Research suggests that CLIL courses can have a positive impact on student motivation and interest in addition to improving linguistic capabilities. However, when a CLIL English Debate course was introduced as a required course at a university in Tokyo, discussions with other teachers raised questions about its appropriateness. The participation and motivation of students, the ability of lower proficiency students to succeed, and the appropriateness of materials were questioned. Surveys were designed to assess the students’ perceptions of the course to evaluate whether their experiences matched the concerns of the teachers. Across all proficiency bands the quantitative data showed that students reported generally positive expectations at the beginning of the course and positive opinions at the end of the semester. This suggests that they did not share the concerns initially expressed by their instructors. Qualitative data was varied but generally positive. At first students were nervous about their abilities but excited to improve their language and debate skill and at the end of the semester they reported learning to think and communicate logically as well as how to focus on being understood. Responses also provided insight into opportunities to improve the course design to better match their goals and expectations.