argumentation and critical thinking skills. Project expanding internationally in coming years.
• Wolfert Bilingual SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupported and coordinated introduction of Skills subjects in years 1-2. Developed CRASH framework for essential higher-order skills. Coordinated Wolfert Debate Society for over seven years. Host Dutch preliminary round of Oxford Schools Debate Championships.
• European UnioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU-funded IDAC project (Innovate Debate: Applied Curriculum for Debate-based Youth Work) to develop online platform for debate courses. Project promotes interactive approach to learning critical thinking and communication skills accessible to everyone.
• ADAPT Project ConsortiumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerContributed to Debate/Philosophy book as part of ADAPT project strengthening critical skills in new generation. Book blends debate education with political philosophy concepts including freedom, justice, and equality.
• Young Minds AcademyminorOthersSummer camp designed for ambitious and socially engaged youths with activities including debates, democracy workshops, and critical thinking skill development sessions.
• Oxford SchoolsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership providing opportunity to qualify for prestigious Oxford Schools tournament. Host Dutch preliminary round of Oxford Schools Debate championships with renowned judges from Oxford.
• ISK ZaanstadcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDebate lessons for ISK (newcomer) students. Students learned to give opinions through logic and good arguments rather than emotion. Newcomer students who had been in Netherlands for around a year managed to win debates against HAVO students.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• iDebate: International debate education organization running curricula, training, and online debate resources for youth globally. Directly comparable to Oracy's IDAC platform and debate-club offering, and even appears as a partner on the Oracy website.
• DebatUnie: Dutch national debate organization that co-organizes the Soapbox Challenge with Oracy and runs its own school debate competitions and training. Same Dutch school debate market, overlapping customer base of bilingual and secondary schools.
• Noisy Classroom: UK provider of debate and oracy training, competitions, and resources for primary and secondary schools. Closely comparable offering to Oracy's debate clubs, teacher training, and tournament programs, but serving UK schools.
• Dutch Schools Debate College: Dutch school debating training and league organization, managed by Laura van Helmond who is also on Oracy's team. Directly comparable provider of debate coaching, teacher training, and league competitions in the Netherlands.

Broad incumbents

• Skills Builder Partnership: UK-based education partnership building essential skills (including speaking and critical thinking) across schools via frameworks and teacher training. Comparable framework-driven approach to Oracy's CRASH and STEAK models, but operating at larger UK scale.
• Voice 21: UK-based charity focused on oracy education in schools, providing frameworks, teacher CPD, and school network programs. Comparable mission and target audience (primary/secondary schools) at significantly larger scale than Oracy.
• National Forensic League (NSDA): US-based national speech and debate association running leagues, tournaments, and curriculum resources for middle and high schools. Comparable debate tournament and league infrastructure, though at vastly larger scale and US-focused.

Emerging players

• Oxford Union Schools Debating Championships: Prestigious international schools debating championship that Oracy's school partners (e.g., Wolfert) host preliminary rounds for. Comparable insofar as both run school debate competitions, but Oxford Schools is primarily a tournament organizer, not a curriculum provider.
• High Resolves: Provider of citizenship, leadership, and critical-thinking programs for secondary school students. Comparable target audience and similar skills-development value proposition, though more focused on active citizenship than competitive debate.
• Teach the Debate: Education initiative focused on bringing debate-based learning into classrooms, often through teacher training and curriculum materials. Comparable pedagogy and target buyer (teachers and schools) to Oracy's training and curriculum consultancy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-oracy-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Oracy Institute