Gavel Club is an affiliate of Toastmasters International, follows the same Toastmasters mission, and offers almost the same education programs, but runs under a different system for people who are ineligible to be official Toastmasters members, mostly due to being under 18. Have a detailed understanding of what a Gavel Club is, including its purpose, benefits, history, etc.
Sea Dragons Gavel Club was founded in the autumn of 2025 by a group of high school students at BASIS International School Park Lane Harbour, with the mission of providing effective, differentiated communication education that is suitable for students, and of providing a warm community where people feel included and cared for. Learn more about our story and our team and our partners!
We welcome people from around the country and the world to join us, not just those in Park Lane Harbour, Huizhou, China. Our club membership provides an unprecedented experience, offering:
- full access to all sections of the club’s regular meetings (both online and in-person, not limited to the Table Topics section)
- a collaborative community
- exclusive educational sessions
- free registration for speech contests (with no contest fee required)
- constructive support from club officers and mentors in developing communication and leadership skills
Membership in our club is completely free, and your membership status will be determined by the Club Executive Committee. Submit your membership application.
Membership status and applications are reviewed on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the Club Executive Committee. We expect prospective club members to be:
- between the ages of 12 and 17, or in Grade 6 through Grade 12
- willing to follow and support the club in all aspects, both for themselves and others
Please be aware that even if your age does not meet the requirements, or if you have special circumstances, you are still encouraged to apply. We welcome a diverse group of people.
You can find a detailed calendar of our upcoming club events on our Event Calendar, it includes the calendar, list of events, event descriptions, fees, and event sign-ups. You can sign up for one of the upcoming events there.
Students in our club work on the Toastmasters Traditional Education Program, a learning-by-doing, level-based, long-term comprehensive program designed by Toastmasters to improve communication and leadership skills, which has benefited many adults over the past decades. Students engage with this program during our general club meetings. Additionally, we provide free online educational sessions that allow students beyond our local range to participate. In these sessions, international speech champions and competent communicators host workshops, sharing communication and leadership tips with students.
MEETING SEGMENT | ROLES INVOLVED | KEY ACTIVITIES |
|---|---|---|
Opening Session | Sergeant at Arms, President | Call the meeting to order, introduce guests, present the agenda, deliver opening remarks |
Introduction of Toastmaster of the Day | Toastmaster of the Day (TMOD) | Introduce the meeting theme, explain the flow of events, introduce role takers |
Prepared Speeches | Assigned Speakers, TMOD | Deliver prepared speeches from the Traditional Toastmasters Education Program; TMOD introduces each speaker |
Table Topics Session | Table Topics Master | Lead impromptu speaking practice; invite members and guests to answer spontaneous questions |
Evaluation Session | General Evaluator, Speech Evaluators, Timer, Ah-Counter, Grammarian | Evaluate speeches, report timing, count filler words, check grammar; General Evaluator provides overall meeting feedback |
Closing Session | TMOD, President | Return control to the President; announce recognitions and reminders; formally adjourn the meeting |
Gavel Club general meeting roles include the Toastmaster (meeting chairperson), General Evaluator, and other roles such as Speaker, Table Topicsmaster, Evaluator, Grammarian, Timer, and Ah-Counter. Learn more about the club meeting roles.
General club meetings happen offline, in person. You can sign up for our upcoming club meetings on our Event Calendar. People beyond Park Lane Harbour, Huizhou, China (the location of the club) are unable to participate. We might host some online general club meetings and will inform participants if we do. However, students can still work on the Toastmasters Traditional Education Program on their own (with acess to our recources), and we will provide online support for free if needed.
Students can register for the online educational sessions on our Events Calendar. After registration, we will send the Zoom meeting link, meeting ID, and passcode.
There are two tracks in the traditional Toastmasters education program:
- Communication Track: Competent Communicator → Advanced Communicator Bronze → Advanced Communicator Silver → Advanced Communicator Gold
- Leadership Track: Competent Leader → Advanced Leader Bronze → Advanced Leader Silver
Learn more about the Toastmasters Traditional Education Program.
We encourage all of our members to study and practice in English, which is our club’s official language. Even if you study using materials in another language, all speeches and presentations must still be delivered in English. Toastmasters International used to publish translated versions of the Traditional Education Program manuals and series before 2020. However, after Pathways fully replaced the Traditional Program in 2020, those translated materials are no longer publicly available. If you are struggling with English and feel that studying in your native language would help, you have two options:
- Recommended: Email membership@toastmasters.org directly to request the translated material.
- Contact us: with the specific translated materials you are looking for (including the language and the manual/series). We can ask our district to see if any copies are still available.
Gavel Club members can work their way to the top of the Communication Track, but only up to Advanced Leader Bronze in the Leadership Track. Gaveliers will not be able to earn the Distinguished Toastmaster award. Learn more about the old Path to DTM.
These awards are not given by Sea Dragons Gavel Club; they are given by Toastmasters International to recognize individual improvement and outstanding achievement. In order to apply for these awards, students must first complete the tasks required for each award with the guidance of one of the club officers. After completing the tasks, fill out the award application form and submit it to a club officer. We will send this form to Toastmasters International, and you will receive your certificate via email from them.
We offer a wide range of speech contest types, including the International Speech Contest, Table Topics Contest, Evaluation Contest, Storytelling Contest, Monologue Contest, Debate Contest, Humorous Speech Contest, and Tall Tale Contest. All of them occur once a year, and you will receive a schedule of these contests in February each year.
English is the only language allowed for participation in all types of speech contests.
All contests start at the club level. The winners move to the group level, and only the International Speech Contest progresses to the championship level.
You can find upcoming contests on our Events Calendar. Upcoming contests will be posted there at least one month before the event. You may sign up as either a contestant or an audience member. Please note that contestants are required to pay a registration fee of 50 RMB after their registration is approved. Contest details will be sent afterward.
The group-level contest and the championship-level contest are organized by all Gavel Clubs worldwide, which means direct contest roles might not be needed for these two levels. However, we do need people to sign up for contest roles and be part of the organization team in club-level contests. We will announce this in advance, and you may email us to sign up.
Sea Dragons Gavel Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit club. We do not generate any revenue besides a minimal physical materials fee. Our membership is free; everyone can become an official member without paying anything. Our online and in-person club regular meetings, educational sessions, and educational programs are all free and open to all students. We only collect an 50 RMB contestant fee for speech contests, and this fee is waived for official members who want to participate and for audience members who wish to learn.
POLICY AREA | DETAILS |
|---|---|
Contest Format | The contest is held online via Zoom meetings |
Contest Fee | 50 RMB |
Payment Timing | Payment is required after registration approval and must be completed at least one week before the contest |
Cancellation (More Than One Week Before) | Full refund of the paid fee |
Cancellation (Less Than One Week Before) | No refund will be provided |
Late or Unpaid Fees | Contestant may lose their contest position |
Repeated Late Cancellations / No-Shows | May result in being barred from future contests, depending on circumstances |
Membership Status Change After Payment | No refund if the contestant becomes an official club member after paying the contest fee, regardless of timing |
Sea Dragons Gavel Club is a non-profit organization. In most cases, there is no excess revenue; in fact, we often operate at a deficit. If contest fee collection generates surplus revenue, we have two options. We will either save the extra funds to support educational activities and help organize the next contest, or we will donate the surplus to the Ralph C. Smedley Memorial Fund (Smedley Fund), a Toastmasters International fund, established in 1965, to advance its mission through the research, development, and distribution of educational programs and materials relating to communication and leadership.
We offer two main types of partnerships.
- Corporate Partnership: Our partner organization shares our free resources-including educational sessions, contests, or any kind of online educational program-with their local community, and we do the same for our partners.
- Strategic Partnership: We and our partner organization co-host events, collaborate on projects, provide mutual support when needed, and engage in activities that benefit both organizations’ members
Interested in a different kind of partnership? We’re happy to explore ideas.
When you partner with us, you join our mission to provide a joyful, differentiated communication and leadership learning experience while building a supportive community. Corporate Partners gain full access to our resources-including free online sessions, speech contests, and materials-and we share your resources with our members. Strategic Partners co-host events, carry out impactful projects, and receive mutual support benefiting both organizations. All partners are featured on our Partnership Page.
We welcome prospective organizations, groups, and clubs to partner with us. However, we only partner with those related to education in communication, leadership, public speaking, and community service. If you are one of them, please email us with details explaining your club/organization and how you wish to collaborate.
Yes, but with a logo authorization request in advance. Email us to describe how you plan to use it, the number of physical materials featuring the logo, and send us the design before publishing it. You can find all our logos in the SDGC Logo Usage Slide. Unauthorized use, modification, or violations of brand guidelines will result in consequences.