Week 1, Day 5
Objective: Understanding specifics about CX and LD debate.
- What is debate? Video
- Watch as a class
- Fill out this Debate Student Information Form
- SEVERAL of you have not filled it out yet.
- I need EVERY student in the class to fill this out.
- According to those that have filled out the survey, it looks like most people are leaning toward either CX or LD more heavily. I'd like the class to go ahead and break up and discuss additional details about their event. (Order of speeches, case construction, jargon associated with debate, etc.) If you truly have no idea which event you want to do, I would encourage you to begin with CX. Most people say it is the harder of the two events and if you decide it isn't for you, it is a little bit of an easier transition to LD. This is not true for everyone, but that is what several have experienced.
- As always, please email me with any questions you might have-cavalos@godleyisd.net.
Week 1, Day 4
Objective: Mock debate rounds.
- Mock Debate Rounds
- Enjoy!
- Practice flowing! (Do you even know what flowing is yet? Flowing is just another name for taking notes.)
- As always, please email me with any questions you might have-cavalos@godleyisd.net.
Week 1, Day 3
Objective: Discuss classroom expectations, policies, and procedures.
- Debate 101 Video
- Watch as a class
- Dress Code
- Go over dress code as stated in the syllabus.
- Key points:
- Ladies:
- Must wear pantyhose if you are wearing a skirt or dress.
- NO open-toe shoes
- Gentlemen:
- You must wear a tie.
- Fill out this Debate Student Information Form
- Medical Release Form
- Print one out, fill it out, and bring it back to turn it in.
- This will serve as your permission slip for the entire year.
- Parent Communication
- Email and text will be the best way for me to communicate with your parents.
- Most of my communication will be through you (the student). Please make sure you keep your parents in the loop about what is going on.
- All of the experienced debaters have my cell phone number. Please get it from one of them and save it in your phone. Please give it to your parents so that when we are on trips, they will have a way to communicate with me.
- If time, Speaking Drills
- Pen in the mouth (both ways)
- As loud as you can
- As clearly as you can
- As fast as you can
- Backwards
- With the word "and" after every word
- As always, please email me with any questions you might have-cavalos@godleyisd.net.
Week 1, Day 2
Objective: Discuss classroom expectations, policies, and procedures. Welcome!
- Welcome Back!
- I'm glad you're back today. Hopefully, yesterday you weren't inundated with too much information. Don't get me wrong debate is a lot of work, but it is SO MUCH FUN! And I truly believe it will get you ready for the "real world" better than ANY other activity that you can be involved with in high school! Another added benefit is that there is a TON of scholarship money available to those that are looking to continue their debate through college!!!!!!!
- Answer any questions you might have from yesterday and the syllabus/constitution.
- Debate schedule
- Located under the "Tournament/Event Schedule" tab above.
- I realize that there are a lot of band conflicts, I will work with you on those.
- Differences between CX and LD
- You will need to pick one of these areas to focus on. Below you will find some general information about the two events.
- CX (aka Policy) Debate:
- At one end of the spectrum, policy debate is a very rigorous format which requires a great deal of research, leaving the student an expert on a specific area. Students across the country will be preparing for and debating on a single, broad topic selected by the National Forensic League for the entire academic year. Topics vary widely by year; however, all topics are about big picture issues that policy makers consider, such as how to protect the marine environment, US support of UN Peacekeeping Operations, deployment of US troops in bases abroad, etc. The result of having a single year-long topic that is standardized across the country is that students become experts in the topic, and a well-prepared student will be familiar with many hundreds of pages of research material on the topic.
- Policy debate is a two on two format; a student and one partner compete against other teams of two students at tournaments (teams of two students competing against one another).
- In general, evidence (researched material) will always outweigh analytic arguments. Debates about the credibility of sources are common, and teams build “cases” solely from the research that they have done (although many debate “squads” write cases as a group and multiple teams from the same school might argue essentially the same case).
- (information from: https://snfi.org/select-the-right-program)
- LD (Lincoln-Douglas) Debate:
- Lincoln Douglas (LD) debate is generally about questions that are of a deeper moral or philosophical nature. Here, the debate will be about "big issue" or moral questions such as whether we should prioritize security or liberty, whether the US should intervene in foreign countries to protect human rights, etc. The topic changes every two months, and is standardized across the country. Whereas arguments of pragmatics often are effective in policy debate, LD is more often about the principles and philosophy, and an LD case is structured around a philosophical objective, with arguments supporting why that objective ought be valued over all else (for example, security is most important, and then principled arguments explaining why that is the case). There is a lesser research burden for LD versus policy debate, and an LD case is often substantially written by a student, with pieces of quoted research brought in at strategic locations (as opposed to a policy case being all about the evidence).
- LD debate is the only format that is one-on-one. Some students prefer this style for the ability to control your own destiny, as you win or lose based solely on your own arguments as opposed to also relying on a partner. (information from: https://snfi.org/select-the-right-program)
- Speaking Drill with www.spreeder.com
- Spreeder.com is a free online speed reading software designed to improve your reading speed and comprehension.
- As always, please email me with any questions you might have-cavalos@godleyisd.net.
Week 1, Day 1Objective: Discuss classroom expectations, policies, and procedures.
Welcome back and welcome to Debate!
- Welcome!
- About Me
- As you can see, the teacher in the room is NOT Mrs. Avalos. Senor Galvan will be your sub for the first six weeks of the school year. I celebrated the birth of my second baby girl, Ellie Faith Avalos, on August 8th. I expect to return on Monday, October 6th. This means that the first six weeks will be a little different than what you're probably used to, but Senor Galvan and I will be working very closely together to make the first six weeks as close to "normal" as possible. Senor Galvan was my Spanish I, II, and III teacher when I went to school in Godley. He is an amazing teacher and I feel very blessed to have him as my sub.
- A lot of this class will be taught through this blog. That means that you are actually going to have to READ my blog. I will try to be very thorough when writing my blog out, but that means that it will probably be long. Hang in there because more than likely, if you have a question, I have attempted to answer it on here.
- Alaina McGuffee is the debate team captain this year. She will be leading the class a lot, especially during these first several weeks. Please show her your utmost respect.
- About Debate
- This class requires a significant commitment. Our "season" begins in August and will end with NSDA (National Speech and Debate Association) Nationals in June. We will not have a tournament every weekend, but we do participate in a lot of tournaments. Although you do not have to participate in EVERY tournament, the more you go to, the better you'll do. There will be a minimum number of tournaments that you will have to participate in each semester (to be announced.) Failure to meet that minimum will result in failing the class. I understand that you are (more than likely) involved in other extra curricular activities. I will do my best to work with you and your busy schedule. However, other activities are not valid reasons for not meeting the minimum number of tournaments in a semester. If you are not prepared to make the time commitment to debate, please get a schedule change request form. I hate to be blunt, but I want to make sure you are in this for the long haul. Debate is a ton of fun, but it is also a lot of work.
- Chrome Books
- Bring your CHARGED chrome book to class EVERY DAY!
- Take care of it!
- Bookmark my blog in Google Chrome.
- Class Syllabus and Constitution
- Found under the Forms/Documents tab at the top of the blog.
- Go over this and email me with any questions you might have-cavalos@godleyisd.net.
